With the high cost of crude oil based fuels people need to start looking at vehicles that use alternative fules.  This three part series will cover alternatives that are available now.  Not possibilities for the future.

As high as the price of gasoline has risen, diesel has risen even higher.  This fact may make it seem strange that I am recommending purchasing a diesel fueled vehicle.  Diesel has become a very efficient fuel despite its history of smelling bad and having poor performance.  The new diesels get surprisingly good gas mileage.  Europe and Asia have diesel vehicles that can get as much as 60 miles to the gallon.  Compare that to hybrids and you get a 33% savings in mileage.  This also works with large vehicles.  You can get a V8 diesel that will get 20 miles to the gallon as opposed to its gasoline counterpart that gets only 12.

This, however, is not where the real savings come in.  The real savings come in biodiesel.  Now the gas stations in my area have pulled a quick one by not offering biodiesel at a reduced price.  This means they are paying less for the fuel but charging the same amount.  This runs up their profits.  Considering the opportunities for gas stations to increase their profits are few and far between I cannot blame them for this.  There is just not enough competition in the biodiesel market to make them compete for customers, thus no price wars. 

So if the gas stations are not lowering the price how does that help us?  You can make your own biodiesel at home.  I personally have not gotten to this step but have looked into it throughout the years (once gasoline hit $2 a gallon).  From what I can tell the cost of homemade biodiesel is somewhere between $1-$1.50.  Take this into account with the increased mileage benefits and you can see that there are considerable savings to be had with the switch to a diesel engine.  If you are looking for recipes and instructions for making your own biodiesel About.com has the most comprehensive list of biodiesel information I have found.  I believe that diesel and tomorrows alternative vehicle are the easiest to get a hold of and are what I am really considering for my next car purchase.


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