| Jetta TDI on biodiesel | Jetta TDI on petroleum diesel | Jetta 2.0L gasoline engine | Toyota Prius on gasoline | Honda Fuel Cell vehicle (hydrogen) | Dodge ESX3 (diesel-hybrid) on biodiesel | |
| Vehicle cost | $19,970 | $19,970 | $18,790 | $21,520 | $100,000 (3) | $28,500 |
| Fuel efficiency | 41/48.5 | 42/50 | 24/31 | 52/45 | 5.7 (4) | 72 |
| Vehicle range | 609/711 | 609/711 | 348/450 | 619/536 | 155 | ??? |
| Power (hp) | 90 | 90 | 115 | 70 | 110 | ??? |
| Torque (ft-lbs) | 155 | 155 | 122 | 82 (EM?) | 188 | ??? |
| Cost/mile (2) | $0.047 | $0.040 | 123 | $0.035 | $0.19 (5) | $0.03 |
| Energy density of fuel (Thousands of BTUs/gal) | 127 | 141 | 123 | 123 | 9 | 127 |
| Fossil Fuel Energy Balance (6) | 3.2 | 0.83 | 0.74 | 0.74 | 0.66 (7) | 3.2 |
| Total fossil energy input/mile (8) (Thousand BTU/mile) | 0.89 | 3.7 | 6.0 | 3.4 | 2.4 | 0.55 |
1
Assuming modern catalyst used with the TDI running biodiesel or ULSD.
2 Assuming $1.70/gallon for gasoline, $1.80 for petroleum diesel, and $2.16/gallon
for biodiesel, based on 50/50 average of city/highway
3 Honda’s estimate for the cost of their fuel cell vehicles in mass production
in 2012
4 Miles per gallon of hydrogen compressed to 5,000 psi (35 atmospheres), based
on maximum range of Honda’s FCV of 170 miles on a 30 gallon tank
5 30 gallons at 5,000 psi equals 3.2 kg of hydrogen (hydrogen density at 14.7
psi is 0.0003142 kg/gal, at 5000 psi it’s 0.1069 kg/gal). Typical cost
for very large consumers of compressed hydrogen expected to be $10/kg. So, $32
for 170 miles.
6 See http://www.mda.state.mn.us/ethanol/balance.html
7 Assumes hydrogen produced from steam reformation of natural gas, fossil energy
balance (net energy ratio) taken from http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy01osti/27637.pdf