Hybrids threatened by new gas engine technologies

[husker boxster]

And Ford wonders why they're hemorrhaging cash? Do they make DFI available on their Focus so they can compete with Toyota and Honda? No, they put it on their biggest and ugliest vehicle ever trying to boost its sales. They don't get it. I used to bleed Ford blue but I've got no use for the behemoths they're pandering.

And why don't auto manufacturers sell diesels here in the US? I've heard / read various reasons (see below), but they seem stupid to me. Does anyone know why?

Are any of these true?
1. Our refineries are only capable of creating enough diesel for 18 wheeler consumption. We need more refineries and that's not happening. Without a ample supply of diesel, manufacturers aren't going into that market.

2. US regulations are stricter than in Europe, making it less feasible for diesels vs gas engines.

3. GM killed the US diesel mkt with their ill-fated '79 & '80 gas engine-converted-to-diesel which broke cranks at an alarming rate. (They really hurt the mkt but people surely wouldn't remember something that happened 30 yrs ago.)

It seems we read / see / hear about all these great diesels in Europe and there's not a chance they'll come stateside. What a shame. I recently saw a TV ad for a VW diesel. Maybe they'll jump-start the sales here in the US.

[geoff]

I'm surprised nobody pointed out the 2008 Cayennes all have direct injection. I bought an '08 Cayenne S last May. Plenty of power, and from what I can tell, much better mileage than the first gen non-DFI ones earlier. I've been shocked to get a hair over 20 MPG on the highway at 75+ MPH, while the window sticker estimates 19 on the highway. Stop and go commute mileage is usually around 16+, which isn't bad for a very heavy, high performance SUV. No reliability problems so far in the first 12K miles. I'm sold on DFI technology based on this experience

[pbanders]

re: Ford - they have really great versions of the Focus with the latest engine efficiency technology in the EU - but not available here. BMW - only recently is bringing their high efficiency diesel models to the US. VW - only offers a limited selection of their efficient models to the US. I'm sure the same is true of nearly every major player in the EU auto market.