Diesel engines easily run 400.000km especially Mercedes cars but petrol will give up way sooner
In: Engineering
It’s the use case mostly. A diesel passenger vehicle will be about as reliable as a gasoline passenger vehicle. A diesel truck will be marginally more reliable than a gasoline truck, but actually more likely because the diesel is being bought for work rather than non-work use, so the diesel is being abused less and is also just more efficient at running constantly. So diesels just end up getting used for use cases that lead to slightly more reliable outcomes.
There are some design benefits too. The diesel engine lacks some components so that makes it simpler and thus more reliable. But it also has other components like a turbo and fuel additive that most gasoline engines don’t. In addition, diesels need help starting in cold weather. But on the other hand you can get a diesel working again easier than a gasoline engine because of the simpler combustion process. And diesel engines are more efficient than gasoline engines at high altitude – both because the turbo compresses more air into the engine, and diesels burn fuel rather than air (sort of) and are thus more efficient with less dense air.
Ultimately the engine you buy has more effect on reliability than the type. There are crazy reliable gasoline engines. Use them the same as you’d use a diesel and you will see no real difference, though perhaps a marginal amount more regular maintenance with the gasoline engine.
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