Mercedes already has a diesel in the new E-Class with all electronic fuel injection and controls.

http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/stor...le&dist=google

http://www.bullz-eye.com/carreviews/...z_e320_cdi.htm

30 mpg and 6.2 sec 0-60 is very impressive.


The new dodge 5.7 liter Hemi with variable displacment gets around 25 mpg.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/classi...,753199.column


Now imagine combining both of these two technologies into a diesel engine and making it a hybrid. :D

 

I call utter and total BS on those fuel economy figures. 17 city and 25 highway is likely to translate into something more like 13/18 when you factor in the driving style of someone likely to purchase this vehicle, plus the fact that EPA ratings are pretty much crap to begin with.

And I'm tired of 25 mpg being cited as some kind of impressive fuel economy figure. 1970s land barge station wagons got that kind of highway mileage. Only as a result of this country's unfortunate obsession with SUVs has a number like that come to be regarded as positive.

Variable displacement sounds like a great concept, but how about applying it to a vehicle that has some semblance of efficiency to begin with?

 

Chris, why do you hate freedom?

 

I don't think we're going to see 50 mpg cars (except hybrids) for another 5 years or so. And most likely, they'll be diesels. You can't buy the Passat TDI in California because our diesel gas still does not meet the State's low sulphur requirement.

Plus, the current administration does not support fuel conservation efforts to improve CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency), IMHO.