It seems to me that diesel is in serious trouble as a fuel for cars.
London had a pollution warning issued by the Mayor on 1st December, and the press / media were all going on and on (really!) about diesel vehicles being the main cause.
I appreciate heavy goods vehicles need diesel engines, although I think they will increasingly be hit by pollution / congestion zone charges in our cities, but everything I hear and read tells me that diesel cars are likely to be taxed off the roads very soon, certainly in the next few years.
Nearly all my clients are asking me to help them buy petrol cars and people are increasingly asking about hybrid (petrol / electric) & pure electric vehicles.
I read the letters in to Honest John every week, both in the Telegraph and on his website, and am amazed by how many people are asking him and his team about replacing diesel vehicles with either petrol or electric ones.
So-called ‘Dieselgate’ seems to have started a new and developing consciousness that diesels are not only bad for the environment but also for those that drive them – contrary to popular belief, those inside the car are more exposed to the poisonous nitrogen oxide emissions than anyone else.
I’ve always preferred petrol (personal choice rather than being on an emissions high horse crusade) and now small petrol turbos are almost as economical as diesel engines and emitting less carbon dioxide than ever before, as well as having far lowered nitrogen oxide emissions than the equivalent diesel. Euro 6 emissions standard for diesels are much, much cleaner, but have probably come too late!
Small petrol engines are to grow and grow in popularity but I also think hybrid and electric vehicles will start to increase exponentially very soon. They are the way forward.
Goodbye diesel?