BMW has claimed six awards for five engines at this year’s “International Engine of the Year Awards”, including a successive Engine of the Year title for the 225 kW twin-turbo 3,0-litre six cylinder and “Best New Engine of the Year” for the 150 kW twin turbo four-cylinder diesel powerplants.
The “International Engine of the Year Awards” have been presented for the past 10 years and this year’s recipients were chosen by a jury of 65 motoring journalists from 32 nations, including CAR and Wiel Magazine’s respective technical editors – Jake Venter and Schalk Pienaar. The 2008 awards ceremony was held during the “Engine Expo 2008” in Stuttgart last night and the N54 powerplant, as utilised in BMW’s 135i Coupe, 335i Saloon and Coupé and xDrive35i, defended its overall ranking and repeated last year’s victory in the 2,5 to 3,0-litre engine category.
The Munich-based manufacturer has now won the overall title six times since 1999. The only other engine to repeat its overall victory – BMW’s 5,0-litre V10 (M5, M5 Touring, M6 Coupé and M6 Convertible) in 2005 and 2006, won the Above 4,0-litre category this year. Furthermore, the M3 Coupé and Saloon’s 309 kW 4,0-litre V8 unit won the 3,0- to 4,0-litre category, the 2,0-litre variable twin turbo four-cylinder diesel unit in the BMW 123d received the “Best New Engine” award (unfortunately, that powerplant isn’t destined for SA in the short-term, BMW SA says) and the Mini Cooper S’ 1,6-litre four pot (with twin-scroll turbocharger and direct petrol injection) repeated last year’s win in the 1,4- to 1,8 litre class.
Green Engine of the Year
For 2008, the Green Engine of the Year award goes to Toyota’s Prius – the petrol-electric hybrid that has already netted Toyota a number of accolades… Not only did it meet the fuel economy requirements for this category, but also features technologies that help reduce its carbon dioxide emissions to 104g/km.
The runners up in this category are: BMW Diesel 2,0-litre with stop-start technology in the 118d and 318d, VW’s 1,4-litre TSI Twincharger for its small capacity and high output, Fiat Bravo’s 1,4-litre turbo and Honda’s Hybrid 1,3-litre IMA.
Best Performance Engine
Pushing up Germany’s already strong representation in the winners’ circle is Porsche’s 3,6-litre turbo flat six that powers the 911 Turbo and GT2. Under the bonnet of the 911 Turbo, this unit (which scooped the award in this category last year) delivers 313 kW, while the GT2 packs 395 kW. It is said to be the first of its kind to feature exhaust gas turbochargers with variable turbine geometry and Venter added: “Very few turbocharged engines have been honed to such a state of perfection”.
Runners up: BMW’s 5,0-litre V10 and 4,0-litre V8, as well as Ferrari’s 6,0-litre V12 (599 GTB), Nissan 3,8-litre twin turbo (GTR) and Audi’s 5,0-litre V10 (RS6).
Sub 1,0-litre
Although Mitsubishi’s 62 kW 999cc three-cylinder turbo and Smart’s 34 kW 799cc diesel units fought hard for the title, Toyota, with its Polish-made, 1,0-litre three-cylinder 50 kW petrol engine (Aygo, Yaris, Citroën’s C1, and Peugeot’s 107), clinched the award for the second year in a row. What made the engine stand out to the jurors was the Variable Valve Timing system and its weight – 67 kg.
Runners Up: Ford 1,0-litre Supercharged unit in the EcoSport and Opel’s 1,0-litre three-cylinder Twinport (Agila, Corsa and Suzuki Splash).
1,0-litre to 1,4-litre
Volkswagen dominated this category thanks to its TSI (a combination of turbocharger and supercharger) technology. It landed in first with the 1,4-litre TSI Twincharge unit, and second with a lower-powered version of this unit that does away with the supercharger, the World Engine of the Year jurors said. Those units power selected models in VW’s Tiguan, Audi’s A3, and Seat’s León and Altea ranges.
Runners Up: the Fiat 1,4-litre Turbo (Bravo), Fiat-GM Diesel 1,3-litre under the bonnet of the Fiat Grande Punto, Opel Corsa, and Suzuki Swift, the Honda Hybrid 1,3-litre IMA in the Civic, and Renault’s 1,2-litre Turbo (Clio and Modus).
1,4-litre to 1,8-litre
The co-venture between BMW and PSA Peugeot Citroën has clearly paid off in the case of the Mini Cooper S’ 1,6-litre turbocharged powerplant. It claimed number one spot in the category for the second year in a row with 136 points more than the second placed the 1,8-litre TFSI Audi unit.
Runners Up: Toyota Hybrid 1,5-litre (Prius), Mercedes-Benz’s 1,8-litre supercharged four cylinder (C-, SLK-, CLK-, and E-class), the Toyota 1,8-litre four-cylinder VVTL-i 190 under the bonnet of the Lotus Elise 111R, and the Honda 1,8-litre unit that powers models in both the Civic and FR-V ranges.
1,8-litre to 2,0-litre
Even though Subaru’s diesel Boxer and BMW’s 2,0-litre twin-turbo diesel gave the defending champion a run for its money, VW still came out on top (with two points to spare) with the 2,0-litre Turbo FSI it shares with its cousin Audi.
When it powers the Audi TT, this unit produces 147 kW, and 280 N.m that is available from 1 800 to 5 000 r/min. The claimed consumption figure for this unit, which also powers selected models in the Audi A3, A4 Cabrio, A6, Golf GTi and Seat’s Altea and Leon ranges, is 7,7 litres per 100km.
The tight competition came from the BMW 2,0-litre turbodiesel in the 123d, the Subaru Diesel 2,0-litre flat four in the Outback, Mitsubishi’s 2,0-litre four-cylinder turbo in the EvoX, and Honda’s 2,0-litre four-cylinder i-VTEC in the Civic Type R, as well as the 2,0-litre four-cylinder under the bonnet of the Honda S2000.
2,0-litre to 2,5-litre
When Subaru replaced its 2,0-litre horizontally opposed engine with a larger 2,5-litre boxer unit in 2006, it scooped first prize in this category, beating BMW’s 2,5-litre inline six by two points. Two years on, the Japanese manufacturer snatches the title from BMW again, by a margin of one point!
The turbocharged 2,5-litre flat-four only produces 169 kW in the Forester, but in the Impreza STi, the four cylinder produces 221 kW at 6 000 r/min and 407 N.m of torque at 4 000 r/min. Apart from the obvious performance gain, the engine also boasts impressive fuel economy, the jurors said.
Runners Up: BMW 2,5-litre 6-cylinder (Z4, X3), Honda Diesel 2,2-litre (Civic, Accord (Europe), CR-V, FR-V), Mazda 2,3-litre GDI Turbo (3MPS, 6MPS, CX-7), Peugeot-Citroën-Ford Diesel 2,2-litre (Citroën C5, Peugeot 407, Land Rover Freelander, Mitsubishi Outlander, Peugeot 4007) and Toyota’s Diesel 2,2-litre D-CAT (Avensis, Corolla Verso, RAV4, Auris).
2,5-litre to 3,0-litre
2008 marks the second straight category victory for BMW’s 3,0-litre twin-turbocharged in-line six. The win is convincing too, as the N54 powerplant managed to score significantly more votes than the runner-up in this category and its stablemate twin-turbo diesel unit of the same displacement.
The most powerful of BMW’s family of in-line sixes produces 225 kW at 6 000 r/min and 400 N.m of torque at 1 300 r/min. As the twin turbochargers of this engine feature high-temperature resistant materials from the aerospace industry, they can handle temperatures of up to 1 050C.
“Increasing the temperature resistance of the blades to reduce the fuel required for cooling the exhaust gas shows good use of available technology,” said Pienaar.
Runners Up: BMW 3,0-litre twin turbodiesel (335d, 535d, X3 ,635d, X5), Audi/VW diesel 3,0-litre V6 (A4, A5, A6, Allroad, A8, Q7, Touareg, Phaeton), Porsche 2,7-litre flat six (Boxster, Cayman), BMW 3,0-litre six-cylinder (325, Z4, 330, 530, 630, 730) and Jaguar 2,7-litre V6 twin turbodiesel (XF).
3,0-litre to 4,0-litre
In the ten-year history of the International Engine of the Year Awards, there has been only one occasion when BMW did not top this category – 2007, when Porsche’s 3,6-litre turbocharged finally snatched the title from the BMW’s 3,2-litre in-line six.
Munich has since replaced this unit with a new powerplant for the recently launched E90, E92 and E93 M3 in the form of a 4,0-litre V8 that features an ECU so advanced (upgraded form of the unit found in the M5 and M6) it can process more than 200 million calculations a second with three microchips. Despite the two extra cylinders, the S85B40 V8 still weighs 2 kg less than the old M3 six-cylinder (which has found a home in the M Coupé and M Roadster) and measures in at over 30 mm shorter. It produces 309 kW at 8 300 r/min and 400 N.m of torque at 3 900 /min.
Runners Up: Porsche 3,6-litre Turbo (911 Turbo, GT2), Nissan 3,8-litre Twin Turbo (GT-R), BMW 3,2-litre 6-cylinder (Z4 M), Toyota Hybrid 3,5-litre V6 (GS450h) and Audi 3,6-litre FSI (Q7, VW Touareg, Porsche Cayenne).
Above 4,0-litre
This category features familiar contenders in the shapes of Ferrari’s 6,0-litre V12 (found in the 599 GTB) and Mercedes-AMG’s 6,2-litre V8 (available across the Mercedes range), and despite already having won nine awards in previous years, BMW’s 5,0-litre V10 triumphed for the fourth year in succession.
The win places this powerplant above the 3,2-litre inline-six from the previous generation M3 as the most successful engine in awards history. Found in the hard and soft-top M6 as well as the saloon and estate versions of the M5, the engine was the first to demonstrate bi-VANOS variable valve timing, 10 flow-optimised intake trumpets and develops 373 kW at 7 750 r/min and 510 N.m of torque at 6 100 r/min.
Runners Up: Mercedes-AMG 6,2-litre (C, CLK, E, CLS, S, SL, ML, R), Ferrari 6,0-litre V12 (599 GTB), Lexus Hybrid 5,0-litre V8 (LS600h), Audi 4,2-litre V8 FSI (S4, S5, A6, A8, Q7 RS4, R8) and Ferrari 4,3-litre V8 (F430).
