History of the diesel car Its 1.3 L XL4D engine produces 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. The biggest single step forward for mass-market diesel cars came in 1982 when PSA
London to Brighton Veteran Car Run London to Brighton Veteran Car Run The London to Brighton Veteran Car Run is the longest-running motoring event in the world. The first run was in 1896, and it has taken place most years since its initial revival in 1927. To qualify, the cars must have been built before 1905. It is also the world's largest gathering of veteran cars – 443 started in 2005, 484 in 2009, compared to 37 starters in 1927, 51 starters in 1930 and 131 in 1938. It takes place, currently, on the first Sunday in November and starts at sunrise from Hyde Park, London