Characterization of honne oil, un-tapped vegetable oil as substitute for diesel fuel, and its blends (H10 (10% honne oil + 90% diesel fuel by volume)-H90) with diesel fuel can help the researchers who work on alternative fuel for diesel engines. Properties of honne oil and its blends such as kinematic viscosity, density, cold flow properties, carbon residue, heating value, ash content, distillation temperature, cetane number and flash point were determined experimentally as per the Bureau of Indian Standard procedures. Fuel related properties of honne oil such as acid, saponification and iodine value were determined experimentally. Most of the properties of H10-H50 are within the limit set by ASTM 6571-08 standards. Hence, it is concluded that the H10-H50 is a renewable energy source and a promising fuel substitute which could be used in the diesel engine for short term application to bring down the consumption of the neat diesel fuel. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.