Recent technical developments have considerably improved thegeneral acceptability of small diesel cars. This report describes trials carried out by trrl to compare the fuel consumption of a vw golf 1500 ld diesel car with a golf 1100 l petrol car which has closely similar road performance. The trials were carried out on a central london route, a radial route from trrl to london and at constant speeds. The results show that the diesel car, when compared over the same journeys, used at least 28 per cent less fuel by volume than the petrol car under all conditions of use. In densely trafficked urban areas the diesel car saved 40 per cent of fuel volume. These savings in fuel volume correspond approximately to reductions in primary energy use (ie of crude oil entering the refinery). (Author/publisher)
Abstract