You’d be forgiven for thinking that the diesel engine is dead. The relentless electric hype has become just a little hard on the eyes and the eardrums, especially now with the recent launch — I think — of the Tesla Semi. And a little earlier we heard Navistar say its new S13 is the last internal combustion engine it will ever design from the ground up.

But hey, relax. That company also said that by 2030 50% of its new vehicle sales will be zero-emission models, expanding to 100% by 2040, but it allowed that “…internal combustion engines will be required for many years until the electric vehicle can be fully adopted and when we have available cross-country infrastructure in place.”

Battery-electric, eh? That implies that hydrogen won’t have a place in heavy trucks and I’m definitely not so sure about that. And not necessarily by way of fuel cells.

Nor do I believe that new diesel designs, or revivals of old ones, are not in the cards. Case in point: the Achates engine. And there are good reasons why it stands an excellent chance of moving us forward while retaining the diesel’s advantages.

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This article originally appeared on Truckinginfo.com on October 28, 2022.