Back in the 80's during the drive for Fuel Economy, a lot of manufacturers tried Diesel-some of them are humourous in today's context--the VW Rabbit, Jetta, the Ford Escort, the Chevy Chevette and the infamous Olds/GM gasoline conversions. Some of these were engineered too quickly/cheaply and gave Diesel a bad name. Even the Volvo Diesel is problematic. A Diesel has to be engineered heavier because the higher compression puts strain on everything; the timing chain, crankshaft, you name it. 2X compression translates to significant higher rotational torque which means higher stress on every moving part. Mercedes diesels last forever because they are made accordingly; its too bad others didnt sink the effort and expense in.

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