Beginning in 2019, diesel BMW vehicles will no longer be available in North America. Only a handful of diesel BMW vehicles are currently in production, with the 3 Series available as 328d, the 5 Series as the 540d xDrive and the X5 as the 35d. In only a few short months, all of these will be gone in North America.
BMW of North America is looking towards the future to focus on plug-in hybrid (PHEV) technology and performance-oriented gasoline engines. The decision to no longer produce diesel vehicles is simply a result of consumer demand.
With this change in policy, the BMW 328d will be the last German diesel car sold in the United States. Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche have all done away with diesel-powered offerings.
However, there is a chance that a German diesel-powered car will return to the United States. A spokesman for BMW of North America has said that they are closely monitoring customer preferences and are prepared to adjust the product portfolio accordingly.
This decision comes less than 18 months after Dieselgate, when Volkswagen lied to the American public regarding their diesel emissions. Volkswagen plead guilty to three felony counts and paid $4.3 billion in federal penalties for attempting to circumvent the emission control system in U.S. diesel vehicles.
Volkswagen agreed to spend more than $25 billion in the United States for claims from owners, environmental regulators, states and dealers. The German car company also offered to buy back around 500,000 polluting U.S. vehicles at a cost of over $7.4 billion.
