Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

[MetalGrasshopper]

What are the benefits/pitfalls of each? I'm looking to buy a new pickup truck and I'm not sure which I should opt for.

[Ace]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

Diesel can run on biodiesel, a HUGE plus.

[Accept2]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

Diesel has low end torque. Good for hauling. In fact it is often thought that only real trucks have diesel engines............

[the_drip]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

diesal is loud and annoying. But is great when mixed with the proper fertilizers.

[Cleveland Metal]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

Nothing like longterm inhalation of diesel fume to make you hurl...

[Chuckracer]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

Diesel is great if you are always pulling a big trailer or hauling huge loads.
If you're just gonna drive it to work, get gas.

[Ace]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

Diesel also tastes a LOT worse than gasoline. It leaves an oily film in your mouth and on your skin, while gasoline evaporates from your skin quickly and gets you high as hell!!

[MetalGrasshopper]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

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diesal is loud and annoying.

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I know...its one of the reasons why I'm considering one.

[Immortal]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

Diesel engines use its horsepower more for pulling, while gasoline engine has horsepower for speed and torque. Also, if you want to have a comparable performance of both engine, you have to charge your diesel engine with a supercharger or turbocharger to get almost the same torque and horsepower than with gasoline engine.

Also, diesel engines make more pollution with the soot. The soot is the common problem at diesel engines, because unnecessary soot isn't burned out while running engine at normal RPM rate like with gasoline engine. When you're pushing the diesel engine to higher RPM's (or you turn the car on, while the engine is completely cold), you get that soot curtain in the back from the exhaust.
The diesel fuel also has hard pieces in it, that's why you have to change your oil and filters more often.
Diesel engine is also very loud, newer diesel engines have disgusting smell of exhaust and they sound like someone would pounding plastic coated metal with a baseball bat. Awful to me, really ...

And yes, because the diesel engines pump the fuel by pressure (you don't hear the buzzing - no gas pump - when your car is in stand-by mode) and the diesel can freeze during the winter time, there's no possible way to get that tractor running in that time of the year, if it gets really cold, unless you add some petrol to diesel fuel. Also, diesels are very rough when driving cold and the engine gets warmer very slowly, because they don't have sparking plugs on cylinders. The fuel ignites because of well compressed air.

But, diesel engines are more reliable (if you're not too much into car techs), because they're more "I-don't-know-how-to-use-clutch-and-gas-parallelly"-proof. They're also ready to take bigger mileage than gasoline engines, but also, if you don't know how to deal with the car.

Of course, they cost less, but I wouldn't have a diesel for nothing. If it fell from the sky, I would probably sell it and buy a gasoline engined car.

But that's just me.

[Thrust]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

Well,

I've had my first diesel coming up on one year in a few months. The reason I chose diesel is due to the avaliablilty of upgrades (turbo motor). I have a new 04.5 Ram w/ the Cummins. Right now I have approximately 325hp and 610 ft/lbs. of torque stock. With some easy (plug-n-play) modification it should be easy to get roughly 500hp and 900-1000 ft.lbs. of torque.

Diesel engines are very different creatures from their gasoline counterpart. Diesel's operate at very high compression (they don't even have sparkplugs perse) and the maintenance requirements are totally different from that of gasoline.

Benefits: Torque, Easy to modify, Torque, Durability/Longevity (300k miles is no problem), Torque, Higher resale value, sound, smell, fuel economy.

Negatives: Engines are expensive (same truck w/ a diesel will be several $k more), maintenance schedule (12 qts. of oil, 10k mile fuel filter change, etc.), fuel avaliablity (not all stations carry diesel), etc.

[LouSiffer]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

Gas engines will not make the low end torque a diesel will. Diesels obviously are better suited to hard labor such as pulling. Keep in mind, upkeep on a diesel is more expensive. You do not have standard tune-ups like changing spark plugs, however, oil changes generally cost twice as much than a gas engine.

If you live in a climate that gets cold in the winter, you will need a block heater to keep the oil thin enough to be pumped through the motor ( Diesel engines generally use 15W40 weight)that you will need to plug in anytime the truck is going to be sitting for a period of time. You will also need to keep an anti-gelling additive in the tank at all times in the winter ( again, provided you live in a cold winter climate).

However, performance upgrades effect the diesel engines in a much more positive manner than gas. You can pay $200.00 for a programmer for a gas engine to unlock about 30 HP if you are lucky, or you can spend $300-400 for a diesel programmer and unlock about 150 HP and about 200 ft lb of torque.

The diesel will be louder than gas. However, it will also have a higher resale value and be more dependable. Diesel engines generally go twice as long between overhauls than gas engines.-Lou

[442w30]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

Diesel (high torque)= Low RPM + Great Mileage + great resale
Gas (high speed) = High RPM + High HP + Bad Mileage

Diesel + 4000 on your initial sticker (for trucks) but the resale is ALWAYS better

Diesel used to be cheaper than gas, but harder to find. Now it is slightly more expensive.

The bottom line is that if you drive a diesel and can take the noise, sooty exhaust, and want to drive 200+ thousand miles and get 19+MPG (not towing) then get a diesel. If you are towing - get a diesel.

Be aware that the initial cost is higher, the gas stations are less common, and if you run out of gas, it's not as simple as just refilling the tank and moving on. We're talking a nice size bill to fix it.

The new diesel trucks (dodge in particular)are quiter than in the past, but if you get up early or come home late you'll piss off the neighbors.

[necrotechno]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

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Gas engines will not make the low end torque a diesel will.

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Depends on the transmisson. I got a Ford F-350 last year to replace my old F-250. I wanted the engine that pickup had in it, a gas 460. They don't make a gas engine that big anymore, so I had to get the Powerstroke Diesel. Ford offers a V-10 (still smaller than the 460), but on paper at least it doesn't have as much torque as the diesel.

I love the power of the new transmission, hate the noise of the new engine. But it's better than it was just a few years ago, and I hear there's an aftermarket computer chip you can install to make it quieter. I trust a diesel more to sit there and idle without overheating, so I can take my dogs with me more places in the summer and leave the A/C running for them. Fuel consumption is about the same as the 460, 15-20 MPG. Although diesel has been running a few cents higher than even premium gas here lately.

[Razor]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

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Be aware that the initial cost is higher, the gas stations are less common, and if you run out of gas, it's not as simple as just refilling the tank and moving on.

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Kerosene works if you're in a pinch, and it won't harm the motor if done once in a blue moon. [img]/images/graemlins/idea2.gif[/img]

The biggest killer I see to diesel motors is the lack of maintainence on the glow plugs, and when they get weak people always start using ether to start them especially when it gets cold. Even when the glow plugs work properly I still see a lot of people who are too lazy to use the built in block warmer and the glow plugs for five minutes to properly start a diesel. They take the easy way out with the ether, and over time and over spray of that stuff will do severe internal damage to a diesel.

[Immortal]

Re: Gasoline vs. Diesel engines

It is not recommended to run your diesel on anything else than diesel fuel.

Okay, everything could work - from kerosene, natural oil of sunflower after you made some french fries in it, to gas oil, used for the house warming. But keep in mind, that the diesel fuel is more clean and has less hard pieces than all other (except for gasoline, but you cannot use it). You can fuck up your filters in a second. Is it worth for a couple of miles to ruin your fuel intake pipes and filters?