When did diesel cars get complicated?

[ReganAndCarter]

as an obsessive cyclist I'm all for the anti pollution - I'm becoming quite the expert on what Euro level the vehicle has just past me is. Euro 4 (like my van) jeez they stink

Yes, same here. There's a hill I regularly cycle up. If a bus is coming up the hill too I tend to walk up the hill on the other side. Defeats the object being behind one of the buses belching out the fumes.

 

[securespark]

If you want some clunker which will last for ever, you are looking for something from the 1990s or earlier, and then the engine will probably run for a million miles.
However vehicles that old will very likely have bodywork that is entirely rusted and rotted away.

My Monty Diesel was a cracker. Perkins engine that would virtually run on ****. Excellent.

 

[Munroast]

My Monty Diesel was a cracker. Perkins engine that would virtually run on ****. Excellent.

I had a maestro van with that 2 litre perkins - what an engine - used to get 50+ to the gallon, and that was driving in full white van man style, flat to the mat everywhere. what an engine 200k when the bodywork disintegrated (maestros knew how to rust) engine was still ok

i wonder how bad they would stink now?

 

[Avocet]

I had a maestro van with that 2 litre perkins - what an engine - used to get 50+ to the gallon, and that was driving in full white van man style, flat to the mat everywhere. what an engine 200k when the bodywork disintegrated (maestros knew how to rust) engine was still ok

i wonder how bad they would stink now?

oh... pretty bad!

 

[Brigadier]

the bodywork disintegrated (maestros knew how to rust)

Reminds me of a friend's Fiat Uno Turbo (or, to be more specific, a review of it in a car mag):

"Goes quickly. Especially the sills."

 

[ReganAndCarter]

I had a maestro van with that 2 litre perkins - what an engine - used to get 50+ to the gallon, and that was driving in full white van man style, flat to the mat everywhere. what an engine 200k when the bodywork disintegrated (maestros knew how to rust) engine was still ok

i wonder how bad they would stink now?

I'm guessing the Maestro/Montego didn't have a turbo? Adding turbos is what made diesels driveable and real competition for petrol models. Worst diesel I ever drove was a Merc 190 non turbo. Jeez, that thing was slow. The accelerator was no such thing and probably breached some law about misrepresentation. It was more like a switch - press to go, foot off to stop. Hills were particularly painful.

 

[Avocet]

I'm guessing the Maestro/Montego didn't have a turbo? Adding turbos is what made diesels driveable and real competition for petrol models. Worst diesel I ever drove was a Merc 190 non turbo. Jeez, that thing was slow. The accelerator was no such thing and probably breached some law about misrepresentation. It was more like a switch - press to go, foot off to stop. Hills were particularly painful.

I had a naturally aspirated Citroen BX diesl for a short while. Very similar experience, but the low-end torque was the stuff of legend. As diesels got more powerful, they lost a little of that bottom end slugging power. Not that I'd want to go back, but it was the one redeeming feature of an older diesel.

 

[Brigadier]

I'm guessing the Maestro/Montego didn't have a turbo? Adding turbos is what made diesels driveable and real competition for petrol models. Worst diesel I ever drove was a Merc 190 non turbo. Jeez, that thing was slow. The accelerator was no such thing and probably breached some law about misrepresentation. It was more like a switch - press to go, foot off to stop. Hills were particularly painful.

Another mate bought my ex's Maestro, for £600 iirc, back in the early 90's.

He called it "The Mystery Machine", as it was a mystery that it never broke down.

 

[securespark]

I'm guessing the Maestro/Montego didn't have a turbo? Adding turbos is what made diesels driveable and real competition for petrol models. Worst diesel I ever drove was a Merc 190 non turbo. Jeez, that thing was slow. The accelerator was no such thing and probably breached some law about misrepresentation. It was more like a switch - press to go, foot off to stop. Hills were particularly painful.

Earlier Perkins Prima units in both Maestro and Montego were naturally aspirated, but my 1990 Monty DLX Estate was a Turbo.