The Quickest Diesel Production Cars Ranked By 0-60 MPH Times – CarBuzz

Diesel vehicles have come in for some stick over the years, but that shouldn’t take away from the fact that there have been some real beasts worthy of our respect and admiration. In Europe, they seem a lot more at peace with their oil burners and their vehicle fleet is all the better for it – a little variety goes a long way to keeping the consumer happy, after all. Did you know you can still buy a diesel-powered BMW 3 Series in other parts of the world, for example?

BMW

BMW is a German luxury car and motorbike manufacturer and current owner of Mini, Rolls-Royce, and Alpina. With roots dating back to 1913 as Rapp Motorenwerke, it officially became Bayerische Motoren Werke in 1922 as a manufacturer of aircraft engines. BMW’s first car was built in 1928 when it built the Austin 7 under license from Dixi, which was called the BMW 3/15. BMW grew into a manufacturer of premium and luxury automobiles, launching iconic nameplates like the 3 Series, 5 Series, and 7 Series, and is today known as one of the leading luxury automakers in the world, while the BMW M division is hailed as a leading manufacturer of performance cars.

Founded

1916

Founder

Karl Rapp

Headquarters

Munich, Germany

Owned By

Publicly Traded

Current CEO

Oliver Zipse

But creating the perfect diesel vehicle is no easy task. Some manufacturers, in their desire for comfort and technology over everything else, are left with a vehicle that, while stylish and tidy, simply doesn’t excite. Then you get the vehicles so focused on raw power that they create a Frankenstein monster that no one would want to drive, let alone own. To find that sweet spot, a car both stylish, comfortable and so fast that it’s also exciting… that takes more than a little luck.

The cars here are listed because they’re quick, sure. But they also tick several other boxes.

10

2023 Mercedes CLS 400d

5 seconds

A car built for comfort, the Mercedes 2023 Mercedes CLS 400d has been described as part executive saloon, part coupe and many argue it has managed to combine the best of both. However, while the inside is comfy and very well kitted out, it isn’t great at tight corners – it is a big car, after all – and the ride could be described as bumpy. In other words, don’t go chasing waterfalls, please stick to the highways and the main roads that you’re used to.

A smooth body with fewer lines than many cars around have no doubt added to the aerodynamics and the a 2.9 liter turbocharged diesel motor and nine-speed automatic gearbox means it’s no slouch.

9

2022 Audi S4 TDi

4.8 seconds

‘Lighter is faster’, or so they reckon. The 2022 Audi S4 TDi seems to be the proof in the pudding, racing off the line to complete the 0-60 mph benchmark in a time of 4.8 seconds. Under the hood sits a 3-liter mild-hybrid TDI diesel engine, the same engine as the diesel-powered S6, in fact. And yet it is able to complete the speed test 0.2 seconds faster.

With 341 horsepower at your disposal, anyone would enjoy cruising the motorways and back roads, able to overtake easily even in the higher gears. If there was one fault, we’d say the braking could have been better. It just never really felt comfortable, either too hard when soft was needed or vice versa.

8

2024 Mercedes-Benz E450d 4Matic

4.8 seconds

It’s amazing the difference 0.2 seconds can make. Whereas the other Mercedes on this list was there almost out of politeness – we couldn’t have it all BMW and Audi – the 2024 Mercedes E-Class 450d 4Matic has most certainly earned its spot.

Mercedes must have felt the same way about its German rivals because it upped its game and added a 3-liter inline-6 turbodiesel to an E-Class executive saloon, pulled some strings and added some magic and ended up with a beast that boasts 554 pound feet of torque with 390 horsepower, mated to a nine-speed automatic gearbox. All that torque is sent to the wheel via an all-wheel-drive system.

The tech inside is a bit over the top, but there’s no denying the comfort level as the air suspension, in particular, makes this an enjoyable drive.

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7

2018 Bentley Bentayga

4.8 seconds

Play the word association game with most people – asking them to say the first thing that comes to mind when you say a word – and most people, when given ‘Bentley’, would answer ‘luxury’. But there’s an alternative word for Bentley that not everyone knows and the word is ‘speed’. Yes, cars are generally luxurious, but the company’s goal has always been to get you where you need to go in absolute comfort, but also as fast as possible.

The 2018 Bentley Bentayga is the poster boy for these goals. The Audi-borrowed 4-liter turbodiesel engine is accompanied by two turbochargers, one small, one large and an electric compressor that helps the Bentayga achieve 664 lb-ft of torque and 429 horsepower. It can reach 168 mph too, by the way, and you could probably get quite close without realizing it, such is the comfort.

6

2024 BMW M340d xDrive

4.7 seconds

Fast, efficient, plenty of space, decent-looking and safe. All words to describe the BMW M340d xDrive. You can add ‘discreet’ and ‘effortless’ to the mix, too. While some vehicles master one aspect of performance and end up mid-range in the others, this BMW really delivers in all.

While the M340d xDrive is not an ‘M car’ in the purest sense of the definition, it nevertheless delivers on performance. The 3.0-liter twin-turbo inline-six puts out 340 horsepower and 516 pound feet of torque and lets you know it with a sound closer to that of a sports car than a diesel. That BMW released this car at all is a wonder. When most are heading for electric and/or hybrid, it showed the world there’s still a spot for diesel.

It can manage around 700 miles on a tank and is great for long-distance travel.

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5

2021 BMW M440d xDrive MHT

4.6 seconds

Up until now, the vehicles mentioned have come with the qualifier ‘but isn’t great in the corners’. Well, the 2021 BMW M440d scraps that idea. The M Sport brakes and suspension mean that the vehicle is, well, like an M Sport car.

The fact that it’s a diesel means many this side of the Atlantic immediately discard it, but it’s pretty much as quick as the M440i available in the States. It has 516 lb-ft of torque available from just above idle. That’s more torque than you get from the M4 CSL, which is supposed to be the ultimate. You can image how brisk the in-gear acceleration is.

The B57 diesel engine – a sibling of the popular B58 gas engine – sits under the hood.

4

2017 Audi A8 4.2 TDi Quattro

4.6 seconds

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If Audi hadn’t limited the 2017 Audi A8 4.2 TDi Quattro top speed to 155 mph, who knows how fast this car could have gone. Still, it’s probably just as well that they did because there are enough drivers out there with delusions of adequacy.

A 4.2-liter V8 twin-turbo diesel engine was responsible for powering the A8 TDI quattro and that, combined with the 385 horsepower and 627 lb-ft of torque, helped create one of the most powerful diesel cars ever. That’s worth repeating: 627 lb-ft of torque.

The V8 was blessed with an incredible power-delivery system, which allowed it to gain full torque at 2,000 rpm, as well as being kitted with the quattro AWD, ensuring great traction control, even when hitting the gas. Surprisingly, it was also relatively quiet and could achieve 667 miles on one tank.

3

2019 BMW M550d xDrive

4.4 seconds

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The 2019 BMW M550d’s B57S diesel engine boasts four turbochargers – two small and two large – to propel its car to some truly ridiculous numbers. The engineers really earned their stripes with this vehicle and props to them for thinking out the box. The two smaller turbos start things off, but when you need to push on, the bigger ones kick in. One stays quiet until you really want to show off, and then it sends you forward like a character in a video game that has eaten a magic berry (or something).

The 3-liter inline-6 produces 400 horsepower, which is pretty impressive for a diesel engine. There’s also 561 pound feet of torque available at 2,000 rpm and because of the quad-turbo, 330 lb-ft is available at 1,000 rpm making this car like an elastic that’s been pulled taut, begging for release.

2

2019 Audi A8 60 TDi

4.4 seconds

The 2019 Audi A8 60 TDi has progressed steadily since its introduction and although it originally contained a six-cylinder diesel, about six years ago it was fitted with a bigger 60 TDI engine.

If the engine looks similar, that’s because it’s the same as does duty in the Bentley Bentayga diesel and the Audi SQ8 TDI, with 664 lb-ft of torque. That means it won’t hang about when you press on the gas.

With this much power and handling, the roads are eaten up in no time, whether long-distance routes or the winding and twisties. The ride is smooth – although perhaps not as smooth as the Mercedes S-Class – and easy to drive with plenty of grip. If you’re wanting great handling, however, best you look elsewhere.

1

2020 Porsche Panamera 4S

4.3 seconds

More than 625 pound feet of torque from 1,000 to 3,200 rpm. Over 420 horsepower. A 4.0-liter bi-turbo V8. A top speed of 177mph (Chrono package) and, of course, the fact that it can go from 0-62 mph in just 4.3 seconds.

The 2020 Porsche Panamera 4S Diesel is, in many ways, a bit of an anomaly. Porsche and diesel seem a bit like a burger and … carrots: they just don’t seem to go together.

And yet that’s exactly what Porsche does… the unexpected. And if you create a segment, the guys in the lab coats will try and create a vehicle that tops it. And so it is here. The 4.0-liter bi-turbo V8 is the same engine found in the Bentley Bentayga Diesel and Audi SQ7, making the Porsche’s acceleration seemingly effortless.

​​​​​​​This four-door sports car has power and then some. A worthy car to top this list.

Sources: Topspeed, Carplus, Slashgear