BMW has been producing engines for automobiles, motorcycles and aircraft since 1917, when the company began production of an inline-six aircraft engine. They have been producing automobile engines since 1933.
BMW has been producing engines for automobiles, motorcycles and aircraft since 1917, when the company began production of an inline-six aircraft engine. They have been producing automobile engines since 1933.
BMW is well known for its history of inline-six (straight-six) engines, a layout it continues to use to this day despite most other manufacturers switching to a V6 layout. The more common inline-four and V8 layouts are also produced by BMW, and at times the company has produced inline-three, V10 and V12 engines, BMW also engineered non-production customised engines especially for motorsports which include the M12/13 1.5-Liter straight 4 piston turbocharged engine from 1982 to 1987 for Brabham, Arrows and Benetton Formula One teams, the E41/P83 3.0-Liter V10 from 2000 to 2005 for Williams F1 Team and the P86/8 2.4-Liter V8 for their own F1 team partnering with Sauber F1 from 2006 to 2009, with which the company enjoyed its first and best finish at the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix as a full works F1 manufacturer team, finishing the race with their winning driver Robert Kubica, and Nick Heidfeld in second place.
British super car manufacturer McLaren Automotive, a manufacturer of road-going sports cars based on Formula One technology, decided to work with BMW for the development of their first ever production car—the McLaren F1 in 1993 for the engineering and customization of its engine—the S70/2, which had a 6.1-Liter 60° V12 DOHC configuration. Only 106 [1] units of the cars were produced by McLaren, the S70 engine holding the record of the fewest production engines by BMW to date.
Prototype V16 engines have been made despite not reaching production. These prototypes were the 1987 BMW Goldfisch V16 6.7 litre engine and the 2004 Rolls-Royce 100EX 9.0 litre engine. BMW has also made prototype V6 engines [2]
| Engine code | Configuration | Years | Displacement | Fuel system |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B38 | Inline-three turbo | 2013–present | 1.2–1.5 L | Direct injection |
| M10 | Inline-four N.A. | 1960–1988 | 1.5–2.0 L | Carburetor / Mechanical and electronic fuel injection |
| S14 | Inline-four N.A. | 1986–1990 | 2.0–2.5 L | |
| M40 | Inline-four N.A. | 1987–1995 | 1.6–1.8 L | Fuel injection |
| M42 | Inline-four N.A. | 1989–1996 | 1.8 L | Fuel injection |
| M43 | Inline-four N.A. | 1991–2002 | 1.6–1.9 L | Fuel injection / CNG |
| M44 | Inline-four N.A. | 1996–2001 | 1.9 L | |
| N40 | Inline-four N.A. | 2001–2004 | 1.6 L | |
| N42 | Inline-four N.A. | 2001–2004 | 1.8–2.0 L | |
| N45 | Inline-four N.A. | 2004–2011 | 1.6-2.0 L | |
| N46 | Inline-four N.A. | 2004–2007 | 1.8–2.0 L | Manifold injection |
| N43 | Inline-four N.A. | 2007–2011 | 1.6–2.0 L | Direct injection |
| N13 | Inline-four turbo | 2011–2015 | 1.6 L | Direct injection |
| N20 | Inline-four turbo | 2011–2017 | 1.6–2.0 L | Direct injection |
| B48 | Inline-four turbo | 2015–present | 1.6–2.0 L | Direct injection |
| M78 | Straight-six N.A. | 1933–1950 | 1.2-1.9 L | |
| M328 | Straight-six N.A. | 1936–1940 | 2.0-2.1 L | |
| M335 | Straight-six N.A. | 1939–1941 | 3.5 L | |
| M337 | Straight-six N.A. | 1952–1958 | 2.0-2.1 L | |
| M30 | Straight-six N.A. | 1968–1994 | 2.5-3.5 L | Carburetor / Fuel injection |
| M20 | Straight-six N.A. | 1977–1993 | 2.0-2.7 L | Carburetor / Fuel injection |
| M88/S38 | Straight-six N.A. | 1978–1989 | 3.5-3.8 L | Fuel injection |
| M102 | Straight-six turbo | 1980–1982 | 3.2 L | Fuel injection |
| M106 | Straight-six turbo | 1982–1986 | 3.4 L | Fuel injection |
| M50 | Straight-six N.A. | 1989–1996 | 2.0-2.5 L | |
| S50 | Straight-six N.A. | 1992–1999 | 3.0-3.2 L | |
| M52 | Straight-six N.A. | 1994–2000 | 2.0-2.8 L | |
| S52 | Straight-six N.A. | 1996–2000 | 3.2 L | |
| M54 | Straight-six N.A. | 2000–2006 | 2.2-3.0 L | |
| S54 | Straight-six N.A. | 2000–2008 | 3.2 L | |
| M56 | Straight-six N.A. | 2002–2006 | 2.5 L | |
| N52 | Straight-six N.A. | 2004–2015 | 2.5-3.0 L | Port injection |
| N54 | Straight-six turbo | 2006–2016 | 3.0 L | Direct injection |
| N53 | Straight-six N.A. | 2006–2013 | 2.5-3.0 L | Direct injection |
| N55 | Straight-six turbo | 2009–present | 3.0 L | Direct injection |
| S55 | Straight-six turbo | 2014–2021 | 3.0 L | Direct injection |
| B58 | Straight-six turbo | 2015–present | 3.0 L | Direct injection |
| S58 | Straight-six turbo | 2019–present | 3.0 L | Direct injection |
| OHV V8 | V8 N.A. | 1954–1965 | 2.6-3.2 L | |
| M60 | V8 N.A. | 1992–1996 | 3.0-4.0 L | Fuel injection |
| M62 | V8 N.A. | 1996–2005 | 3.5-4.8 L | |
| S62 | V8 N.A. | 1998–2006 | 4.9 L | |
| N62 | V8 N.A. | 2001–2010 | 3.6-4.8 L | |
| S65 | V8 N.A. | 2007–2013 | 4.0-4.4 L | |
| N63 | V8 turbo | 2008–present | 4.4 L | Direct injection |
| S63 | V8 turbo | 2009–present | 4.4 L | |
| S68 | V8 turbo | 2022–present | 4.4 L | |
| BMW S68T MHEV | V8 turbo MHEV | 2021–present | 4.6 L for Land Rover | |
| E41/P80 [3] | V8 & V10 N.A. | 2000–2009 | 2.4-3.0 L | Fuel injection |
| S85 | V10 N.A. | 2005–2010 | 5.0 L | |
| M70 | V12 N.A. | 1987–1996 | 5.0 L | |
| S70 | V12 N.A. | 1992–2000 | 5.6-6.1 L | |
| M73 | V12 N.A. | 1993–2002 | 5.4 L | |
| N73 | V12 N.A. | 2003–2016 | 6.0-6.75 L | Direct injection |
| N74 | V12 turbo | 2009–2022 | 6.0-6.75 L | Direct injection |
| Engine code | Configuration | Years | Displacement |
|---|---|---|---|
| B37 | Inline-three turbo | 2012 | 1.5 L |
| M41 | Inline-four turbo | 1994–2000 | 1.7 L |
| M47 | Inline-four turbo | 1998–2007 | 2.0 L |
| N47 | Inline-four turbo | 2007–2014 | 2.0 L |
| B47 | Inline-four turbo | 2013–present | 2.0 L |
| M21 | Inline-six turbo* | 1983–1993 | 2.4 L |
| M51 | Inline-six turbo | 1991–2000 | 2.5 L |
| M57 | Inline-six turbo | 1998–2013 | 2.5-3.0 L |
| N57 | Inline-six turbo | 2008–2020 | 3.0 L |
| B57 | Inline-six turbo | 2015–present | 3.0 L |
| M67 | V8 turbo | 1998–2009 | 3.9-4.4 L |
* Also produced in a naturally aspirated configuration.
A V12 engine is a twelve-cylinder piston engine where two banks of six cylinders are arranged in a V configuration around a common crankshaft. V12 engines are more common than V10 engines. However, they are less common than V8 engines.
A V6 engine is a six-cylinder piston engine where the cylinders and cylinder blocks share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration.
A V engine, sometimes called a Vee engine, is a common configuration for internal combustion engines. It consists of two cylinder banks—usually with the same number of cylinders in each bank—connected to a common crankshaft. These cylinder banks are arranged at an angle to each other, so that the banks form a "V" shape when viewed from the front of the engine.
A V10 engine is a ten-cylinder piston engine where two banks of five cylinders are arranged in a V configuration around a common crankshaft. V10 engines are much less common than V8 and V12 engines. Several V10 diesel engines have been produced since 1965, and V10 petrol engines for road cars were first produced in 1991 with the release of the Dodge Viper.
A V16 engine is a sixteen-cylinder piston engine where two banks of eight cylinders are arranged in a V configuration around a common crankshaft. V16 engines are less common than engines with fewer cylinders, such as V8 and V12 engines. Each bank of a V16 engine can be thought of as a straight-eight, a design that can be inherently balanced. Most V16 engines have a 45° bank angle.
The engine configuration describes the fundamental operating principles by which internal combustion engines are categorized.
The straight-eight engine or inline-eight engine is an eight-cylinder internal combustion engine with all eight cylinders mounted in a straight line along the crankcase. The type has been produced in side-valve, IOE, overhead-valve, sleeve-valve, and overhead-cam configurations.
The straight-six engine is a piston engine with six cylinders arranged in a straight line along the crankshaft. A straight-six engine has perfect primary and secondary engine balance, resulting in fewer vibrations than other designs of six or fewer cylinders.
British Racing Motors (BRM) was a British Formula One motor racing team. Founded in 1945 and based in the market town of Bourne in Lincolnshire, it participated from 1951 to 1977, competing in 197 grands prix and winning seventeen. BRM won the constructors' title in 1962 when its driver Graham Hill became world champion. In 1963, 1964, 1965 and 1971, BRM came second in the constructors' competition.
The BMW M70 is a naturally-aspirated, SOHC, V12 petrol engine, which was BMW's first production V12 and was produced from 1987 to 1996. It was also the first German 12-cylinder post-war automobile engine, predating Mercedes-Benz's M120 by four years and VAG's W12 by fourteen.
The BMW E32 is the second generation of the BMW 7 Series luxury cars and was produced from 1986 until 1994. It replaced the E23 and was initially available with straight-six or V12 powerplants. In 1992, V8 engines became available. From its inception, the E32 was among the most technologically advanced cars in its day.
A multi-valve or multivalve engine is one where each cylinder has more than two valves. A multi-valve engine has better breathing, and with more smaller valves may be able to operate at higher revolutions per minute (RPM) than a two-valve engine, delivering more power.
BMW V12 may refer to V12 engines and V12-powered race cars built by BMW:
This article gives an outline of Formula One engines, also called Formula One power units since the hybrid era starting in 2014. Since its inception in 1947, Formula One has used a variety of engine regulations. Formulae limiting engine capacity had been used in Grand Prix racing on a regular basis since after World War I. The engine formulae are divided according to era.
A turbo-compound engine is a reciprocating engine that employs a turbine to recover energy from the exhaust gases. Instead of using that energy to drive a turbocharger as found in many high-power aircraft engines, the energy is instead sent to the output shaft to increase the total power delivered by the engine. The turbine is usually mechanically connected to the crankshaft, as on the Wright R-3350 Duplex-Cyclone, but electric and hydraulic power recovery systems have been investigated as well.
A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration.
The BMW E31 is the first generation of the BMW 8 Series. It is a grand tourer built by BMW from 1990 to 1999 as a 2-door coupé, powered by either a V8 or V12 engine. Whilst it did supplant the original E24 based 6 Series in 1990, it was not a direct successor, but a new model class with a substantially higher price and performance than the 6 Series.
Paul Rosche was a German engineer known for his work while at BMW. He is notable for designing the engines of a number of BMW's high-performance models including the M31 found in the BMW 2002 Turbo, the S14 for the E30 M3, the M12 for the 320i Turbo and the Brabham BT52, the M88 in the M1, and the S70/2 in the V12 LMR and the McLaren F1.
Ferrari has made a number of V12 racing engines designed for Formula One; made between 1950 and 1995. Some derived engines were also used in various Ferrari sports prototype race cars and production road cars.
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