For anyone pondering the acquisition of a Diesel car, I have nothing but positive things to say about my choice. While VW Credit is not a company to write home about, the car is just plain perfect for anyone who drives around a lot. For me, that means more than 1,000 miles/month, but for some it might mean 10x that number. Either way, it works.

Now, this car will not win races. It has a 90hp 1900cc engine that is still slightly noisy and still slightly stinky (especially while filling up... prepare for the sweet smell of fuel-oil on your hands, and it stays on your for a while), so I can't say VW has gone and made the perfect all-around family-pleaser. I chose the standard transmission, and the engine provides enough low-end torque so that I need not touch the accelerator pedal to get rolling, and this remains true even going up a steep driveway.

If you're thinking of a larger Diesel pickup truck, as has become more common lately amongst some of the construction types I come across in my travels, you won't enjoy quite the same mileage, but you will see some improvement over the same-sized, gas-powered truck. With the air conditioner running in a hot Arizona July, driving a reasonable combination of freeway and city street miles, I get right around 48 mpg. A/C off, more freeway, the number goes up over 50. With overfilling via "venting," I can get 800 miles or more on a single fill-up.

Not bad. Not bad at all. And if you heard anything about our little gasoline shortage thanks to a supply line break last year, you can only imagine the relief that comes with seeing the Diesel pumps delivering as usual in the face of such drama. In fact, I travelled 100 miles or so one night during that crisis to locate some gasoline for my still-gasoline-dependant family members.

Now, if they could just drop the price down below regular instead of keeping up with premium gas prices ($2.189 is the best I've seen in my area... a far cry from $1.479, the average I was paying a year or so ago), and drop the sulfur content. I've heard a Diesel hybrid is on the horizon from the same company. Interesting...