'MTBF' - hybrid Achilles Heel, it would seem

Post #332,114 by Ashton 9/1/10 4:46:45 AM Reply	'MTBF' - hybrid Achilles Heel, it would seem LOTS of electronics has to work flawlessly -- in one of the most demanding environments known, short of extra-terrestrial activities: an auto 'maintained' by (mostly) a one who knows-not even Ohm's Law, from Alaskan temps to Death Valley, etc. Mean Time Between Failures ... let's watch that, as the cute Prii age, perhaps not quite so gracefully. (OTOH, a cute VW super-diesel as owned by Scott K -- can be maintained with stone knives and bearskins, be run on the spare pomade-gel used by Uncle Fester to keep his mullet on ... run that sucker on a decent syn-oil and super-filter and, it'll outlive this tattered Republic -- especially at its current rate of disassembly. But what do I know, compared to the Great Murican Marketing Cartels.
Post #332,118 by Another Scott 9/1/10 7:41:44 AM Reply	Hey, don't over-sell it. :-) The VW's been a good car, but it's far from perfect. Oil changes are about $70 (every 10k miles) - the engine requires a special spec oil "VW 505.01" that is spendy. It is very smokey if you stomp on the go pedal (lots of soot). That's one reason why I almost never rev it above 2000 rpm. (I generally drive it like a grandmother.) It is a little smokey for a few seconds when first started, especially in the winter. (Some of the last may be due to the glow plugs needing to be changed from a ceramic plug to a metal plug - it's part of an emissions recall that I haven't had done yet.) I believe later "common-rail" TDIs are better on the emissions front due to soot traps, better combustion control, etc., but I don't know for sure. While the latest common-rail 16-valve 2.0 TDI is much more powerful and probably has lower emissions (140 HP at 4200 rpm, 236 lb-ft at 1750 rpm vs 100 HP at 4000, 177 lb-ft at 1800 for my 8 valve 1.9 TDI-PD), they get lower mileage. I've not been brave enough to run it on biodiesel. I don't know if I ever will. I want it to last, and I've read too many anecdotes about acids in the cooking oil, etc. that might (or might not) cause problems over time. I dunno about the electric vs diesel arguments at the moment. Too many competing agendas... Cheers, Scott. (Who is hoping for a TDI-hybrid by the time he buys again, but fears the auto diesel is on its way out over the next 10 years or so.)
Post #332,120 by boxley 9/1/10 8:03:28 AM Reply	vs $30 every 3k miles, no diff do the mod for biodiesel after the car has no resale value. A car that smokes that you wont get a ticket for? Huge plus. Diesels will be around for a long time. Any opinions expressed by me are mine alone, posted from my home computer, on my own time as a free American and do not reflect the opinions of any person or company that I have had professional relations with in the past 55 years. meep

Welcome to IWETHEY!