History of The Diesel Car - 1990s and The Present

1990s and The Present

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 1987 and one year 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 Bosch mechanically controlled injection. In the writers experience the Audi 100TDi was very troublesome and the engine code "AAT" is often known as the difficult Audi . 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 from 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) There were also small diesel engines produced in England by British Leyland and Perkins. For reasons of economy the petrol BMC "B" series engine was dieselised and produced in capacities of 1.5 and 1.8 litres. Perkins produced the 4.99, 4.107 and 4.108 engines all of which were extremely reliable. Later BL produced the five main bearing "O" series engine which was extremely strong. Petrol turbo variants could make 200HP and the engine was ideal for converting to a diesel. 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 however in the writers opinion timing belts at sea are not a good idea. Engines that rely on timing belts are more suited to inland waterways. It is not easy to make a lightweight and powerful top class diesel engine owing to the immense pressures and heat produced within the engine. These problems were solved by VM Motori of Cento and the engines were apparently so good that Rover, Ford and Jeep bought them. The interesting features of the engines were the tunnel-bore block and separate cylinder heads to allow for expansion. VM engines were marinised by BMW and sold as BMW stern-drive packages. Mercury Marine also used the VM engines. As they have aged in in car applications, they have developed a reputation for blowing head gaskets, due to the separate cylinder head design.

In 1997, the 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 refuelling.

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 (460 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 a 2.0-litre, boxer engine format opposed-four-cylinder diesel engine of 110 kW (150 PS; 148 hp) power, and 350 N·m (260 lb·ft) of torque, in the United Kingdom. Sales in continental Europe started in 2008.

Today the cars that produce the lowest CO₂/km in emissions, lower than hybrids, are the most advanced compact European diesel cars.