Mercedes Sticks To Its Guns

Despite America’s on-again, off-again love affair with passenger diesels, Mercedes-Benz sticks to its guns with a new concept executive-class sedan unveiled at the New York International Auto Show.

Powered by a 2.2L, four-cylinder turbodiesel, the E250 BlueTEC Concept promises 28 mpg city/39 mpg highway–those are conservative estimates–and would regularly hit well over 40 mpg, says the company. The secret to this efficiency is found in the car’s 7-speed automatic transmission and its next-generation emission controls, including dual nitrogen-oxide scrubbers, that use less energy to clean the nasties coming out of the tailpipe.

The pint-sized engine, similar to what Mercedes offers in Europe, would pack a respectable 204 hp and a tremendous 369 lb-ft of torque. Some early reviews indicate that this clean-diesel sedan has a good chance of seeing the inside of a dealer’s showroom in the near future.

–Tudor Van Hampton