Monday, November 10, 2008

Gas Fuel vs. Diesel Fuel

Cost
One advantage gas has over diesel is cost. Diesel costs more because of its higher compression ratios resulting in high cylinder pressure in their engines.
In addition, other parts that are more expensive due to the upgrades are the thicker block and cylinder heads, pistons, crankshaft and valves.
As a result, people choose the less expensive gas over diesel.
Fuel cost
Gas is harder to refine, takes more time to get from raw petroleum to final product than diesel. However, even in theface of all this, diesel and gas remain the same in price except for regular unleaded gas, where diesel is priced a bit lower. Yes, there is such a thing as cheap diesel fuel.
Noise and vibration
Clearly gas has the advantage here. While it can hardly be noticed when a gas engine is running, diesel engines are very loud and shake tremendously, despite recent noise improvements in trucks' engine noise.
Cold weather
Gas engines are far easier to start on cold days. Gas engines have spark plugs, where the fuel ignites as soon as it's injected into the cylinder, which is already under pressure. The air must be hotter to ignite the diesel engine on cold days.
Maintenance
Once again, gasoline powered vehicles hold a great advantage over diesel powered ones. They have longer service periods due to spark plugs, engine oil and antifreeze. Diesel vehicles suffer due to more oil in the engine and because of fuel filters and water separators need more servicing.
In conclusion, it all comes down to what you're going to do to your vehicle. If you want quick, fast acceleration and if you hardly handle loads, you'll want to buy a gas vehicle. Especially if you don't want to keep your vehicle past 100,000 miles.
It runs smoother, is easier to find and is easier to start in cold weather.
Now, if you're going to tow, going a lot of miles and like good fuel economy, then diesel is for you. Take note that diesel vehicles cost more than gas vehicles. If that doesn't concern you, then so be it. For trucks, diesel is by far the
superior choice for those who like to haul heavy loads on a frequent basis.

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