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Date:         Wed, 17 Mar 2004 13:31:11 -0600
Reply-To:     "Donald Baxter / Iowa City, Iowa" <onanov@MINDSPRING.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         "Donald Baxter / Iowa City, Iowa" <onanov@MINDSPRING.COM>
Subject:      Re: User friendly fuels (was you fixed it..)
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

I pretty much smelled like diesel the entire time I owned my 52 hp Dasher (Passat) Diesel from 1981 to 1984. It was a running joke. The fuel is ubiquitous and although i think VW has done an admirable job isolating the cabin from the smell in the newer cars--i still smell diesel and my friend's 2003 Jetta TDI.

As far as the environmental benefits are concerned, I still think they're mixed. Particulate matter is still significant and we don't really know what that does to the environment and animal (including human) health. We suspect particulate from diesels is carcinogenic--specifically, it may cause lung cancer and that's usually a terminal illness. Granted, diesel drivers are generally consuming less fuel at least--but does that mean it causes less polution of a certain kind? I just don't know.

One of the things that concerns me is fragility of the rubber timing belt on such a high tolerance engine. What's the replacement interval for these things? It was 40,000 miles, then 60,000. I broke a rubber timing belt on a 16V gas (at 38,000 miles, mind you) and got lucky--no damage (happened on decellaration). There is no such thing as luck when these things break on a diesel given their high compression ratios.

Noise? Well, it's less of a problem on new diesels. Anyone remember the old Isuzu I-Mark diesel ads in the early 80s showing a VW Rabbit starting up with its fisherman driver waking up the whole neighborhood (all the neighbors house lights go on) to take off at 4 a.m? The next scene showed the same fisherman in an Isuzu I-Mark driving away with no lights going on in the surrounding houses: "the Isuzu Diesel: it's how to keep up with the Jones while not waking up the Smiths."

My '81 Dasher was sufficiently loud enough that my roommate told me that my cats would go to the window when i drove up because they knew it was me from the sound. My neighbor had a five-cylinder Volvo 240D (VW-Audi engine with the same characteristics) and the cats ran to the window when she drove by too--regardless of whether i was home or not. I guess they thought I had a clone.

Still, if my municipality of Iowa City would enforce our noise regulations against motorcycles, specifically our very loud Harley community (and how obnoxious are they? Loud pipes don't save lives--but they may just wake the dead.) maybe someone around here might get sensitive about diesels.

Donald Baxter '85 Vanagon GL '96 Passat GLX (and not a rubber timing belt among these vehicles--pushrods and chains!) Iowa City

----- Original Message ----- From: "Robert Keezer" <warmerwagen@HOTMAIL.COM> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM> Sent: Wednesday, March 17, 2004 11:38 AM Subject: User friendly fuels (was you fixed it..)

> For all the merits of Diesel, it has some big drawbacks still. I like the > economy and versatility(ie, veg oil etc.) > > However, it is not popular here in the US for several reasons that have > nothing to do with economy or big oil conspiracy. > > I don't work for big oil, but if it wasn't for "big oil", we wouldn't be > having this discussion I might point out. > > First, the fuel. It is not user friendly. It evaporates slowly and stains > permanently. So if you spill some on your shoes or dress you will smell it > all day .I don't like the smell of Diesel fuel-maybe it's an aquired taste.


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