Are Diesel Vehicles Worth the Extra Gas Expense?

Should you buy one of the diesel vehicles being offered, or should you stick to one that operates on gasoline?

This is a question you need to ask and consider when you’re buying a vehicle. In the United States, the only place you’re going to find a diesel engine is in large SUVs and pickup trucks. If you’re not interested in buying one of these workhorses, you’ll look to stick to gasoline for your fuel. On the other hand, if you’re ready to drive a truck or large SUV, you might want to select a diesel model, even though the fuel is more expensive.

The Numbers Tell the Story

Consider the professional reviews of any truck or SUV that has the option of a diesel engine while also offering gasoline engines for your power. You’ll notice the diesel engines are typically smaller, offer the same or better torque numbers than comparable gasoline engines, and offer excellent efficiency. The only drawback when reviewing the numbers is horsepower, which is typically lower for a diesel engine. This is the story of a diesel engine, but so far, it’s just the Cliff’s Notes version.

What are the Advantages of Using Diesel?

Amazing Fuel Mileage

Even when small cars were being offered with diesel engines, the fuel mileage numbers were incredible and much higher than gasoline models. In trucks and SUVs, diesel vehicles continue to offer much better fuel mileage during your drive. This can be extremely important to you when you’re hauling a heavy load several miles every day. The numbers usually show us that the diesel models deliver 25 to 30 percent better fuel mileage than similar gasoline engines. That’s a huge difference and, when calculated with the cost of fuel, puts a diesel model ahead of the gasoline counterpart.

Why does diesel deliver better fuel mileage? The reason for this is the fact that this fuel is more energy-dense than gasoline, making it better when it comes to the fuel mileage and power, especially when you look at the torque numbers.

You Won’t Need to Go in for Tune-Ups

When a diesel engine is under the hood, no spark plugs or distributors are part of the mix, which means you never need to take your truck or SUV in for an ignition tune-up. This is one maintenance visit that your gasoline-driving friends will have to pay for that you will not. Consider this another way that your diesel truck is going to save you money.

These Engines Last a Lot Longer

Why are semi-trucks and large commercial vehicles typically powered by diesel engines? The reason is these engines are built to handle the rigors of higher compression and last much longer than gasoline-powered engines. This results in less need for major repairs. If you have a truck or SUV that’s powered by a diesel engine, you won’t often need repairs or work on the engine. That is certainly a huge advantage for you and your wallet.

Towing Made Better With Diesel

Here’s another invitation to look at some of the professional vehicle reviews and see the comparison of diesel vs. gasoline engines. There’s a reason that big trucks such as the Ford F-350 Super Duty, Chevrolet Silverado 3500HD, and Ram 3500 all use diesel engines as the top offering for torque and power. You can tow a lot more with a large diesel engine than you can with one powered by gasoline. If you’ve got to tow a massive trailer, you’ll be more than happy to have the towing capacity of the large diesel engine that can tow everything you need.

Disadvantages to Driving Diesel Vehicles

Not as Many Options

Until the Dieselgate scandal by Volkswagen, diesel was on the rise and becoming more popular in the United States. This is a fuel that’s used often in Europe, but our stricter emissions regulations coupled with the way that VW cheated, have caused diesel to gain a negative moniker in the market. Today, you can only find a diesel option for some vehicles, but thankfully, that number is growing again, with more large SUVs offering a diesel alternative than ever before.

The Fuel Cost is Higher Now

Certainly, we could get into a long and boring explanation as to why diesel is now more costly than gasoline when it used to be much cheaper, but the simple fact is, diesel is more expensive. If you drive diesel vehicles, you’re going to pay more every time you head to the pump. Hopefully, the fuel mileage you receive will offset this initial added cost. The goal is for you to pay less to drive, but that might not be the case when you balance the cost per gallon of this fuel compared to gasoline.

You Won’t Use Diesel for High-Speed Performance

Even though using this fuel is more efficient than gasoline, it takes longer for a diesel vehicle to reach the desired speed than one powered by gasoline. This could be another reason why this fuel is now only used in trucks and large SUVs; these are vehicles that you don’t expect to have impressive acceleration numbers. You won’t find a sports car that uses diesel because it takes longer to convert heat into energy than it does to use the spark-explosion combustion of a gasoline engine. Don’t expect great acceleration when you use diesel.

Neglected Maintenance Can be More Costly

You do need to pay attention to the maintenance needs of your vehicle, even if you have a diesel engine. Paying a diesel mechanic to fix your truck or SUV can be much more costly than when you pay for repairs to a gasoline engine. Thankfully, if you keep up with the regular maintenance, you can drive diesel vehicles for a long time and not expect to need to visit the mechanic to have your engine repaired.

Will you choose the diesel option the next time you buy a truck or large SUV? You might find that it gives you the advantages you need to get much more work done.