Diesel-powered cars are gaining ground in the United States lately with both Volkswagen->ke94 and Audi ->ke14 introducing new models into the market. Mazda->ke53 is looking to join the fray of consumer diesel model with its Mazda6->ke346 sedan.

If the idea of parking an oil-burning "zoom zoom" sedan->ke142 in your garage sounds great you need to put on your hat of patience. Mazda has just announced that the Skyactiv-D equipped Mazda6 has been delayed.

The car has not been delayed due to emissions testing, rather Mazda feels the car doesn't have quite the right driving dynamic. In its own words words the diesel Mazda6 needs to be tweaked to provide "the right balance between fuel-economy and Mazda-appropriate driving performance."

While it makes us a little sad that Mazda has delayed the introduction of this engine to the US market again, we can't help but appreciate the desire to deliver the best-driving product they can.

With how much the gasoline-powered 2014 Mazda6 impressed us, it's no surprise that Mazda is refusing to deliver a sub-par product.

Click past the jump to read about the Sktactiv-D engine.

Skyactiv-D Engine

The Skyactiv-D engine that will eventually be fitted to the Mazda6 is a 2.2-liter four-cylinder. Designed using Mazda's Skyactiv engineering approach, this engine is extremely lightweight and features a 14.0:1 compression ratio; the lowest for any production diesel engine in the world.

Official U.S. specifications have yet to be released but the European model is available with two versions of this engine; one with 148 horsepower version and a higher power 173 horsepower model. Both power outputs beat the Passat TDI->ke224, the only competitor in this segment.

Considering the Mazda6 can already achieve an EPA-rated 40 mpg on the highway, we expect Mazda to target about 45 mpg for the new turbodiesel sedan.

The original on-sale target for the Syactiv-D Mazda6 was late last year.