BMW 320D - the 57MGP wonder on Diesel

I do believe that there is a serious negative perception about diesel in the US and combined with low availability of diesel pumps/stations + higher cost/gallon - There seems no incentive to move to diesel.<p>I am no expert but how does diesel stack up against gasoline on the environmental front ?

Diesels are great engines, but hard to come by in the US. In Europe the majority of cars, from small ones to big limousines have Diesel engines these days.<p>The most vexing problem, particulate emissions, has been solved with particulate filters, that burn of the collected particulate cake occasionally, by heating it up to 600 C.<p>In the US Diesel cars are only available from VW and Mercedes. Due to the recent availability of low sulfur Diesel fuel in the US, new models have come onto the market. VW offers the Jetta and Touareg with the latest technology (common rail) Diesel engines. These are direct-injection turbo-charged, and have excellent fuel economy.<p>However, I've heard that due to fleet emissions standards, VW will only be selling Diesels for a few years. Which is probably true for Mercedes as well.<p>Personally, I've been driving Diesels forever, and love the efficiency and torque you get from them.<p>[EDIT] This article gives a good overview of the state of Diesel in the US: <a href="http://www.popularmechanics.com/blogs/automotive_news/4235586.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.popularmechanics.com/blogs/automotive_news/423558...</a>

I routinely get 40-45 MPG on the highway in my 2003 VW Jetta TDI with an automatic transmission while driving between 70-80 mph with the air conditioning running at max. I have never had a problem with diesel fuel quality or availability.<p>My choice of a diesel was not simply to achieve a lower fuel cost per mile. Maintenance costs and reliability are also better due to the lack of certain systems within a diesel engine (i.e. no spark plugs, alternator, etc.).

Bought a 2009 VW Jetta TDI in April and have yet to have a tank of diesel that will cause my average MPG curve to have a negative slope. Coming from an 1986 Mercedes 300 SDL who would soot at ever pedal stomp, I cannot find a way to make an exhaust soot cloud in the TDI, even under 0-60 race conditions. Diesel prices have been less than mid/premium unleaded in California since I bought the car.

Let's remember that the testing cycles in Europe and the US are not the same, and that the 57 MPG number isn't explained (well, I just skimmed... but a search didn't find much).<p>Is it a combined or just highway rating?<p>In general, the EU cycle gives numbers 30% higher (and even more if you forget to convert imperial gallons back to US gallons).<p>So while diesel has benefits, lets be careful with the numbers.

Does anybody else feel that stuck-in-the-mud-ness increases for every technological generation? Seems the more thing advance, the more people say "right, THIS is how it should be" and never want to move on. Diesel cars are a good example. FFS, the automobile is less than a century old for the normal person. And yet, people have these ridiculous ideas about what is the "normal" fuel to put in them. And are thus resistant to superior technology.<p>Also, it is MPG, not MGP.

why aren't we getting euro diesels in the us?