We are pleased to announce the results of the 2024 Diesel Top 50 in the October 2024 edition of Diesel&EcoCar magazine, which is now on sale. Earlier in the year we revealed the Electrified Top 50, and we have great pleasure in revealing the Diesel Top 50 today.

The judging panel is made up of highly respected motoring writers, and they have tested more than 75 new diesel cars over the past year, each of them robustly scored, assessed and reported upon in the monthly magazine. When we created the Top 50 format eight years ago, we wanted to move away from the usual highly predictable format for Car of the Year awards, where everyone goes home with an award, advertising spend is taken into account behind the scenes, and as a result the affair loses all of its allure and becomes a boring tick box exercise. Instead, our Top 50 heaps praise upon the diesel cars that really deserve it, whether they have been launched last week or three years ago. Calculated using our comprehensive scoring system, the assessment begins with the writer at the time of the test, with the car in front of them, rather than a discussion around a table several months later, in an office where it fast becomes a bunfight. All of the cars are reviewed and appraised in real-world conditions and driven and assessed with the target audience in mind. Each key area of the vehicle, from the infotainment software and dashboard materials to the way it behaves on winding roads and how roomy the rear passenger compartment is, are all areas of the vehicle that are carefully judged and benchmarked against the class leader.

We are extremely excited to announce that the car in pole position and awarded the title of Diesel&EcoCar Diesel Car of the Year 2024 is the Skoda Superb. Totally renewed for 2024, the winner easily grabbed the top title thanks to its spaciousness, user friendly ambience and top-notch road manners. In addition, we can reveal that in addition to becoming our Diesel Car of the Year 2024, it is also awarded the titles of Best Diesel Large Car and Best Diesel Large Estate Car.

Announcing the Diesel Top 50 line-up, Ian Robertson, Editor and Publisher of Diesel&EcoCar magazine said: “Despite the march towards electrification, there have been some significant new car launches in the world of diesel. While some car makers are abandoning the fuel, even though they still sell models in mainland Europe, there’s a solid case for vehicles that can travel long distances at great efficiency, as well as haul heavy loads. Not every customer is a suitable fit for electric vehicles, and so it’s pleasing to see so many hugely talented new diesel models on sale today.” He added “It gives me enormous pleasure to announce the winner of this year’s awards, with the brilliant Skoda Superb victorious as Diesel&EcoCar magazine Diesel Car of the Year 2024.”

In at number two in the 2024 awards charts is the recently revised Volkswagen Golf, which grabs the title of Best Diesel Medium Car in this year’s accolades. In at number three is the Mazda CX-60, which is awarded the Best Diesel Large SUV gong, while the Skoda Octavia is placed fourth, and secures the Best Diesel Medium Estate Car honour.

In fifth place is the Range Rover Sport, which takes both the Best Diesel Luxury SUV and Best British-Built Diesel award for 2024. Elsewhere, the Kia Sorento wins the prize for Best Diesel Seven-Seat SUV, and the Range Rover is awarded the prestigious title of Best Diesel Super Luxury SUV.

The Mercedes-Benz B-Class wins the Best Diesel MPV award, while its luxurious stablemate, the S-Class grabs the Best Diesel Super Luxury Car title, while the CLE is recognised for being the Best Diesel Coupé in the 2024 awards. Completing the medals haul, the E-Class is named Best Diesel Luxury Car this year.

Isuzu are victorious with the D-Max, as it secures the Best Diesel Pick-Up award this year, and Volkswagen’s Multivan is voted Best Diesel Seven-Seat MPV. Another win for Volkswagen is with the Tiguan, as its latest model is recognised as Best Diesel Medium SUV.

Three final awards are selected for Most Influential Car Maker, Most Eagerly Awaited New Car of 2025, and the Editor’s Award for Innovation.

Mercedes-Benz is the deserved winner of Most Influential Car Maker for its broad diesel model range that encompasses mild hybrid and plug-in hybrid technology. No other car maker offers such a comprehensive range of powertrains to suit all kinds of customer tastes.

The most eagerly awaited new car for 2025 is judged from reader participation and engagement, with the most letters and e-mails about the upcoming new Audi A5. We can’t wait to get behind the wheel of the A4 and A5 replacement, later on this year.

And finally, Mazda has been chosen for the Editor’s Award for Innovation thanks to its rightsizing policy that serves up the technology solutions that it deems best for the customer and doesn’t pander to legislation, government or fashion whims. Its 3.3-litre mild hybrid diesel e-Skyactiv D powerplant is quite simply brilliant and a perfect companion for the CX-60 and will be found in the new six- and seven-seat CX-80, available from early next year.

The full list of winners for the 2024 Diesel Top 50 are listed here:

1	Skoda Superb	Diesel Car of the Year 2024, Best Diesel Large Car, Best Diesel Large Estate Car
2	Mazda CX-60	Best Diesel Large SUV
3	Volkswagen Golf	Best Diesel Medium Car
4	Skoda Octavia	Best Diesel Medium Estate Car
5	Range Rover Sport	Best Diesel Luxury SUV, Best British-Built Diesel
6	Volkswagen Tiguan	Best Diesel Medium SUV
7	DS 4
8	Kia Sorento	Best Diesel Seven-Seat SUV
9	Land Rover Defender
10	Skoda Kodiaq
11	Range Rover	Best Diesel Super Luxury SUV
12	Peugeot 308
13	Range Rover Velar
14	Mercedes-Benz GLC
15	BMW X5
16	Mercedes-Benz C-Class
17	Audi A3
18	Mercedes-Benz A-Class
19	Skoda Karoq
20	Range Rover Evoque
21	Mercedes-Benz B-Class	Best Diesel MPV
22	Land Rover Discovery
23	Jaguar E-Pace
24	Mercedes-Benz S-Class	Best Diesel Super Luxury Car
25	SEAT Leon
26	Mercedes-Benz CLE	Best Diesel Coupé
27	BMW X7
28	Isuzu D-Max	Best Diesel Pick-up
29	Mazda CX-5
30	Land Rover Discovery Sport
31	Mercedes-Benz E-Class	Best Diesel Luxury Car
32	Jaguar F-Pace
33	Audi Q5
34	Volkswagen Multivan	Best Diesel Seven-Seat MPV
35	Ford Tourneo Connect
36	Volkswagen Touareg
37	Audi Q8
38	Ford Ranger
39	DS 7
40	Alfa Romeo Stelvio
41	Mercedes-Benz GLB
42	Audi Q3
43	Citroën C5 Aircross
44	Volkswagen Amarok
45	KGM Musso
46	Genesis GV70
47	Volkswagen T-Roc
48	Citroën Berlingo
49	Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace
50	Audi A8