“Here in Southern California, diesel is 35 to 40 cents higher...so no “myth” around these parts.”
Diesel at 35 to 40 cents more is about 10% more expensive. However, you get between a 25% to 35% mileage increase over a comparable gas engine because diesel contains more energy per gallon.
So, it’s still a net savings - and your engine will likely last far longer to boot. Not to mention that there’s no ethanol in diesel. ;-)
I’m planning on going diesel for my next vehicle.
It depends. The starting price for a gas Jetta is $16,495 and the TDI is $22,995. The base model Jetta gets 33 MPG on the highway, and the TDI shows to get 42 (23 and 30, respectively, in the city). So, there is a 7-9 MPG difference, let's keep with the high side of 9. To make up the difference in purchase price, given the average $0.40/gallon difference between diesel and gas today, you'd have to drive 470,000 miles to make up the $6,500 difference in price. Granted, prices will change over time, and diesel and gasoline may get closer in price, or diesel may actually go back down, but I wouldn't bet on it.