Diesel does the dirty on the locals

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Please consider the following. Holden is on the go, but in the wrong direction. We're a year into the new era that history will recall as the VE dynasty, and the Red Lion has suffered an annis horribilis, as the Aussie Queen so succinctly put it not so long ago (at the start of the VT reign, if memory serves).

According to the ever-reliable VFACTS figures -- put about by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries -- Holden's sales of locally manufactured Commodores reached 62,366 for the year to date, compared with the VX on runout in the same ten-month period last year of 63,650.

Quibble you may over the make up of those numbers -- VZ wagons contributing to bolster the VE sedan, Ute on change over, yadda, yadda, yadda -- but the whole truth is that the VE is not growing market share for Holden. Must be an awful feeling to launch a billion dollar car into a shrinking market with the forward knowledge it won't sell as well as its ancient, simpler, less frugal and dirtier predecessor.

You'd want to hope then that Holden has priced it correctly so it actually returns a greater profit. Especially now the Pacific Peso in which it is priced for overseas buyers has had the temerity to grow cojones and muscle right up to the George Washington Yankee dollar almost as an equal.

It must be giving Bob Lutz a headache in the GM Ivory Towers in Detroit right about now. Sure hedging, transfer pricing, etc, will offset some of the exchange rate nightmare, but when such high hopes are had for not only the G8 Sedan but also the much-vaunted El Camino revival (and potentially the Sport Wagon), you have to wonder if the midnight oil isn't being burned at 'The Bend' to figure out Plan B. (Note: Midnight oil futures have also rocketed to around 100 US a barrel, but given the strength of the Aussie, it's not quite as expensive as you might think.)

Holden might be wringing its hands over the war on currency rates but at least its chief export market is growing richer by the day and can still afford its output.

Ford has put its hands up and yet again backed out of the export market melee for the future Falcon. Which market would want one over the masterful Mondeo?

First month in and the gap between Falcon sales in September 07 and October 07 looks suspiciously similar in size to the number of Mondeos registered in the first month in the showrooms. That's one to watch. After all, what would you rather have: a 10-year-old basic design with more facelifts than the residents of 90210, or Europe's latest and greatest, and one blessed with diesel power?

Interestingly, a similarly small number of buyers opted for Holden's Daewoo-sourced Epica (320) as Ford customers charged a Mondeo to their credit cards (277). It will be interesting to see how this pans out (Epica sales YTD are just 2587) but the smart money would be on Mondeo reaching for the skies as the Holdawoo stagnates or slides.

Part of the appeal is what's tucked between the shapely Mondeo's wheel-arches. For lurking there is a choice of diesel, and that dear reader, is the fuel of the future.

Did you know that 144,165 new passenger car and light commercial vehicle buyers have been fuelling up with distillate this year? The private passenger buying market has taken a 60 per cent hike in diesel-powered sales, the business passenger market is up 80 per cent. More used to distillate, SUV diesel sales are up a still not inconsiderable 40 per cent (private) and 22 per cent (business).

That's obviously down to a far wider range of product from a wider selection of brands, as much as the increasing awareness that the 10 cents per litre premium on distillate is outweighed by the greater range a tankful delivers. In fact you might be wondering who doesn't offer a diesel option right now, and why. The answers are interesting.

There are no diesel-powered passenger Nissans, Toyotas, Subarus or Hondas. Mazda has been the torch, or you could say, torque bearer, with diesel with the 3 and the 6, though it's early days and still very small numbers.

The leaders in diesel continue to be the European brands. Peugeot has been addicted to diesel for the longest of the mainstream brands with 2, 3 and 4 series cars offering the HDi experience. Volkswagen has the widest selection, however, and sells a heap of TDI diesel-powered Golfs and now Polo, Jetta, Passat, Beetle and even the pretty Eos Coupe/Cabriolet.

Amid the prestige market, all the Germans provide a diesel alternative across practically every model range, while Volvo has slipped its D5 diesel into a few C30, S40, V50 and XC90s. Jaguar has what many consider a fine (Peugeot-sourced) V6 for the XJ and S-type.

Lexus, making up ground on the European prestige leaders in leaps and bounds has no diesel offering to date -- probably to the relief of its Continental rivals.

But if the launch of a Hyundai diesel recently has passed you by it is time to sit up and take note. The budget brand with upmarket aspirations has seized the nettle with diesel and definitely has the jump on the likes of Big T and the Japanese.

And with petrol sliding irrevocably towards the far side of $1.30 a litre on any given Sunday or Monday (pick any day you like), the lure of the diesel bowser is becoming harder to resist. There's no reason why you can't find a body style powered by diesel at a price point you can afford.

It is true though that psychologically, forking out $1.46 a litre for diesel will be a little off-putting at first, but when you have the additional range in your pocket, the savings will soon become apparent, even if the up-front diesel engine price premium needs to be factored into the monthly repayments.

And while the head can make the diesel deal add up in terms of sense and cents, the heart need not worry either. The freebie upside to compression ignition mobility is bags of torque at low revs. Riding the wave of turbocharged low down grunt is so infectious, even the most hardened rev-head will likely be convinced, and wonder how the heck (s)he hadn't thought about this earlier.

Oh, and one more thing: if you're buying diesel and notice you're standing in a pool of it, and end up with a greasy, smelly cuff after pumping your 60 litres, make sure you share your displeasure at full volume with the service station attendant as you make your payment.

If the 144,165 of you start causing a ruckus every time you fill up, the state of the forecourts will improve immediately. The oil companies sure ain't going to do anything about them until they're pressured to. Right now they're just too busy banking the profits.

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