Rear-engined diesel cars? Volkswagen's Type 2 (T3) has a rear-mounted engine and diesel was an option. And there's a Beetle prototype that still exists in a museum, but rear-engined diesels never really took off. There are probably several reasons for this, with the biggest one being weight - old diesel engines weigh considerably more than their petrol counterparts, which would have caused some significant handling issues. A friend who is passionate about oil burners suggested that you might be able to find some examples of rear-engined diesel microcars from the 1970s and 1980s if you look hard enough. There are a couple of examples of modern-rear engined diesels, including the Smart ForTwo.