Diesel fuel may help cure global warming and raise vehicle fuel economy, Ford Chief Operating Officer Nick Scheele has told a panel at the Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress in Detroit.
He says that today’s diesel fuel, though much cleaner than earlier versions that spewed black smoke and gave off a strong odor, does have the drawbacks of high sulfur content and particulate emission, but that should not deter the use of the fuel.
He notes that diesel offers greater fuel economy and faster acceleration than gasoline.
Scheele is so eager to sell the public on diesel, he says Ford will circulate some diesel-powered Focuses to the media and government agencies in hopes of eliciting positive word of mouth.
He says strict air quality regulations in California stand in the way of greater production of diesel-powered vehicles because if they can’t be sold in such a large automotive market, the vehicles would not be profitable enough.
Dr. Gina Solomon, a senior scientist from the California-based Natural Resources Defense Council, says diesel is not a panacea.
“Diesel is toxic to lung functions, and there are dozens of human studies where diesel is linked to cancer, and recent research linked diesel to asthma,” Solomon says.
She did agree that modern diesel fuels have improved, but she remains unconvinced the fuel is not harmful to the environment.
