There have been zillions invested in the Diesel, which would have been wasted. The Diesel is also seen as the more efficient engine: less fuel consumption and less CO2 emissions.
This is what I don't understand, it seems like a sunk cost fallacy. For each diesel sold, the auto makers sell one less gasoline car, the profits should stay the same.
They have a competitive edge on diesel technology against other car makers. Look at the WEC championships to see how effective Audi's diesel development was there, racing technology almost always translates somehow to street technology for consumers.
On that playing field only Toyota came close to beat the German diesels so it's not only a sunken cost fallacy, they have an advantage on diesel technology that makes it understandable (from a business perspective) on them pushing for it.
