Diesel

Why does my 2022 Mazda BT-50 diesel manual idle at around 1000rpm most of the time and shudder when I turn it off?

Diesel isn't dead after all: Why the owner of Peugeot and Jeep is making up for lackluster EV sales with diesels.

To torture a well worn Mark Twain reference, if Australia’s 2025 new vehicle sales numbers are anything to go by, reports of the diesel engine’s death are greatly exaggerated.According to Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries VFacts registration data, for the full calendar year of 2025 diesel-powered vehicles across passenger, SUV and light commercial segments totalled 364,605 units, only 1.7 per cent lower than 2024’s overall number (370,818).In fact, sales of diesel-powered passenger cars were up 1.3 per cent year-on-year (10,372 vs 10,242) with diesel SUV sales rising no less than 6.0 per cent (122,603 vs 115,670).Diesel light-commercial sales were down 5.4 per cent (231,630 vs 244,906) while plug-in hybrid commercials went from zero in 2024 to 20,634 last year.A coincidence that 18,073 examples of BYD’s Shark 6 PHEV dual cab ute found homes last year? We think not.The Ford Ranger was the best selling vehicle in 2025, but it wasn't alone at the top.Traditional diesel-heavy sellers the Toyota HiLux, Isuzu D-Max, Ford Everest and Toyota Prado filled the third to sixth slots on the 2025 overall sales leader board with others such as the Mitsubishi Triton lifting year-on-year volume, too. Only the second placed Toyota RAV4 Hybrid managed to break up diesel's dominance atop the new car sales charts last year.Of course, nothing stays the same forever and given the rapidly shifting form of the Australian new vehicle market and the increasing impact of the federal government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) regime there’s a chance the diesel engine’s status may have changed dramatically by the end of 2026.But for now, it appears diesel power isn’t headed for the automotive graveyard just yet.  Australian diesel vehicle registrations:

South Korea’s KGM (formerly known as SsangYong) has officially revealed the design of its new-generation Musso dual-cab ute ahead of more details surfacing in the new year.Dubbed the ‘Q300’, this generation of the Musso dials up the style factor with glitzy looks that are similar to the current Actyon- and Torres-based Musso EV.The front particularly is busy with lots of design elements. KGM has shown off two grille designs, but both feature big LED headlights that are joined by a full-width LED daytime running light set-up.Around the side there is plenty of thick black cladding around the wheel arches and the door sills. There are also vertical accent strips at the top of the wheel arches, like the Musso EV.At the back there is a step into the tub, vertical tail-lights, KGM embossing on the tailgate, as well as a complex sports bar.Beyond this KGM hasn’t provided any further details. It appears this new-generation ute has a body-on-frame chassis, though it’s unclear how much has been altered compared to the outgoing generation.Globally this new Musso will be offered with petrol and diesel powertrains, though no specifications or outputs have been announced yet.The current Musso is offered with a 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine that produces 133kW and 420Nm. In other markets there’s also a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine available.KGM plans to launch this new-generation Musso in the domestic market in the first quarter of 2026.It’s unclear when it will be coming to Australia. We’ve reached out to KGM Australia and will update this story once we hear back.The Musso name dates back all the way back to 1993 when it was adorned on an SUV. It later spawned a dual-cab ute version in 2002 called the Musso Sports.The outgoing version of the Musso, dubbed the Q200 generation, dates back to 2018. It has received a number of updates over the years, including one that launched in Australia earlier this year with the availability of electric power steering among other safety feature additions.It also saw SsangYong dropped from the name altogether.Given there is a new Musso that’s now been revealed, it’s unclear whether a new-generation Rexton SUV is also on the horizon. The two vehicles have historically been based on the same platform and share a lot of componentry.

Nissan to unveil long-awaited next-gen Navara imminently!

Diesel engines are far from over, with a big new 3.0-litre unit is destined for one of Australia’s emerging range of utes and SUVs. To make its global debut in Australia sometime in the middle of next year, this internal combustion engine with no electrification assistance will arrive in an in-line four-cylinder turbo-diesel configuration that promises to be one of the most efficient of its type available anywhere in the world.

Diesel as a fuel source might not be dead yet, but the vultures are circling, waiting for their prey to finally stop moving. Don’t believe me? It doesn’t take a crystal ball to see into a future already so clearly laid out, and not just by newcomer brands, but by some of the biggest proponents of diesel engines in the history of the fuel.

Q: Do diesel engines have spark plugs?A: No, diesel engines do not have spark plugs.What are spark plugs? What do spark plugs do?Spark plugs are located at the top of the cylinder head in petrol-fuelled internal-combustion engines. As the name implies, these engines rely on the combustion process to power the engine. And a spark plug – as the name implies – is an electrical component which produces a spark that ignites the petrol-air mixture, causing the combustion process to kick off in order to power the engine. That spark is created between two electrodes at the tip of the plug as a result of a high-voltage charge received via the ignition coil at the other end of the spark plug.What kinds of cars have spark plugs?Spark plugs are found in cars with petrol engines.Do diesels have spark plugs?No, they don’t.How many spark plugs are in a diesel?None, but they do have glow plugs which we’ll get to in a couple of sentences below this. Most diesel engines run on one glow plug per engine cylinder.Why don't diesel engines have spark plugs?Because diesel engines use high compression, rather than an actual spark, to ignite the fuel. Air is drawn into the engine cylinder and compressed to an extremely high pressure and consequent temperature.What do diesels have instead of spark plugs?Glow plugs.What do glow plugs do in a diesel engine?As mentioned above, diesel engines use high compression, rather than an actual spark, to ignite the fuel. So, instead of spark plugs, diesel engines use glow plugs, electrical heating devices located in each cylinder of the diesel engine, which preheat the air in the engine’s cylinders to expedite the combustion process necessary to start the engine.A glow plug in a diesel-fuelled vehicle is only needed during the ignition process, whereas a spark plug in a petrol-fuelled vehicle works continuously while you’re driving.Do all diesels have glow plugs?No, not all diesel engines have glow plugs.When the diesel-air mixture is compressed quickly in a diesel engine, it ignites without any need for an actual spark and that produces heat enough to kick-start the combustion process.But smaller diesel engines have difficulty maintaining the temperature necessary for combustion and the purpose of glow plugs is to warm the diesel-air mixture in order for it to combust of its own accord.Many larger diesel engines don’t need any glow plugs because their diesel-air mixture ignites without any need for assistance. . The diesel-air mix has sufficient heat coming from the air, which becomes increasingly hotter as it is quickly compressed.How does a diesel engine work?This is best explained by a panel of diesel experts over at Cummins who came up with this nifty explanation … and it reads like poetry to me:“In general, a diesel engine works by using a piston to compress air to increase the temperature in the cylinder and then injecting atomised diesel fuel into this cylinder.“When the fuel comes into contact with the high temperature, it ignites, creating energy that drives the piston down transferring energy to the crankshaft and through the powertrain.“This process is repeated over and over again at a high speed, making a diesel engine a powerful piece of technology. “Different types of diesel engines will have varying compression ratios. The compression ratio of the diesel engine impacts how much power the engine puts out. The higher the ratio, the more power is generated.”Couldn’t have said it better myself.

Kia has confirmed to CarsGuide its Tasman ute is currently being evaluated by police forces around Australia.

Diesel powertrains mounted a major comeback in April, dominating the country's best-seller lists as plug-in hybrid powertrains suffer as FBT exemptions expire.