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Porsche, which complained mightily earlier this year about European CO2 rules it said would make it impossible for the company to continue turning out vehicles imbued with Porsche DNA, is trying nonetheless.


The carmaker on Monday began production - for the European market only, it says - of a diesel version of its Cayenne SUV (right).


Porsche's first diesel will be outfitted with the same 3.0-liter, 240 horsepower V6 TDI engine that Audi and Volkswagen are using for their upcoming diesel SUVs, the VW Touareg (the Cayenne's cousin) and Audi Q7.


Porsche has said that it expects its diesel Cayenne to achieve about 25 miles per gallon in overall fuel economy, a substantial improvement over the base gasoline model's federal EPA rating of just 16 mpg overall.


No word yet on when, or whether, Porsche might decide to ship its diesel SUV stateside.


Citing the ongoing economic meltdown, several automakers have canceled diesel plans for the U.S. recently (Honda most notably) because the engines and required emissions controls make them cost thousands more than their gas counterparts.    


While we're waiting for word on the diesel Cayenne's future in the U.S., we're also still waiting for the hybrid Cayenne that Porsche promised us way back in 2005. Initially it was to have been a 2009 model but it now has been pushed back to 2010.


John O'Dell, Senior Editor

Tags: Audi, Diesel, Hybrid, Porsche, Volkswagen, Porsche Cayenne Diesel Production Begins

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Production of Porsche Cayenne Diesel Begins - Now Where's That Hybrid? was originally published by Green Car Advisor. Read the full story by clicking here.