Give me Liberty and give me diesel

Don Hammonds of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette helps clear away what we Americans associate with diesel engines, loud noise and hallucinogenic fumes. I used to work on a trucking dock and every morning at 5:30am four diesel straight trucks would fire up sending the inhabitants of the building into a stupor, consistently making the line, "I love the smell of diesel fuel in the morning" humorous no matter how many times it was uttered. Most new passenger vehicle diesels dispel the old-school beliefs as Hammonds finds out with the 2005 Jeep Liberty. As is a diesel trait, torque more than out-numbers horsepower 295 lb.-ft to 160hp. And the diesel Liberty averages 30 percent better fuel economy and 20 percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. Seems like a good way to save fuel without going the hybrid route. Maybe Europe's onto something (no duh!)