All the European car manufacturers have been doing diesels for quite a long time. You haven't really seen them in the states.
BMW began producing diesel engines in 1983. The first of these was a 2.4 liter straight-6 engine based on the E28 and E34 platforms. The diesel engine was available with a turbocharger and was sold to a number of American automakers for use in their vehicles.
BMW has also produced several 4-cylinder diesel engines and even a diesel V8 known as the M67. BMW's M67 was highly acclaimed for its engineering and won several awards until production ceased in 1998.