Diesel News: POST HERE

[Robthebrit]

Scott,

Yikes...I thought that diesel in my truck was big... Here is a link to some info on the same engine..

http://people.bath.ac.uk/ccsshb/12cyl/

Rob

[pskhaat]

Wonder what the lubricant capacity is? Amazing stuff.

[calamaridog]

2009 Model year, 2008 release to coincide with wide availability of low sulfur fuel.

I agree.

[calamaridog]

At my local Toyota Dealer.........
I've had the General Sales Manager.........and a salesman..........both tell me that the Tundra will come with a Diesel Engine in Late 2007.
Could this be true?
I does seem kinda fast to me.
I'm confused why they would tell me this if it's really not going to happen until 2009.

Mark,

It has been, and continues to be, my experience that I know more about the vehicles I'm shopping for than the person trying to sell it to me. Take that for whatever it is worth. I will be shocked if they introduce a diesel to the Tundra lineup before the 2009 model year.

[Scott Brady]

Scott,

Yikes...I thought that diesel in my truck was big... Here is a link to some info on the same engine..

http://people.bath.ac.uk/ccsshb/12cyl/

Rob

WELCOME TO ExPo!

What an awesome mog (crew cab too)

Any pictures of the Mog? Maybe a new thread in the HD section if you have time.

[calamaridog]

Soon we will be seeing more diesel options I think


CLEANER DIESEL FUEL QUIETLY ARRIVES
By CHRIS BOWMAN
The Sacramento Bee

SACRAMENTO - California will reach another big milestone on the road to healthier air this week as suppliers of diesel complete a mandated switch to an ''ultra low-sulfur'' blend.

Remarkably, the sweeping changeover in fuel arrives unheralded by the usual angst or trepidation over engine breakdowns, performance drops and price spikes at the pump.

''It's been very quiet, to the point that we had to publicize that it's taking place,'' said Jerry Martin, veteran spokesman for the state Air Resources Board, which adopted the diesel rule.

Smog regulators demonstrated the new fuel in Sacramento last week by holding a bleached-white handkerchief to the exhaust spout of an idling tanker truck. Sure enough, as news cameras zoomed in, the hanky stayed spotless.

Aesthetics aside, the new fuel promises to greatly reduce harmful emissions from trucks and buses, smog officials said.

The cleaner fuel also paves the way for auto manufacturers to introduce a wide variety of diesel-powered passenger vehicles that otherwise could not meet California's toughest-in-the-nation exhaust standards, according to diesel engine manufacturers.

''You can see them all lining up,'' said Michael Coates, spokesman for the Diesel Technology Forum, a nonprofit industry trade group.

Just last Friday General Motors announced plans to roll out a 360-horsepower turbodiesel in a full-size pickup sometime after 2009. BMW, Volkswagen, Daimler-Chrysler and Ford have similar plans in the works, Coates said.

In addition to delivering more punch than gasoline engines at low speeds, the diesel models would rival today's gasoline hybrids on fuel economy, Coates said.

GM promises that its debut engine will use 25 percent less fuel than a comparable gasoline V8.

California's deadline for the switchover to low-sulfur diesel is Friday. A similar federal rule gives diesel suppliers elsewhere in the nation until Oct. 1.

The regulations limits the sulfur content in diesel to 15 parts per million -- a 97 percent reduction from the current 500 ppm standard.

Sulfur, a naturally occurring component of diesel, is not the chemical of health concern. Rather, the sulfur interferes with pollution control equipment on diesel-powered vehicles.

At current levels, the chemical clogs soot filters and disarms catalytic converters, which destroy smog-forming gases in the exhaust.

Diesel engines produce cancer-causing soot and vastly surpass gasoline-fueled models in emissions of nitrogen oxides, compounds that smudge the skies yellowish brown and form ozone -- the ingredient in smog that irritates the eyes and airways, according to the state air board.

''Realistically, we are not going to eliminate diesel engines any time soon, so we have to clean them up as much as we can," the air board's Martin said.

Nationwide, the cleaner fuel is expected to reduce soot and nitrogen oxide emissions by more than 90 percent in the next three years as truck and bus engine manufacturers phase in models with stronger emissions standards.

When fully implemented, in 2010, the new engine standards will prevent an estimate 8,300 soot-related deaths and tens of thousands of smog-related diseases such as bronchitis and asthma, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

In California, the vast majority of service stations already are selling the cleaner diesel, according to the state air board.

''The public really has not noticed any changeover, though it has mostly occurred,'' Martin said.

That was not hardly the case in previous changeovers to cleaner fuel in California.

Motorists complained of engine knocking for years as the octane-enhancing lead was phased out of gasoline in the late 1970s.

The first reformulation of diesel in 1993, which cut sulfur to 500 ppm from 3,000 ppm, created a storm of protests as the changeover boosted the price at truckers' pumps and caused engine breakdowns and fuel leakage in thousands of big rigs, Martin recalled.

The furor also forced the resignation of the much-respected air board chairwoman, Jananne Sharpless, an appointee of then-Gov. Pete Wilson, Martin said.

Then, in the late 1990s, Wilson's successor, Gray Davis, faced political pressure to phase out the gasoline ingredient MTBE, a compound introduced into California's fuel to replace harmful lead as an octane booster.

As refineries increased the amount of MTBE to replace other harmful components, the additive posed a special environmental threat in gasoline leaks and spills. Highly soluble, MTBE moved far faster underground than any other gasoline ingredients and could pass through purification plants. And at low levels it imparted a solvent-like taste to drinking water.

The state no longer allows MTBE in fuel.

[haven]

The feds require manufacturers to meet the new emissions standards in January 2007, so the USA manufacturers are waiting until that time to offer the cleaner burning engines. They will be marketed as 2008 models.

GM (Isuzu) will offer a new 6.6L Duramax V8
Ford (International) will offer a 6.4L Powerstroke V8
Dodge (Cummins) will offer a 6.7L I6

The manufacturers had to increase displacement a bit to help compensate for the marginally lower energy in the low-sulphur diesel fuel. The power ratings for all these engines is 325+ HP and 650+ lb ft torque.

Exactly how much more we'll have to pay for the cleaner diesels is not known. I've seen estimates ranging from $500 to $5000 more than current models. There will be higher maintenance costs, too, depending on the schedule for replacement of the particulate trap. The catalytic converter should be good for 100,000 miles or more.

High fuel prices = decreased sales of SUVs and light pickups. Every USA manufacturer is scrambling to increase fuel economy. This may mean more V6 diesels.

International already builds a 4.0L V6 version of the Powerstroke. It's used in the Ford and International LCF (low cab forward) delivery vans. Instead of using that V6, however, Ford is thinking about importing a variant of a V6 used in the Range Rover. According to Autoweek, this engine will be 4.4L, and may be installed in the F150 and the Explorer.

GM is also exploring the possibility of making a V6 version of the Duramax.

Mercedes will use their 3.2L V6 Blutec engine (200 hp, 370 lb ft) in the E series sedans, manufactured in Germany. This engine will also appear in the GL SUVs (and also ML?) built in Alabama.

I can't tell for sure if the diesel engine in the new Sprinter van and Grand Cherokee will be a different engine, evolved from other Mercedes truck diesels, or just a variant of the Blutec.

Unfortunately, few companies are talking about developing small four cylinder diesels for the North American market. The only exception is VW, which will introduce a new 2.0L 4 cylinder diesel with 140hp and 200 lb ft in 2008.

Chip Haven

[haven]

after I posted my message I read that GM is showing journalists a Tahoe with a smaller displacement V8 diesel -- "somewhere between 3.0L and 6.0L." So it looks like they won't offer a V6 diesel in a passenger vehicle or light truck.

A diesel V8 is more complicated and expensive than a V6, but I guess people want the V8.

So much of light duty diesel sales is marketing baloney that strokes the male ego (or other parts of the male anatomy). I see dozens of Powerstroke and Cummins powered pickups driving around every day with one occupant and nothing in the bed. The medium trucks doing real work are the cab-forward 4 and 6 cylinder Isuzu and Mitsubishi diesels.

Chip Haven

[goodtimes]

A diesel V8 is more complicated and expensive than a V6, but I guess people want the V8.

There is a poor perception of 6 cylinders in trucks. People think they need a v-8. Never mind that argueably the best diesel engine ever used in a light truck is an inline 6. From the factory they (the B series Cummins) are upwards of 350hp & 650ft/lbs of torque, with 20 +/- mpg in a 7000+ pound truck. Who needs a v8 when you can get the same performance from a I-6, plus have plenty of room under the hood for "fun stuff" (like twin turbo's)?

And to stay on topic....some interesting stuff here:

http://www.dieselforecast.com/

[haven]

Jokes about urea injection aside...

Autoweek is reporting that the EPA is working with auto manufacturers to approve a version of urea injection to control oxides of nitrogen in diesel exhaust. The reason is that a urea injection system costs about $500 less than a system based solely on catalytic converters. The Autoweek article estimates the cost of a catalyst-only system to be $1,400.

Here's the link to the Autoweek article
http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dl.../60828027/1041

I found another article that describes the components in a diesel emissions system. They are:
-- diesel oxydation catalyst
-- NOx adsorber catalyst
-- particulate filter
-- selective reduction catalyst

The urea injection system works like this
--diesel oxydation catalyst
--particulate filter
--urea injection
--selective reduction catalyst

By reducing the number of catalytic converters, the urea injection system saves the manufacturer money, but adds inconveniece to the vehicle owner. The urea system has to be refilled periodically.

Now let's hear the jokes about how to refill the urea system...

Chip Haven