67 MPG Diesel Ford Focus

[12PACK]

Coming to America? Not.

"America has a diesel phobia, and it is a crying shame because there are some damn good diesel cars sold just across the pond. The latest wish-we-got-it is a 67 MPG (U.S.!) Ford Focus Econetic. Booo….

Ford has shown off the new Focus Econetic ahead of the Amsterdam Auto Show, and this adorable little diesel will get a stunning 80 mpg on the Imperial driving cycle, which translate into about 67 mpg on the U.S. standard. And its not a hybrid. While the 104 horsepower, 1.6 liter Duratorq engine certainly deserves some credit, a lot went into improving the aerodynamics of the Focus including an active grille shudder like that found on the U.S.-spec Focus SFE and the Chevy Cruze Eco.

Also on board for the fuel-efficient ride is a start-stop system, regenerative braking (to charge what exactly??) low-rolling resistance tires and plastic wheel covers that, quite frankly, look hideous. Fuel efficiency at the cost of style…is it worth it? I think I’d sacrficie a few mpg’s for better wheels myself, but alas I won’t get the chance because Ford has made it clear they don’t have plans to bring small diesel engines to America, whether it be their compact cars or their awesome Aussie-built Ranger pickup. Guess we’re stuck with a 40 mpg Focus and ugly wheels…

Again, boooooo."

http://gas2.org/2011/04/06/the-67-mpg-diesel-focus-econetic-the-u-s-can%E2%80%99t-have/

[12PACK]

Another view on that 67 mpg Focus.

"Ford's recent announcement that it will sell an 80-mpg diesel-powered Focus in Europe sent executives in Dearborn, Mich., scurrying under their desks. They dreaded a landslide of letters accusing them of withholding a magical money-saving car from the American public. Because they're not.

The car, called the Focus Econetic, wouldn't get anything approaching an 80 mpg rating in the U.S. It would probably cost thousands of dollars more than the 40-mpg 2012 Focus that just went on sale, and it wouldn't save its owners all that much at the pump.

That's why Ford may never sell the diesel Focus Econetic here.

Here's what you need to consider when you see sky-high fuel economy ratings for cars in Europe:

-They're tested in a completely different way than how the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency tests cars sold here. Not better or worse, just different. Projecting European fuel-economy ratings to the U.S. is like predicting that anyone who wears size 11 shoes will wear a size 42 jacket: the two data points have nothing to do with each other.

-The "gallon" cited in European ratings is an imperial gallon, the measurement used in England. It's 20 percent bigger than a U.S. gallon.

To see just how little relation European fuel economy ratings have to the figures on U.S. window stickers, let's look at the Volkswagen Golf TDI, a diesel compact sold in Europe and America.

VW's British Web site lists its fuel economy at 46.3 mpg in the city, 68.9 on the highway and 58.9 in combined driving. The same car, with the same engine and transmission, rated 30 mpg city/42 highway and 34 combined in U.S. EPA tests.

If you apply that decrease proportionally to the Focus Econetic's 80 mpg, you get a U.S. highway rating of about 49 mpg. That's good, but it's only about 7 mpg more than the Focus that Ford sells here gets.

How much extra would you pay for 7 mpg?

Before you answer, consider that diesel fuel costs less than gasoline in most of Europe. Governments there tax it at a lower rate to encourage drivers to buy more fuel-efficient cars. The average U.S. price for a gallon of diesel this week was $4.13, 31 cents higher than a gallon of regular gasoline.

Further, new emissions standards could make diesel engines thousands of dollars more expensive than gasoline engines.

A good diesel engine offers an exceptional combination of fuel economy and power.

I'd love to see more of them sold in the U.S., but they're not magic, and they won't cure all our problems.

http://www.sacbee.com/2011/04/22/3571920/sky-high-european-gas-mileage.html#ixzz1KIqW6z4i