Yesterday we spoke about the search for high performance cars that is also fuel efficient and has low environmental impact. Is there such a thing? What is coming on the horizon? I found one possible answer in a recent issue of the Audi Club magazine Quattro Quarterly. Bluetec Diesel.
Diesel? Does that word, immediately conjure up the black soot generated from a 70s & 80s Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen or GM diesel powered car? Or some of those disgusting smelling, pollution generating older trucks that used to be on the road? Well, it did for me. It took me awhile to wrap my head around the ideal of diesel being environmentally conscious but it seems that the technology around diesel nowadays can make it one of the most desirable fuels of the near future. In Europe, where fuel prices have been astronomical for years and whose emission standards are extremely strict, diesel has been a way of life for decades now. Adding Bluetec to current Audi and VW TDI (turbo diesel injected engines) just makes the already fuel efficient engines more so with added performance. Bluetec is a system of urea injection, particle filters and nitrous oxide reducing catalytic converters licensed from Daimler-Chrysler so that VW/Audi can use the amazing new technology in their newer diesel cars making Bluetec cars the cleanest diesels in the world.
In fact, the Bluetec diesel powered cars are so clean running they meet all European emission standards through 2014 and comply with the very stringent Tier 2 Bin 5 norms set in North America so that the diesel cars can be sold in all 50 states and Canada. These Bluetec engines run clean and extremely efficiently. It also reduces carbon dioxide emissions from the tailpipe and run as quietly as gasoline engines do now. Audi’s Q7 SUV has a 3.0 liter TDI version already being sold in Europe. The new Bluetec version will accelerate as quickly as a V6 gasoline version but use 20-30% less fuel in day to day driving. Some test drivers have reported that the Q7 3.0 liter TDI seems to feel almost as fast as a V8 version of the gasoline powered Q7. Excited? Me too. I can’t imagine a better world than that which has little or no compromise. Where we can be both environmentally conscious as well as enjoying the performance and convenience of cars built for speed and giving the driver the sense of pleasure in the driving experience.
What can you do to reduce your car's emissions and improve fuel efficiency? Tomorrow, some tips on doing your part without the benefit of a hybrid.
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It's so nice to have you do all of the research for us. It makes our decision making so much easier!! Thanks.
Posted by: MBT Shoes | July 18, 2011 at 01:58 AM