I found this article, which seems to indicate a very slow introduction of Volvo diesel cars to this market....perhaps as a hybrid with electric. But I'm afraid that's too far away for me. Unless that changes very soon I guess I'll have to look elsewhere.
I still don't understand the logic in this...
They assume there is a low demand for diesel here in the U.S., but that data is dated...they have not tested the newer, cleaner and quieter diesels on this market, and they have not taken into consideration the higher cost of fuel which would make diesel efficiency attractive.
From the article (May 2005):
...Though Belec wouldn't elaborate on what "other actions" Ford might take to rebuild profits, she did mention a few of the new products coming.
Next spring Volvo will replace the softtop C70 convertible with a retractable hardtop version for the 2006 model year. Late next year it will add a V-8 engine to the S80 sedan for the 2007 model year.
After that, a raft of new product is coming.
Of the entry-level concept sedan Volvo unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show this year, Belec said "we're still evaluating it." Mention of a possible hybrid got a stay tuned.
The debate over the hybrid is whether it will be a gas/electric or diesel/electric.
Volvo is leaning toward the latter because diesels are in high demand in Europe. However, to make diesel hybrids viable in the U.S., cleaner, lower-sulfur fuel would be needed to meet future emissions regulations.http://www.chicagotribune.com/classified/automotive/columnists/chi-0505040293may04,0,97835.column------------------------------------------------------------------
And apparently they've gotten into some deep water (along with other diesel makers) with the EPA about going around their air quality standards with some added device. But this seems linked mainly to their truck engine division, not their passenger vehicles...though they may be related.
What kind of engine will you be driving following Oct. 1, when new exhaust emissions limits go into effect? Most likely the same one you are now, of course. But if you or your company purchase a new truck after then, it will likely have a more complex diesel equipped with some type of exhaust gas recirculation (EGR).
Most domestic diesel manufacturers, laboring under a consent decree forced on them by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, will use “cooled EGR” to meet the new regs. They cut two key pollutants by 90%; oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHC) will drop to a combined 2.5 grams per horsepower/hour.
Volvo's Swedish-built 12-liter engines (but not the 7-liter diesels, which are being dropped) will have “V-Pulse” EGR, a simple version of cooled EGR that uses the exhaust's normal pulsing pressures to push exhaust gasses back toward the intake side. There a Venturi effect helps mix varying amounts of exhaust gas with inlet air. No VG turbocharger is needed, so few new maintenance procedures will be required. Except for simple reed-valves, the Volvo system has no moving parts.
Extensive field tests of the new equipment began last July, when V-Pulse was announced. Some of Volvo's 12-liter diesels have covered more than 100,000 miles each and returned to Volvo's labs in North Carolina for teardown. A total of 3 million test miles should be covered by the Oct. 1 deadline, the company said during a press conference at MATS.
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