Hi Gerry
Don't take this the wrong way I'm not flaring at the US side Ok
I understand where your at, but please understand this as a fact. I am retired as of 2003 as a part of the team with the Euro commission, last year in the states we were again called into the USA as independents, to help the EPA bring a case against BP! which I sure you would have be aware of.
Fuels in the US unfortunately with Diesel are not to specifications that meet the standards of Euro fuels MB , BMW, VW have all tested the old DPF's including Blutec and bluemoon Euros additives they met the emission standards but don't on US Fuels, it's the quality you have as to the US using six imported crude oils, four out of the six are very high in sulphate content, and the refinery of the product is not up to scratch, in either gas or diesel.
example Diesel ULSD fuel is set at 300 ppm not to exceed 500 ppm BP is still at over eight hundred ppm on ULSD , as US refineries struggle to met demand on Gas, diesel is imported but there is not enough refineries capable of reproducing the fuel to specs that are compatible for the Diesel Engines, set up for European Fuels.
Goggle how many refineries in the US blew up in the US in the first quarter of this year? Is this the refinery's fault for not upgrading to modern standards! Check when the last new one was built, The Governments and previous government's have not taken fuel supply seriously enough in the states since the first oil spike back in 1972 So blame the Politicians not the manufactures who have had a hard time trying to comply with emission standards, manufactures have done what they were asked of, it's time the US Government pulled up their socks and looked at the big picture.
The solution is simple enough and it could be implemented immediately.
Again How is quality Diesel going to be distributed via the US pipelines 220 thousand miles of thirty year old pipes, that are failing due to lack of unmaintained lines, where inspections via multiple contractors, or state and federal inspectors, who don't have the qualifications or the power to make amends to defective infrastructures, it doesn't help when the bulk fuels are sent via the same lines, that include gas, oil and various grades of distulates, where stations that sell fuels don't have filtration in place, holding tanks thirty years old that have rusted out, where ground seepage is allowed in, non maintaining tanks when switching fuels! with no cleaning of the tanks, which have heavy metal, water, and foreign substances in the tanks, and you wonder why Sprinters break down.
The new Particulate filters also require a low ash oil this is synthetic based formula that does comply to US emission standards yet, I have not seen a spec any where as of yet that referees to this mystery oil it was on Wolfgang's page MAY 2006.I use this oil and it works.
The reference to the MB almost making an engine that complied was correct, you are referring to the Sun Diesel concept engine that Chrysler was developing for the US in Germany, along side of the Bluetc unit, the Sun Diesel engine was designed to burn all types of alternative and Bio mass type fuels, this was because of the Bush admin pushing for a local sustainable fuel, However this engine burnt the waste partialities inside of the engine and there was no way a computer assist program could be developed to order up a control; burn of excessive carbons it also meant loss of power and poorer fuel returns, it was not a viable engine for exclusive US Use. for a limited market as to the costs of further development and costings of producing the engines unless it was shared with Both Ford and GM.
Blu tec burns off the gases after it leaves the engine and into the exhaust system , the Urea is a wet process to cool down whats left of the unburnt gases to be deposited into a particle trap at the end of the exhaust, which is serviced at a designated time at the dealers workshop.another cost by the way.
There is a third option which was developed in the early sixties that uses a generator to generate a charge of electric impulses which basically found a rouge rascal element to neutralize either the positive or neutral charge, zap it burns off the waste products in the exhaust pipe with a single charge every one second, its so simple and its cheap to produce but again developing oxygen senors with this system seems too hard to do, but there is also a patient on it, and it's not for sale at give away prices.
Europe has had blue tec on its trucks for a number of years and fuel cost four times more that what your paying for.
Vehicles over 4.6 tons in the commercial sector are starting to use bluetec by 2009 all commercial vehicles will be using blutec, and by 2012 all units will be using this system in effect fuel reduction will decrease by 40% emission s for manufacturing the produce will reduce by a further 50% as less fuel will be required however as the population increases along with transportation this will at worst keep demand at todays levels rather than increase the demand for fuels , with China coming on line this and India will double demand by 2030
business will, eventually factor the additional costs into their every day operations as older units currently used are phased out of commercial use, private folk will pay dearly for the privilege of being on the road and yes Jerry I do appreciate your thought's and anger,or frustration! but this is the penalty we all have to pay for.
Europe has been the first to standardize a progressive problem which is why so many folk drive small efficient Diesel vehicles , Australia has the same problem but it's based on distances between major cities and rural towns, and we pay a AU $1.25 a litre for Diesel on average and the stuffs going up again because of the Iranian conflict , looked at the price of fuel at your local pumps today?
Again this is an outside comment from another perspective of looking at the big picture, America does not have exclusive rights to world oil supply its a free commodity to be traded between competing nations,
The US has ample reserves of oils and shale sands to extract The bush admin would not allow oil to be extracted from the Gulf whilst it was uinder USAF control for military use yet Cuba allowed every one to use its shelf to explore and extract oil at your back door, o except US oil companies, now you have access to the gulf this will take a little heat of imported oils , but its deep limited in mass volume and and it costs to extract, so the oils from any part of the US will not be free flowing like the good old days, it will be very expensive to get out of the ground , so fuel will become an ever greater burden on the American sector for years to come until an alternative source of energy can be found.
If your grumbling now I 'd hate to see the look on your back pocket book on the year of 2013 when all mandates for Bin requirements are in force.
Placing a blame on MB is a poor excuse in any ones book of reality.
My thoughts are at this very moment as to what future does the US sector have for an automotive sector?
Porsche just signed of a deal to buy VW so the sharing of technology between VW and MB has to be in question VW just merged as corporate player with Man trucks, this is in direct competition with Aco and freightliner trucks. DC has tried to find partners to grow production in the US with other manufactures to share in costings, and if this does not happen soon on April the fourth the day of reckoning will prevail, as to the continuing losses in the US sector with Chrysler based vehicles , the shareholders want it to go, and let MB do what it does best and that's make quality vehicles.
If Chrysler is dumped and I hope to God it isn't, then I'm not sure where the market will be with Sprinters in the US it's a reality you may lose them if some one else takes them on , it's been made clear to MB from the shareholders the losses must stop.... and the differences in prices in the US as to what the Europeans are paying has also sparked considerable criticism for all sectors of Europe as to the massive subsidiarity discounts given to the Sprinters for sale in the US, and its a fact you can not buy a sprinter for what they are selling for in the US so someone is paying for the dependency's of discounts.
Now were back to the filter it will last for years , its supposed to last the life of the Sprinter but if a Sprinter lasted 20 years I think a replacement might happen to be a fact, so Hands up who is keeping a Sprinter past ten years I'm not five years and they go from my company it's not my problem after that.
Why the filter has a hundred thousand warranty on it in the US based on 2004 emission warranty's has me beat, either I've missed something or its for freightliner trucks and not Sprinters, , someone will have to investigate this at your end of the pond, it doesn't add up so gerry has a valid question that pertains at least on the life span of the filter in question.
Sorry for any spelling mistakes I'm getting giddy just looking at what I think I wrote
Richard
5MPG
