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Diesel rides again

New engines allow for cleaner emissions and a chance for diesel-powered vehicles to thrive.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published October 18, 2006

HAGERSTOWN, Md. - Diesel engines mainly power trucks, buses and construction equipment in the United States, and they have long been scorned by environmentalists concerned about air pollution.

That dirty image is changing, however, and could spark renewed interest in diesel-powered passenger vehicles.

The auto industry is already transitioning to more advanced engine systems as new rules that went into effect Sunday require fuelmakers to produce a much cleaner diesel that is largely sulfur-free.

At first, these so-called ultra-low sulfur diesel regulations will mostly affect users of heavy-duty engines that are the workhorses of U.S. industry.

But automotive executives say it may not be long before soccer moms across America are driving with diesel.

"It's a proven technology," said Sten-Ake Aronsson, a senior vice president at Volvo Powertrain's plant in Hagerstown, where production of heavy-duty diesel engines has more than doubled - to 300 a day - in the past two years.

In January, automakers will roll out engine systems equipped with exhaust-scrubbing technologies that work in tandem with the cleaner fuel to reduce soot and smog-forming nitrogen oxide emissions.

J.D. Power & Associates expects the U.S. market for diesels to grow from 3.6 percent this year, or about 600,000 vehicles, to about 9 percent in 2013, or 1.66-million vehicles. By 2015, they project diesels to have a 12 percent market share, or 2.2-million vehicles.

Volkswagen AG, which currently leads the U.S. market in diesel passenger vehicles, plans to introduce diesel versions in 2008 that will meet emissions standards in all 50 states.

The automaker currently offers Jetta and Beetle sedans with diesel engines.

David Friedman, research director for the Clean Vehicles Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists, said the cleaner diesels do not represent a "silver bullet" but offer an opportunity, along with hybrids and other clean, fuel-efficient technologies, to make improvements.

"By 2010, we may be able to have a legitimate choice - 'Do I want a gasoline vehicle or a diesel vehicle?' - and both could get higher fuel economy, lead to less global warming and not have to sacrifice public health," Friedman said.

[Last modified October 18, 2006, 00:49:23]