Diesel sales down 21.7%

[VicParticipant @vic]

looks like the penny has finally dropped.

**LINK**

They said on the news Petrol sales slowed by 1.2% over the same period.

[VicParticipant @vic]

[Chris Evans 6Participant @chrisevans6]

I think this reflects a general downturn in the way people buy/fund their cars. With interest rates about to go up many families will not have the disposable income to fund a "PCP".

As for diesels I have run vehicles with a diesel engine up front for nearly 40 years and would still buy a new diesel.50 plus MPG from a Mondeo estate and a lovely torque curve suits me.

[VicParticipant @vic]

Diesel car values also plummet by up to 26% in less than a year.

**LINK**

[SamsarandaParticipant @samsaranda]

The sooner they reach zero the better, my vested interest is a wife who suffers majorly with asthma, and hers is triggered and made much worse with diesel fumes. The lies of those who said it was a clean fuel have been well and truly exposed.

Dave

[Phil WhitleyParticipant @philwhitley94135]

The diesel "fuel" is the problem, they should be run on vegetable oil, as Rudolf Diesel originally designed them to use, not diesel fuel derived from mineral oil.

[Brian OldfordParticipant @brianoldford70365]

Posted by Phil Whitley on 05/10/2017 19:44:16:

The diesel "fuel" is the problem, they should be run on vegetable oil, as Rudolf Diesel originally designed them to use, not diesel fuel derived from mineral oil.

You can tell when you're following one using veggie oil. It smells like a mobile chippy.

[Peter G. ShawParticipant @peterg-shaw75338]

The trouble with diesels, apart from the health problems which I do not denigrate by the way, is that it has been obvious for four or five years now what is going to happen, eg dual mass flywheels, exhaust gas thingies, diesel particulate filters etc. We have had two diesels, a Peugeot 405 tdi, and a Focus tdi with the Peugeot being the older design of engine. The Focus proved to be very unreliable so 4 years ago we went back to petrol.

Like Chris above, I too like the old diesel torque curves, but am not prepared to put up with the increasing maintenance costs being heaped on diesels. Having said that, I've surprised an owner of a VW Passat diesel when I popped the present Avensis 1.8 petrol into 6th on an uphill slope at just over 40mph and proceeded to accelerate. Apparently his car would not have done that.

Peter G. Shaw

[RobinParticipant @robin]

I've never had a diesel, but I am starting to feel the need for a small van. I think vans are usually diesels so I might give one a go, so long as I can keep my beloved Civic

[Ady1Participant @ady1]

The new Euro 6 diesels are very good, there could be a few serious bargains around if the market goes tits up

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Posted by Phil Whitley on 05/10/2017 19:44:16:

The diesel "fuel" is the problem, they should be run on vegetable oil, as Rudolf Diesel originally designed them to use, not diesel fuel derived from mineral oil.

Not true, he may have used vegetable oils, but his patent discusses gaseous fuels and petroleum as well as stating:

"My method of working the fuels may be carried out with any kind of fuel, whether solid, liquid, or gaseous."

[modeng2000Participant @modeng2000]

I now run a Euro 6 Mercedes and also have the asthma problem. Throughout my working life I drove a lot in peak times and can honestly say that I never noticed the connection between diesel and breathing problems.

[Antony PowellParticipant @antonypowell28169]

As with a lot of things lack of maintenance is a big issue, people insist on skipping services or only having one service when the MOT is due regardless of miles covered or how it's driven.

Dirty air filters and lack of oil changes makes diesels (and petrol's) pollute far more than they should !!

saying that so called pollution free electric vehicles are the future for personal transport. (depends upon how the charging electric is generated)

car drivers have always been the easy target yet airlines are allowed to pollute far more in a day than all cars do in a year (roughly)

[Clive HartlandParticipant @clivehartland94829]

Peter, I am surprised about your Passat friend and it's hill climbing, I can accelerate all the way up a hill with mine.

It takes it in it's stride and only my own sense stops me from exceeding high speed up hill.

Clive

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by Antony Powell on 06/10/2017 08:43:23:

…

car drivers have always been the easy target yet airlines are allowed to pollute far more in a day than all cars do in a year (roughly)

It's not just the volume that matters, it's where it happens. A problem with cars compared with aircraft is that cars pollute at ground level inside towns and cities. And geography often makes car pollution much worse because many settlements are in poorly ventilated valleys. It's the unhappy concentration of pollution and people together that makes cars a target.

What's really annoying is that the pollution produced by your and my car really is trivial. It's the other 30,000,000 on British roads that need sorting out. My solution is simple: other people must not be allowed to drive.

Dave

[Ady1Participant @ady1]

There's actually a huge amount of waste in the system, people driving about because they are bored and the TV is rubbish, especially at night

I was on public transport when the petrol delivery strike at Grangemouth was going on in Jockland and people only drove when they had to

The reduction in road traffic was mind boggling, amazing numbers of people must simply drive round in circles on a normal day, doing nothing in particular

In the evenings the roads were like a scene from the day of the triffids film

Stick fuel up to 15 quid a gallon, that'll sort them out

[RobinParticipant @robin]

I get these TIA mini-stroke things which automatically cancel my car insurance for a month and put me off the road.

It's like a holiday, everyone else has to drive but not me. The dog walk starts at my front door. Her indoors has to do the shopping while I get chauffeur driven, Bliss

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

I got 70mpg on the motorway in a big diesel hire car last week while my 850cc petrol engine only gets 60 (20yre old design). I think the answer is hybrid since the problem is only really in cities.

WRT reduced traffic during strikes the problem is people are allowed a few days off or working at home but not permanently. I am allowed only 2 days a week at home and have to go to the office often pointlessly. If it were only when actually necessary like it was with my old boss I could halve my fuel use, and time in traffic jams.

[KWILParticipant @kwil]

I am sorry modeng2000, if I stand anywhere near a diesel it reduces me to a coughing, gasping mess. Personally I would rather be poisoned by petrol than choked by diesel!

[martin perman 1Participant @martinperman1]

Posted by Antony Powell on 06/10/2017 08:43:23:

As with a lot of things lack of maintenance is a big issue, people insist on skipping services or only having one service when the MOT is due regardless of miles covered or how it's driven.

Dirty air filters and lack of oil changes makes diesels (and petrol's) pollute far more than they should !!

car drivers have always been the easy target yet airlines are allowed to pollute far more in a day than all cars do in a year (roughly)

I drive a two litre diesel, which is repaired when needed and serviced when needed, the service is once a year well inside the recommended mileage which would normally be once every two years based on my annual mileage, when used the car is towing a trailer with a decent load upto 200 miles so the vehicle is made to work. So how often should a car be serviced.

Martin P

[SamsarandaParticipant @samsaranda]

Modeng2000 I think that the reason you can be near diesels without it triggering your asthma is because there are different triggers with different people, unfortunately my wife's triggers are diesel fumes, cigarette smoke and certain pollens, there are other things that can trigger her attacks. Have lost count of the number of times she has travelled to hospital in an ambulance to bring her breathing back under control, hence my comment about diesel sales.

Dave

[Cornish JackParticipant @cornishjack]

Surprised that noone has, so far, mentioned the statistics compiled for the "More or Less" programme on the Beeb – "The 16 largest marine bulk carriers produce MORE pollution than ALL the world's motor vehicles put together" !!

OK, so it's statistics manipulation in essence (as are all the other hysterical reactions) but, the fact remains, ships use "bunker fuel" which is the filthiest , most air polluting of all the distillates and what is heard of it?? "Nah, don't bovver wiv ships, mate – they're out at sea an out of sight, ain't they". Still, if the great unwashed are wittering on about the evils of diesel pollution they won't have time to notice the REAL problems we're facing!!

rgds

Bill

[MWParticipant @mw27036]

Posted by Cornish Jack on 06/10/2017 14:31:17:

Surprised that noone has, so far, mentioned the statistics compiled for the "More or Less" programme on the Beeb – "The 16 largest marine bulk carriers produce MORE pollution than ALL the world's motor vehicles put together" !!

OK, so it's statistics manipulation in essence (as are all the other hysterical reactions) but, the fact remains, ships use "bunker fuel" which is the filthiest , most air polluting of all the distillates and what is heard of it?? "Nah, don't bovver wiv ships, mate – they're out at sea an out of sight, ain't they". Still, if the great unwashed are wittering on about the evils of diesel pollution they won't have time to notice the REAL problems we're facing!!

rgds

Bill

They do environmentalism in this country for all the wrong reasons. There's almost nothing in the way of incentives to reduce waste.

Michael W

[RobinParticipant @robin]

I don't think you can fuel a car with Orimulsion, even if it is blessed with one of Herr Diesel's little wonders

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by Cornish Jack on 06/10/2017 14:31:17:

Surprised that noone has, so far, mentioned the statistics compiled for the "More or Less" programme on the Beeb – "The 16 largest marine bulk carriers produce MORE pollution than ALL the world's motor vehicles put together" !!

OK, so it's statistics manipulation in essence (as are all the other hysterical reactions) but, the fact remains, ships use "bunker fuel" which is the filthiest , most air polluting of all the distillates and what is heard of it?? "Nah, don't bovver wiv ships, mate – they're out at sea an out of sight, ain't they". Still, if the great unwashed are wittering on about the evils of diesel pollution they won't have time to notice the REAL problems we're facing!!

rgds

Bill

I heard something different and will have to listen to it again! I think the programme investigated a Guardian article that made that claim and debunked it.

If I understood properly, the particular pollutant was Sulphur, and the figures were taken from a 'what will happen if we don't do anything about it study' done in the US. They interviewed the chap responsible who said that the report had resulted in an International Agreement to clean up Bunker Fuel, and as a result, the predicted sulphur pollution never happened. Various other points about the comparison being dubious were made, for example petrol and diesel don't contain a lot of Sulphur in the first place.

But Bill is absolutely right that shipping is a major source of pollution. On the bright side, if bulk carriers were banned it would fix our car pollution problem as well; no oil tankers = no diesel, petrol or lubricants = no cars. Job done! Slightly worrying, it would also mean no agricultural machinery or fertilizers. I might have to eat the cat!

Dave

 

Edited By SillyOldDuffer on 06/10/2017 15:46:44

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