Cadillac contemplating diesel engines as brand plans European invasion

U.S. car mag Car and Driver has confirmed that Cadillac’s future includes diesel engines, and that’s part of a plan to boost its European presence, an unnamed source says those engines may well end up here, too.

Caddy says it wants to become a significant player on the continent by 2020, an outlook it can only make real with diesels, which are incredibly popular there while barely making a dent in North America’s marketplace. That apparently isn’t deterring the brand from at least thinking about offering the new motors to buyers in Canada and the U.S.; diesel is an option in BMW, Audi, Benz and VW models, Chevrolet offers a diesel in its little Cruze, and Jaguar just announced its forthcoming compact XE sedan will be offered with one from the get-go.

Even with diesel’s fits-and-starts popularity growth in North America, we remain skeptical that compression-ignition will ever capture a significant portion of the market here: hybrids remain big sellers, and every time an automaker reveals an electric car with a better battery and longer driving range, it seems like a tacit admonition of diesel’s dirty reputation on this side of the Atlantic.

The other tidbit to come out of that C&D piece is the possibility of Cadillac adopting electric turbocharging, as Audi is considering for its near future. Caddy’s bosses feel that move is further off (though word is Audi will roll out an electric-turbocharged model next year) due to the need for an upgraded electrical system to support a juiced turbo’s power demands.