*** Welcome to piglix ***

History of the diesel car


Diesel engines began to be used in automobiles in the 1930s. Mainly used for commercial applications early on, they did not gain popularity for passenger travel until their development in Europe in the 1960s. Diesel cars continue to develop into highly desired, high performance while retaining power and performance. In terms of pollution, diesel engines generally produce less carbon dioxide than gasoline-based engines but produce more nitrous oxides

Charles Wallace Chapman at Perkins Engines at Peterborough, England, developed an engine, the high speed diesel engine, for automobiles; previously diesel engines were too large and heavy.

Production diesel car history started in 1933 with Citroën's Rosalie, which featured a diesel engine option (the 1,766 cc 11UD engine) in the Familiale (estate or station wagon) model. The Mercedes-Benz 260D and the Hanomag Rekord were introduced in 1936.

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 2.0 L engine produced 55 PS (40 kW) at 4,350 rpm. Beginning in 1959, Peugeot offered the 403D with their TMD-85 four-cylinder engine of 1.8 L and 48 PS (35 kW), followed in 1962 by the 404D with the same engine. In 1964, the 404D became available with the improved XD88 four-cylinder engine of 2.0 L and 60 PS (44 kW). 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. Its 1.3 L XL4D engine produces 46 PS (34 kW) at 5,000 rpm. Following the 1970s oil crisis (1973 and 1979), Volkswagen introduced their first diesel, the VW Golf, with a 1.5 L naturally aspirated indirect-injection engine which was a redesigned (dieselised) version of a gasoline engine. Mercedes-Benz tested turbodiesels in cars (e.g. by the Mercedes-Benz C111 experimental and record-setting vehicles) and the first production turbo diesel cars were, in 1978, the 3.0 5-cylinder 115 hp (86 kW) Mercedes 300 SD, available only in North America, and the Peugeot 604.


...
Wikipedia

...