The end of diesel: Volvo to stop selling diesel models in June 2021

The death of diesel is coming, with Volvo to stop selling oil-burning engines from June next year.

The timing will coincide with the arrival of the brand's first pure EV, the XC40 Recharge, which will touch down in Australia in the middle of 2021. Recharge will become a sub-brand for Volvo, too, with all electrified models to carry the nomenclature, whether they're BEVs or Plug-In Hybrid models.

But the move also puts an end date on diesel technology for the Swedish company, with the brand's executives today saying that, despite diesels "being the cleanest they've ever been" the technology doesn't have a place in its future. While the brand will still have some diesel engines in stock, the company will stop ordering any new models.

That means the clock is ticking on the 2.0-litre, twin-turbocharged diesel engine that lives in the Volvo XC90, as well as the single-turbo-diesel of the Volvo XC40. It also means the end entirely of the Volvo V90, which is exclusively diesel and will be phased out. 

"We are seeing diesel dry up massively all around the world. And even here it's tapering off very quickly," says Volvo Australia Managing Director, Nick Connor.

"The large SUV segment is still predominantly diesel, but we anticipate that the diesel demand will fall very quickly as mild hybrids with petrol engine come along that offer the same or better performance and the same or better economy. We will phase out V90 as well."