diesel price vs. gas

[SteveInMD]

I drive a 1999 VW Jetta with their TDI diesel. I get 50+ mpg on the highway and a solid 42 in the city. The car cost me $15,999 new.

 

[MikePA]

It is simply that European countries have mandated that car manufacturers must average 40 MPG for all models.... European countries have been paying almost $10 per gallon for fuel for years now which is why the public pushed for the higher gas mileage.

Which is it? European government mandates or people pushing for higher gas mileage vehicles?

It's amazing how often the same thing has to be said. The Europeans have higher fuel prices because of the government imposed taxes which fund public transportation. Customers get what they want, they do not need the government mandating anything. They want vehicles that get higher mpgs and the manufacturers build the vehicles. It happened in the early 70s during the first fuel crisis and Americans flocked to Japanese cars, long before government imposed CAFE standards.

Believing in screwball conspiracy theories only makes people even more vulnerable to politicians who pander to them by promising everything and only achieving yet more government control.

 

[MikePA]

I drive a 1999 VW Jetta with their TDI diesel. I get 50+ mpg on the highway and a solid 42 in the city. The car cost me $15,999 new.

A car that has not been sold in the US for years due to our ridiculous diesel emission standards which render most modern diesels no more efficient than gas models.

 

[SteveInMD]

A car that has not been sold in the US for years due to our ridiculous diesel emission standards which render most modern diesels no more efficient than gas models.

You can buy a TDI Jetta now but it only gets 40 on the highway. The cranked up the horsepower to 210.

 

[MikePA]

They were off the US market for quite a while. The increased hp is not the sole cause for the reduced mileage. Most of it was caused by the diesel emission regs.

 

[SteveInMD]

I agree it's kind of crazy. Since this car burns half the fuel most others do, it can't be putting out that much pollution.

 

[NuBota]

My memory is kinda fuzzy - but didn't diesel start to go up after Katrina hit? I vaguely remember the news saying the "reduced refinery capacity would drive up diesel, heating oil,... blah, blah, blah" in order to shift capacity to maintain gasoline production.

I just seem to remember the price going up shortly after that debacle. Of course, that "news" faded - never heard when we were back to normal capacity - then I heard that ULSD was the reason. Both scenarios now bug me given RobJ's explanation of the processes

I usually don't buy into conspiracy theory - but I could see industry exploiting these types of events to justify increasing profits, "subtle like". Nothing specific comes to mind, but I'm sure there have been cases in history of price fixing like this.

The pansies speculating on Wall Street don't help the situation as a whole, either. Tropical depression forms in the Carribean their panties twist right up along with the price of oil

Disclaimer: Please note I probably have no idea what I'm talking about - my aging brain just adds up the little details I read and hear and forms a collective theory......

 

[Lunk]

There are fuel efficient vehicles the US automakers sell in Europe, as well as other vehicles sold in Europe, which our environmental regulations prevent from being sold here.

Believing in oil company conspiracies doesn't solve anything.

Not so much believing in conspiracies, as much as believing that the oil companies will indeed manipulate diesel pricing to protect immediate profits from the sale of gasoline. True of most any corporation - you protect your profit margins. If you believe that they do not have a vested interest in our continuing to use gasoline rather than switching to something more efficient, then so be it.

It is a free country after all

 

[MikePA]

Not so much believing in conspiracies, as much as believing that the oil companies will indeed manipulate diesel pricing to protect immediate profits from the sale of gasoline.

What does 'immediate profits from the sale of gasoline' mean and how is it different from 'immediate profits from the sale of diesel'? Since they get less diesel out of a barrel of oil, they will charge more.

True of most any corporation - you protect your profit margins. If you believe that they do not have a vested interest in our continuing to use gasoline rather than switching to something more efficient, then so be it.

The oil companies have a vested interest in making profits.

 

[Lunk]

What does 'immediate profits from the sale of gasoline' mean and how is it different from 'immediate profits from the sale of diesel'? Since they get less diesel out of a barrel of oil, they will charge more.

If light-duty diesels became popular in the US, and all of a sudden 40mpg becomes the norm, less fuel consumed equals less profits. Right now those profits are record-breaking ones.

Same reason why there's been foot dragging on new technology - Too much money being made off of the old...

The oil companies have a vested interest in making profits.

BINGO!

I'm not bashing you Mike. I just don't feel that I fit the label of conspiracy theorist. I don't think that we're hiding aliens at Area 51 or that there was a second shooter on the grassy knoll in Dallas either. If anything, I'm just stating what I perceive to be the obvious.

That's the beauty of free-speech I guess.

I agreee with you on the whole EPA screwing up the works with their regulations too. Just ask anyone who owns a late-model diesel truck how his / her mileage compares with pre-2007 regulation models...Some will say "but the engines are more powerful too," but how much power are folks willing to pay for at the pump?

Answer - Check local Dealer ads for the deals available on full-sized anything these days...Now's the time to buy if you can afford to fuel it!