Power Then vs. Power Now: The Diesel 70 Gets a Modern Comparison

Like a heart surgeon, Craig Stadola looks over the new crankshaft for the Diesel 70 and decides what the next moves will be with the engine block.

It’s no secret—we love connecting the dots between old iron and modern horsepower. That’s why we’re excited to share a quick update about the Diesel 70 and its place in the evolution of earthmoving capability.

Back in the day, many of our go-to machines were built around 70-horsepower engines. They were dependable workhorses for their time. Fast forward to today, and those same machine categories are now running with 770 horsepower. That’s not a typo—modern machines deliver 11 times the power density of their predecessors .

This jump in horsepower isn’t just about going faster or pushing more dirt. It represents a massive leap in engine technology, fuel efficiency, and operator capability. The industry has shifted toward compact, high-output designs that get more work done with fewer machines.

It’s one thing to read about the changes in a spec sheet—it’s another thing entirely to feel it rumble through the frame of a fully restored Diesel 70. And while the old machines won’t be winning any modern production races, they offer an irreplaceable reminder of where we started.

Stay tuned on our YouTube channel for an update video about this machine.