Diesel history

Released for 1979, the Oldsmobile 350 cubic inch Diesel V8 was an $850 option that promised to return 30 miles per gallon – an astonishing feat for a full-size sedan.

Once more, GE did not give in and spent many years fine-tuning its design until it had overtaken EMD by the 1980's.

1982:Factory outlet store is opened.

1984:Diesel Kids line is launched.

In a 1985 article in Automotive News, L. F. Koci, then general manager of DDA and later president of the independent Detroit Diesel, cited an influx of diesel engines from Europe and Japan as a major cause of the drop in DDA sales.

Over the next six years, however, Detroit Diesel underwent a precipitous decline, and by 1987 its market share had dwindled to less than 5 percent.

As reported in Financial World in 1988, he eliminated redundant computer costs, and consolidated manufacturing operations in an effort to cut the operating budget by more than $70 million.

Released for 1989, the Dodge Ram Cummins Turbo Diesel was a surprise hit for the company.

Steve served on many ADS committees and in 1990 became the Association's first second generation president.

Diesel launched its first ‘For Successful Living’ advertising campaign in 1991, instantly establishing a reputation for innovative marketing.

Over the next several years the truck engines seemed to hold up well, and the $82 million that the Series 60 had brought the company by 1993 suggested that Detroit Diesel had overcome its reputation for unreliable products.

In 1994 Steve Bailey moved from Columbus, Ohio and returned home to become President and Chief Operating Officer of Diesel Injection Service Company, Inc., the leader of The Diesel USA Group.

The brand’s first flagship stores, in New York, Rome and London, opened in 1996.

In 1997, Renzo Rosso's success was crowned with Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year award.

The company quickly built up its retail operations, topping 25 stores by 1998.

The sunglasses became a quick success, prompting the company to develop other licensed products, such as a line of Diesel perfumes and fragrances manufactured by Germany's Marbett, and then extending to footwear, luggage, and, in a license granted in 1999, watches made by Fossil.

USPTO, 2000. “National Inventors Hall of Fame: Rudolf Diesel”, US Patent and Trademark Office, Inventure Place, https://www.invent.org/inductees/rudolf-diesel

2001:Company expands to Spain and Portugal.

So, in 2005 Detroit Diesel Corporation invested $350 million to refurbish and retool its plant.

Introduced at the 2006 North American International Motor Show, the BlueTec diesel engine was designed to slay the “dirty diesel” stereotype once and for all.

Five years later, Detroit Diesel Corporation invested $350 million to revamp its main manufacturing plant and launched the new DD engine platform in 2007.

The Series 60 engine reached the one millionth unit mark in 2009.

From 2010 to the current day, the Detroit Diesel Corporation and its engines have continued to grow and develop.

The main article above, was first published in Western Mariner Magazine, April 2011.

Unfortunately in 2012 Lloyd A. Bailey passed away, however his son Steve Bailey having grown up in the industry continues his legacy.

December 16, 2015 By First Motion Products

Cummins released next-generation diesels in 2017 that have redesigned emission controls and benefits to fuel economy.

On May 31st, 2019, Jasper Holdings, Inc., the parent company of Jasper Engines and Transmissions acquired the Diesel USA Group of companies from the Bailey family.

However, the 25th and 10th percentile of hourly earnings in North Carolina are $16.97 and $14.24, respectively. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States Department of Labor, Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2020.

Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers, viewed June 2, 2021.)