Now as you may know, Honda’s never been too keen on this whole gasoline-electric fad. Sure. It brought out the original Insight over a decade ago. But it wasn’t a full hybrid (one that can run on battery juice alone.) While in the ensuing years, its “mild hybrid” system (found in Civics and today’s Insight and CR-Z) has proven Honda never really felt been fully on board with hyrbrids the way rival Toyota. Its cars more of a sop to the market as if to say, Yeah, we can do a hybrid too, even if we think they’re kind of silly.

Really, if Honda had its way, we’d all be driving around in hydrogen fuel-cell cars, like its FCX Clarity. But with no investment in infrastructure from cash-strapped government, that’s not going to happen anytime soon.

And now that Honda’s given up on making diesels (as confirmed by the canned 2.2-litre i-DTEC diesel clean-diesel Acura TSX we were supposed to driving, like now, pictured above in 2008) Honda will more-than-likely announce a new full hybrid system capable of going toe-to-toe with Toyota’s Synergy Drive for its mid-size cars, like the Accord, and Acura TL, among others.

With VW/Audi's success with derv drinkers, do you think Honda is making a mistake ditching diesels?

Can it really take on Toyota in the hybrid market starting so late?

[Source: Reuters]

Working towards an on sale date of the last week of September, Volkswagen Canada is giving us more and more info on the new Jetta, previewed by the New Compact Coupe concept from last year’s Detroit auto show (above.)

VW Canada’s Peter Viney confirmed with The Crank that to go head-to-head with the compact top-sellers like the existing Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic and Mazda3 and forthcoming Chevrolet Cruze and 2012 Ford Focus, the new Jetta is going to be bigger and offer more engine choice.

Don’t worry diesel fans, one of those mills will be the popular Jetta TDI diesel (TDI sales represented over one-quarter of all Canadian VW sales last month.) And while the U.S. market won’t get the Jetta TDI right away, Canadians will.

“This is a very important model to us. So we want to make sure Canadians get the TDI—along with the other new 2011 Jettas—right at launch,” said Viney.

Hmm…more room, more engine choice and more upscale styling…

Has VW done enough to get you out of your Corolla or Civic?

Don’t worry Audi, the diesels Peugeot is bringing to the 24 Hours of The Nurburgring won’t be the same ones that waxed your tail at last year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. The French automaker, determined to show oil-burners aren’t just for the prototype classes in endurance racing, is entering a pair of diesel RCZ cars to race the ‘Ring.

This is the first time Peugeot is participating in the 24 hours of Nürburgring. and the RCZs join a growing list of alt-fuel racers making the rounds of tracks around the world, including the Audi R-series endurance racers, the Porsche 911 GT3 R Hybrid, those sweet CNG Volkswagen Sciroccos and the 800-horsepower Gumpert Apollo hybrid that ran the 24 Hours of the ‘Ring a few years ago. And then there’s that whole VW Jetta TDI series.

There’s so many teams running alt fuels that alt fuels aren’t very alt anymore.

It just so happens that this year’s running of the 24 Hours of The Nürburgring falls on the weekend Peugeot celebrates its 200th anniversary. The Peugeot RCZ racers will be numbered 200 and 201, as a symbol of the company’s anniversary. One will be raced by a French crew; the other by a German crew.

The RCZ’s are powered by a 2.0 l HDi FAP engine that puts out 200 bhp. They’ll race in the D1T category for cars with diesel engines between 1700 and 2000 CCs.

Peugeot describes the two race teams as “gentlemen drivers” that include Jean-Philippe Peugeot, vice-chairman of the board. Peugeot hopes to use the cars to develop sportier road-going diesels and build some buzz for the RCZ, which makes its European debut this month.

Photo: Peugeot

Well well well. Mercedes-Benz, which knows a thing or two about making very nice diesels, is applying that expertise to a hybrid said to get 56 mpg.

Autocar, offering no attribution whatsoever, say the Germans will launch their first diesel-electric hybrid early next year. The E 300 Bluetec Hybrid will sport a “specially tuned” 2.2-liter four-cylinder engine pulled from the E 250 CDI. The hybrid components will come from the S 400 Hybrid, which has a 20 horsepower electric motor and a tiny 0.7 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery.

The S 400 Hybrid is the first production car to use a li-ion battery, and the car is proving to be a versatile machine. The slick Vision S 500 plug-in hybrid concept built upon its technology. Autocar cites Mercedes saying the diesel hybrid will deliver 56 mpg, but since it is a British magazine, we’re guessing that’s miles per Imperial gallon. Figure 46.6 mpg here in the United States.

If we get the car, that is. Autocar says it’s “headed to European showrooms” but says nothing about the United States.

Photo of the E 300 Bluetec: Mercedes-Benz

The largest helicopter maker in the world has announced it is committed to developing a diesel-powered helicopter in the next five years. Eurocopter displayed an example of a possible diesel piston-engine design at this week’s Heli-Expo in Houston. The company says the efficient powerplant could replace turbine engines in its light, single-engine helicopters.

Oliver Jouis is the head of environmental affairs at Eurocopter. He told Wired.com the European consortium will adapt a diesel powerplant for use in one of their smaller helicopters.

“Diesel has reached a technology level that is transferable to the helicopter world,” he said.

Diesel engines have proven to be very successful in the auto industry over the past decade. Gone are the days of noisy, gutless, smoky motors. Today’s diesels are quiet, efficient and the power-to-weight ratio is so good, diesels are used in racing. Diesel-powered cars from Audi and Peugeot have dominated the iconic 24 Hours of LeMans in recent years.

A significant challenge facing Eurocopter is shaving enough weight from existing diesel engines. In aircraft, power-to-weight is at even more of a premium than in auto racing. But Jouis believes the same efficiency that makes diesels attractive for cars, is also attractive for helicopters.

“Specific fuel consumption is cut by 40 percent,” he said compared to existing turbine engines used in the company’s smaller helicopters.

Currently all of Eurocopter’s helicopters are turbine-powered. Turbine engines are incredibly reliable and provide a large amount of power for the weight of the motor. But they are also quite thirsty for fuel. The cost of fuel for a small helicopter can run several hundred dollars per hour. Any reduction is obviously welcome news to helicopter operators.

Eurocopter has said its EC120 (pictured above) would be a likely candidate for the diesel engine. Currently, the helicopter is powered by Turbomeca Arrius turbine engine.

“The second advantage for the helicopter is the diesel offers better performance at high altitude,” Jouis said.

Turbine engines used in helicopters lose efficiency rapidly as the altitude increases. Because of the power loss at altitude, helicopter operators that often fly in the mountains use helicopters with more powerful engines to compensate. Larger engines are even thirstier engines, increasing an already large fuel bill.

The diesel engines Eurocopter is investigating would be turbocharged. The use of a turbocharger results in an aircraft being able to maintain full power to a higher altitude where the air is thinner. This “turbo normalizing” doesn’t necessarily mean a boost of power at lower altitudes. Instead, the boost from the turbocharger is used to compensate for thinning air as the helicopter is flown at higher altitudes. Gasoline-powered piston helicopters, including the classic Bell 47, have long used turbocharged engines for the same reasons.

Jouis said the company has not yet announced what kind of diesel engine it will choose. He said the company will not be getting into the engine manufacturing business, but will instead work with an existing manufacturer to develop the diesel powerplant. Jouis said they are currently in talks with engine makers, including car companies with diesel experience. Another advantage to the diesel according to Jouis would be lower acquisition costs compared to turbine engines.

EcoMotors diesel motor on display at Heli-Expo

The company displayed two-stroke diesel engine at the Heli-Expo. The multifuel engine is made by U.S.-based EcoMotors International. The interesting design uses two opposed pistons per cylinder. This arrangement generates one power stroke with every revolution of the crank for each cylinder. Jouis said the company is also looking at several other options, including more traditional four-stroke diesels.

All of the engines still need a lot of weight shaving, “we are nowhere near the power-to-weight ratio of a turbine,” Jouis said. “But we can see there is a solution [for diesel power].”

Eurocopter is not setting a timeline for the introduction of a diesel-powered helicopter to the marketplace, but Jouis said he expects one to at least make a first flight within the next five years.

Photos: Eurocopter

Imagine growing up a gearhead in a country where gasoline is taxed prohibitively, cars are taxed up to $70,000 on the displacement of their engines and speeding is strictly punished with license suspension.

Then, imagine watching Vin Diesel play badass street racer Dominic Toretto in The Fast and the Furious .

That’s what happened to designer Imran Othman. A mild-mannered design engineer in Singapore by day, Othman used his CGI skills to create a concept car with all the torque and efficiency of a hybrid engine that runs on diesel, and all the tough-guy swagger of Vin Diesel.

When we first saw the Diesel concept at AutoMotto, we had to find out more. We got in touch with Othman, who told us the design was inspired by street racing. “The car design will have Vin Diesel’s fast and furious presence with him,” Othman told Autopia. “Who’s a better ambassador than him being the inspiration behind the diesel hybrid design?”

There’s that shared name thing, too. While Vin Diesel was born Mark Sinclair Vincent, he chose his fuel-oriented last name after friends joked that his energy level was so high, he must run on diesel.

Turns out, even Vin Diesel’s Toretto wouldn’t be able to escape the cops in the strict city-state of Singapore. “We don’t really have a freedom to really cultivate a racing culture in Singapore,” Othman told Autopia. “As you probably know, laws in Singapore are very tight and you can’t get away easily in Singapore. There’s cameras everywhere.”

According to Othman, most Singaporeans satisfy their need for speed on the roads of nearby Malaysia. They better get to the border with a full tank of fuel purchased in Singapore, though, as border guards keep Singapore residents from crossing over to Malaysia with fewer than 3/4 of a tank — lest they evade the steep gas tax.

Since the Diesel concept is unlikely to ever be put into production, we can only speculate on what kind of engine would lie under the hood. If xXx is any indication, we imagine that muscular, bald pistons will beat the living daylights out of any anarchist fuel vapor that dares to enter the combustion chamber.

The characteristic diesel clatter will, of course, be replaced by a growling baritone with a New York accent.

Images: Imran Othman

Score one for diesel hybrids.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory got its hands on six hybrid vans that United Parcel Service is using, and after testing them nine ways from Sunday found diesel-electric technology improved fuel economy more than 28 percent. What’s more, it cost significantly less per mile to operate while delivering the same reliability and performance as conventional diesel vans.

The federal eggheads spent a year analyzing fuel economy, maintenance and vehicle performance data for six first-generation hybrid UPS vans developed by Eaton Corp. It’s no surprise a delivery service would be eager to give diesel-electric tech a try — UPS must spend money by the truckload on fuel — and the NREL joined UPS in putting the trucks through their paces in Phoenix.

So why’d they team up for the research?

Because the Eaton parallel hybrid system was developed in part under a $7.5 million, 33-month contract from the Department of Energy’s Advanced Heavy-Hybrid Propulsion System program. The feds like the technology because it increases fuel economy and reduces emissions, and they wanted to see what we got for the money.

“Having provided funding for the development of the Eaton hybrid system, DOE was eager to participate in testing the system in a commercial fleet,” Lee Slezak, manager of the advanced heavy-hybrid program, said in a statement. “Our goal is to help develop more efficient vehicle technologies and then document their on-road performance.”

The feds compared six diesel-hybrid vans to six diesel vans. According to the lab’s report, the hybrids delivered 28.9 percent better fuel economy, averaging 13.1 mpg to the diesels’ 10.2 mpg. Maintenance costs were about the same, but the diesels showed slightly better reliability — a factor the researchers chalk up to “troubleshooting and recalibration issues” associated with prototype components.

The hybrids were driven 15 percent fewer miles per day, which the feds attribute to the fact the diesel-electrics were assigned to urban routes where they made more stops per mile and spent more time at low speeds or idling. Overall, the hybrids delivered a 15 percent improvement in total cost per mile.

UPS is, as you’d expect, quite pleased with the results.

“NREL’s report on the performance of our hybrid delivery vehicles is helping make this type of energy-efficient vehicle a standard in the industry,” said Robert Hall, the company’s director of maintenance and engineering. He’s hoping the findings speed up market acceptance of the technology.

Eaton supplied the hybrid propulsion systems for the vans, which were manufactured by Freightliner. The system uses an Eaton automated transmission with an integrated motor-generator and lithium-ion batteries. The electric bits are mated to a four-cylinder Mercedes-Benz diesel engine — the same one used in the conventional vans.

UPS must like what it sees, because the delivery company just ordered another 200 Eaton hybrid vans.

Photo: United Parcel Service

LOS ANGELES — For the second year in a row, Green Car Journal has named a German diesel Green Car of the Year.

The 42-mpg Audi A3 TDI topped a field that included three hybrids and two diesels to take the award presented today at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The judges praised the cars “exceptional fuel economy and low emissions” and hailed it as “stylish” and “fun to drive.”

“The Audi A3 TDI offers it all,” said Ron Cogan, editor of Green Car Journal and GreenCar.com.

There’s no shortage of awards and honors doled out in the auto industry, but this one actually means something because all of the cars considered are vehicles you can buy right now. The jury includes greenies like Carl Pope, head of the Sierra Club, and Jean-Michel Cousteau, president of the Ocean Futures Society. But it also includes certified gearheads like Jay Leno and Carroll Shelby to ensure the candidates are cars you’d enjoy driving.

“A love of cars and respect for the environment need not be mutually exclusive,” Cogan said.

Audi agrees, said Johan de Nysschen, president of Audi of America.

“Green is no longer progressive,” he said. “It is expected. We sought to maximize fuel economy without sacrificing, for one second, driving performance.”

The A3 diesel is powered by a 2.0-liter direct-injection turbocharged engine that puts down 140 horsepower. It delivers 30 mpg in the city and 42 on the highway. It starts at $29,950 and is available in all 50 states.

The finalists included the Honda Insight hybrid, Mercury Milan hybrid, Toyota Prius and Volkswagen Golf TDI. Last year’s winner was the Volkswagen Jetta TDI.

Photos: Jim Merithew / Wired.com

See Also:

• The Green Car of the Year Finalists Are…
• And the Green Car of the Year Is… A Volkswagen
• Audi Builds Online Hype for Clean Diesel

There was a small hang up during the awards presentation…

Johan de Nysschen, president of Audi of America, with the award he called “very special to us.”

Santa goes to check out the Porsches.