History of the diesel car

The first production diesel cars were the Mercedes-Benz 260D and the Hanomag Rekord, both introduced in 1936. The Citroën Rosalie was also produced between 1935 and 1937 with an extremely rare diesel engine option (the 1766 cc 11UD engine) only in the Familiale (estate or station wagon) version.

Immediately after World War II, and throughout the 1950s and 1960s, diesel-powered cars began to gain limited popularity, particularly for commercial applications, such as ambulances, taxis, and station wagons used for delivery work. Most were conventional in design. Mercedes-Benz offered a continuous stream of diesel-powered taxis, beginning in 1949 with their 170D powered by the OM-636 engine. Later, in 1959 their OM-621 engine was introduced in the 180D This 2.0L engine produced 55hp at 4350 rpm. Beginning in 1959, Peugeot offered the 403D with their TMD-85 four-cylinder engine of 1.8L and 48hp, followed in 1962 by the 404D with the same engine. In 1964, the 404D became available with the improved XD88 four-cylinder engine of 2.0L and 60hp. Other cars available with diesel power during this era included the Austin A60 Cambridge, Isuzu Bellel, Fiat 1400-A, Standard Vanguard, Borgward Hansa, and a few others.

In 1967, Peugeot introduced the world's first compact, high-speed diesel car, the Peugeot 204BD. It's 1.3L XL4D engine produced 46 horsepower at 5,000 rpm. Following the 1970s oil crisis, Volkswagen introduced their first diesel the VW Golf with a 1.5L naturally aspirated IDI engine. This was a redesign (dieselised) version of a petrol engine. Mercedes-Benz tested turbodiesels in cars tested (e. g. by the Mercedes-Benz C111 experimental and record-setting vehicles). The first production turbo diesel car was, in 1978, the 3.0 5-cylinder 115 hp (86 kW) Mercedes 300 SD, available only in North America. In Europe, the Peugeot 604 with a 2.3 litre turbo diesel was introduced in 1979, and then the Mercedes 300 TD turbo.

The biggest single step forward for mass-market diesel cars came in 1982 when Peugeot introduced the XUD engine in the Peugeot 305, Peugeot 205 and Talbot Horizon. This was the class leading automotive diesel engine until the mid 1990s. The first mass market turbo diesel was the XUD powered, 1988 Citroen BX and then the 1989 Peugeot 405, they gave power and refinement approaching petrol engine standards, with the best chassis in their class. These were the cars that started the diesel boom in Europe that has now hit 40% of the market in new car sales.

Many Audi enthusiasts claim that the Audi 100 TDI was the first turbo charged direct injection diesel sold in 1989, but actually it isn't true, as the Fiat Croma TD-i.d. was sold with turbo direct injection in 1986 and two years later Austin Rover Montego. What was pioneering about the Audi 100, however, was the use of electronic control of the engine, as the Fiat and Austin had purely mechanically controlled injection. The electronic control of direct injection really made a difference in terms of emissions, refinement and power. All earlier generation car direct injection diesel engines benefit greatly form the use of biodiesel fuel, which reduces emissions and greatly improves refinement without engine modifications, provided they use compatible 'Viton' type rubber in their fuel systems.

The diesel car markets are the same ones who pioneered various developments (Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Peugeot/Citroën, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Volkswagen Group), with the exception of Austin Rover, although Austin Rover's ancestor, the Rover Company had been building small-capacity diesel engines since 1956, when it introduced a 2051 cc 4-cylinder diesel engine for its Land Rover 4 × 4. In fact, the 1988 Austin-Rover MDi unit (also known as the 'Perkins Prima') was developed by Perkins Engines of Peterborough, who have designed and built high-speed diesels since the 1930s. It is still in production as a marine engine.

In 1997 first common rail diesel passenger car was introduced, the Alfa Romeo 156.

In 1998, for the very first time in the history of racing, in the legendary 24 Hours Nürburgring race, a diesel-powered car was the overall winner: the BMW works team 320d, a BMW E36 fitted with modern high-pressure diesel injection technology from Robert Bosch GmbH. The low fuel consumption and long range, allowing 4 hours of racing at once, made it a winner, as comparable petrol-powered cars spent more time refueling.

In Spring 2005, Mercedes-Benz unveiled the first application of a mass-produced aluminum block diesel engine for passenger vehicles and commercial use. While aluminum is traditionally considered of inferior strength and temperature resistance to withstand diesel applications, Mercedes engineers made extensive use of CAD/CAM design to arrive at an aluminum block that would meet with Mercedes' rigorous testing and reliability standards. First use was in 2006 model-year vehicles in the E-Class sedan and ML-class and GL-class SUVs. Similar in weight (208 kilograms (459 lb)) to the five-cylinder it replaced, and considerably lighter than the in-line six cylinder it also replaced, this 3.0L V-6 produces 165 kW (224 hp) at 3,800 rpm and max torque of 510 Nm (376 ft·lbf) at 1,600-2,800 rpm and makes use of a four-valve head. Additionally, fitment of Mercedes-Benz BlueTec system, a concert of emissions control strategies, renders this new diesel 50-state legal in the U.S. beginning in 2008 (stringent NOx limits have made U.S. passenger-car diesels unpopular or impossible in parts of the U.S. in recent years).

In 2006, the new Audi R10 TDI LMP1 entered by Joest Racing became the first diesel-engined car to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The winning car also bettered the post-1990 course configuration lap record by 1, at 380 laps. However, this fell short of the all-time distance record set in 1971 by over 200 kilometres (120 mi).

The Subaru car company of Japan is preparing to sell its station wagon version of their Legacy mid-size car (called the Subaru Outback in North America) with the world's first 2.0 liter, boxer engine format opposed-four cylinder diesel engine of 110 kW (147 hp) power, and 350 Nm (258 ft-lb) of torque, in the United Kingdom, with sales in continental Europe planned for 2009, and in the United States by 2010.

Today the cars that produce the lowest CO₂/km in emissions, lower than hybrids, and much lower than very inefficient electric cars (when generation and grid transmission losses are taken into account), are the most advanced compact European diesel cars.

Automobile racing

Although the weight and lower output of a diesel engine tend to keep them away from automotive racing applications, there are many diesels being raced in classes that call for them, mainly in truck racing and tractor pulling, as well in types of racing where these drawbacks are less severe, such as land speed record racing or endurance racing. Even diesel engined dragsters exist, despite the diesel's drawbacks of weight and low peak rpm, specifications central to performance in this sport. However, in 2006, the new Audi R10 TDI LMP1 entered by Joest Racing became the first diesel-engined car to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Historic

As early as 1931, Clessie Cummins installed his diesel in the Cummins "Diesel Special" race car, hitting 162 km/h (101 mph) at Daytona and 138 km/h (86 mph) at the Indianapolis 500 race, where Dave Evans became the first driver to complete the Indianapolis 500 without making a single pit stop, completing the full distance on the lead lap and finishing 13th, relying on torque and fuel efficiency to overcome weight and low peak power.

In 1933, a 1925 Bentley with a Gardner 4LW engine was the first diesel-engine car to take part in the Monte Carlo Rally when it was driven by Lord Howard de Clifford. It was the leading British car and finished fifth overall.

A 1952 "Cummins Diesel Special" Indianapolis 500 roadster.

In 1952, Fred Agabashian in a Cummins diesel won the pole at the Indianapolis 500 race with a turbocharged 6.6 liter diesel car, setting a record for pole position lap speed, 222.108 km/h or 138.010 mph. Don Cummins and his chief engineer Neve Reiners recognized that the low center of gravity of the flat engine configuration (designed to lie beneath the floor of a bus) plus the power advantage gained by the novel use of Elliott turbocharging would be a winning combination.

At the start, a slow pace lap (reportedly less than 80 mph) apparently induced what is now referred to as "turbo lag" and badly hampered the throttle response of the Cummins Diesel. Although Agabashian found himself in eighth place before reaching the first turn, he moved up to fifth in a few laps and was running competitively (albeit well back in the field after a tire change) until the badly situated air intake of the car swallowed enough debris from the track to disable the turbocharger at lap 71; he finished 27th.

Modern

When turbocharged diesel technology made progress in the 1990s and rule makers supported the concept, BMW and Volkswagen raced diesel touring cars, with BMW winning the 1998 24 Hours Nürburgring with a 320d against other factory-entered diesel competition of VW and about 200 normally powered cars, mainly by being able to drive very long stints. Alfa Romeo even organized a racing series with their Alfa Romeo 147 1.9 JTD models.

In 2006, a BMW 120d repeated a similar result, scoring 5th in a field of 220 cars, many of them much more powerful, a significantly stronger competition than in 1998. The VW Dakar Rally race Touareg for 2005 and 2006 are powered by their own line of TDI engines in order to challenge for the first overall diesel win there.

The diesel engine of Audi's 2007 24 Hours of Le Mans-winning R10 TDI.

Meanwhile, the five time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Audi R8 race car was replaced by the Audi R10 TDI in 2006, which is powered by a 650 hp (485 kW) and 1100 N·m (810 lbf·ft) V12 TDI common rail diesel engine, mated to a 5-speed gearbox, instead of the 6 used in the R8, to handle the extra torque produced. The gearbox is considered the main problem, as earlier attempts by others failed due to the lack of suitable transmissions that could stand the torque long enough.

After winning the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2006 with their diesel-powered R10 TDI, Audi obtained the overall win at the 2006 24 Hours of Le Mans, too. This is the first time a sports car could compete for overall victories with diesel fuel against cars powered with regular fuel or methanol and bio-ethanol. However, the significance of this is slightly lessened by the fact that the ACO/ALMS race rules encourage the use of alternative fuels such as diesel.

Audi again triumphed at Sebring in 2007. It had both a speed and fuel economy advantage over the entire field including the Porsche RS Spyders, gasoline powered purpose-built race cars. Audi's diesels won again the 2007 24 Hours of Le Mans, against competition coming from the Peugeot 908 diesel powered racer.

In 2006, the JCB Dieselmax broke the diesel land speed record posting an average speed of over 328 mph. The vehicle used "two diesel engines that have a combined total of 1,500 horsepower (1120 kilowatts). Each is a 4-cylinder, 4.4-liter engine used commercially in a backhoe loader."

In the 2008 BTCC (British Touring car Championship), Jason Plato and Darren Turner are racing factory sponsored SEAT Leon TDI with some success against a variety of gasoline powered competitors.

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