History of the diesel car Production diesel car history started in 1933 with Citroën's Rosalie, which featured a diesel engine option (the 1,766 cc 11UD engine) in the Familiale (estate or station wagon) model. The Mercedes-Benz 260D and the Hanomag Rekord were introduced in 1936. Immediately after World War II, and throughout the 1950s and 1960s, diesel-powered cars began to gain limited popularity, particularly for commercial applications, such as ambulances, taxis, and station wagons used for delivery work. Most were conventional in design. Mercedes-Benz offered a continuous stream of diesel-powered taxis, beginning in 1949 with their 170D powered by the OM-636 engine. Later, in 1959
Iroquois Motor Car Company being "put to work continually." The company was working on putting a four-cylinder, 15-horsepower touring car with direct or chain drive, known as the "Iroquois", into market. They had also begun producing their own automobile bodies. For a few months, there was discussion of Century Motor Vehicle Company merging with J. S. Leggett's, Iroquois Motor Car Company who manufactured the body for Century, however, that did not occur because Century had too many liabilities. By December, 1904, the company raised $450,000 in capital, primarily from one shareholder, Charles A. Fox. The name changed again to the Iroquois Motor Car Company