A second chance for Diesel?

My neighbor used to drive an old Mercedes diesel powered car. Even though it was a Mercedes I thought it was a piece of junk - not because it looked bad, but because it sounded like a clunker.

Apparently those days are over.

In the 1970s diesel powered cars were semi-popular. They were more fuel-efficient than gas cars, but underpowered. Furthermore, even though they were more fuel-efficient than gas cars, their very inefficient fuel injection systems produced significant amounts of smog causing emissions - and that god-awful clunking sound.

Today, a few new cars have changed that fuel injection inefficiency by adding electronic injection that has significantly reduced emissions, while getting rid of most of the clunk.

The Volkswagon Touareg offers one of the most powerful SUVs on the road and gets 23 mpg on the highway. The Mercedes E320 CDI offers 37 mpg on the highway and goes from 0 to 60 in less than 7 seconds.

While I prefer hybrid cars because they are based on the future of where the automobile is going, these cars do provide a few more options for consumers that care about health, terrorism and the environment.