GJS - yow

Audi has diesels in almost the full line in other markets - so it is not like this is new technology. In the US, "the TDI model represent 50 percent of overall A3 sales and nearly 40 percent of Q7 sales. For Audi, the success of the diesel was unexpected but welcoming." (from Audi to "more than double" its lineup of clean diesel models in U.S.). For the Q7, the marketing 'geniuses' at Audi USA estimated it would be 10% of sales.

Basically, this illustrates that the naysayers are wrong. Will diesel sales exceed gasoline sales for passenger cars, as they do in some countries in Europe? Unlikely. Will diesel sales rise to more than a couple per cent of the North American passenger car market? Absolutely.

It is interesting to note that despite the assertions of others, the emergence of diesels in North America is not limited to VW and the three luxury car makers (Audi, BMW, MB). Mazda is bringing its SKYACTIV-D diesel engine in 2012, which complies with global emissions regulations (Euro6 in Europe, Tier2Bin5 in North America, and the Post New Long-Term Regulations in Japan), without expensive NOx aftertreatment (i.e. no need for AdBlue).

cheeba

Haha, Saki, you quoted the exact lines that reinforce what I said. Try reading posts literally, rather than assuming that there are implicit premises in them.

GJS, in the last couple of years many manufacturers have been planning to bring diesel to NA - Honda, Mitsubishi, and Subaru to name a few.

I know that I'm in the minority, but when I've bought diesel vehicles in the past, I didn't do so because it was more economical in the long-term, but because they were what I wanted and they used so many less resources than their gasoline counterparts (Jetta and Golf in my case). It irks me that no one puts a dollar figure on the fact that you're using less resources when choosing a diesel.

GJS - yow

Although I am not a tree-hugger, I do recognize that the supply of energy on our planet is not infinite. My preference for diesel is because

1. they consume less fuel
2. the cost of fuel is only going one way in the long term
3. they are really fun-to-drive (try it - you'll like it!)

If they reported CO2 emissions in g/km as they do in Europe, people **might** see that economics is only one part of the decision making.

I have driven many diesel cars in the UK and Europe and have enjoyed them all. I think the BMW 335d Super Bowl ad might alter people's preconceived ideas...

cheeba

I hear ya', GJS! I'm not a tree-hugger either, but I do miss getting 1300KM to a 50L tank I've seriously considered putting a TDI into my TT, but I just can't touch my minimum power goals without investing a ridiculous amount of money. When I have the time and resources, I will be building a ridiculous AWD diesel sports car. Who can say no to 50MPG and 12-second flat quarter miles?

Clyde

What I got from the article is that it's mostly "Barbie" perceptions that are preventing diesels from becoming more popular. Math is hard for North Americans, especially those south of the 49th (sorry folks). TDI Q5 would be an incredible package, assuming it's the 3.0TDI which I have in my Touareg right now. Good mileage, lots of power. The only down side has been 2 water pumps failing, which is endemic on the 3.0, 3.2 liter VAG family of motors, and the adblue is an inconvenience, especially when the tank's full, the gauge says otherwise and no parts are available from the mfg. It's really no fun driving a shitbox rental for 3 months in the winter when you want that quattro. In my neck of the woods diesel is readily available as lots of farm trucks and trucks in general use it. Farm diesel is about 70 cents a litre and I've been burning it for over 25 years in trucks, wouldn't have it any other way. At one time, diesels weren't really suitable for smaller vehicles but they are eminently so now. Wake up Barbie!

jb747

What's overkill about it? I took delivery of my 3 TDI Q5 a couple of weeks ago and love it.