Originally Posted by babymog

As Mark said, mostly marketing decisions.

The GM diesel V-8 was a mess. The block wasn't strong enough, barely enough compression so it wouldn't start without very strong glow-plugs and needed two good batteries to start, an NA so really smokey, not very powerful, and not that economical. The slow black cloud machines really turned US car buyers off to diesel cars, to a point where Mercedes stopped offering diesels in the US in '88-'89 (which was their mainstay for most of their years here).

Ironically, GM had introduced a decent-performing V-6 diesel near the end, which if introduced instead of the V-8 probably would have put GM in the forefront of US-sold diesels, good mileage and good punch in mid-size FWD platforms.

The diesel Isuzu Pup (Chevy Luv), diesel Chevette, diesel Lincoln (BMW), others that would have made it died probably because the V-8 was such a turd.

If we had federal subsidies on diesel technology and buying diesel cars (as some European nations have had) instead of hype-brids, we would probably see more diesel fuel production keeping the diesel fuel prices in line, and more diesel cars on our roads (and not just big noisy-smokey pickup trucks blowing coal). JMO.