BMW took exactly half of all the awards at the 2008 edition of the International Engine of the Year awards. The “engine oscars” have been awarded since 1999, and are given out by 65 automotive journalists from 32 countries judging modern engines in terms of drivability, performance, economy, and refinement, as well as application of advanced engine technology. BMW cleaned up this year, also taking the coveted International Engine of the Year for the second year in a row. This, the overall winner, is picked from the winners of the 11 separate categories.
The awards are divided up by displacement or mission, with BMW ’s 3.0-liter, twin-turbo inline-six also taking the class win in the 2.5 to 3.0 liter class. The N54B30 engine is rated at 306hp and 295lb-ft of torque, and does duty in BMW’s 135, 335, 535 passenger car and X5 and X6 SUVs. The German manufacturer also grabbed the top prize in the Best New Engine category with its N47D 2.0-liter diesel featuring a sequential twin-turbo set-up. The engine is rated at 204hp and 295lb-ft and provides spirited performance in the 123d, and is not offered in North America. The 420hp 4.0-liter V8, engine code S85B40, from the M3 range won the 3.0 to 4.0-liter class, beating out the Nissan GT-R ’s 480hp powerplant and Porsche ’s 3.6-liter twin-turbo motivator.
Porsche did not go home empty-handed, however, taking the Best Performance Engine class with the 480hp or 530hp variable-turbo powerhouse used in the 911 Turbo and GT2, respectively. It narrowly edged out the 507hp BMW 5.0 liter V10 (itself a winner of the above 4.0 liter class) from the M5 and M6, as well as the M3′s V8.
Moving down to less powerful and exotic engines, Subaru ’s EJ25T engine family took the honors in the 2.0 to 2.5 liter class, beating out BMW’s naturally breathing inline-six from the Z4 roadster by a single point. This included the 305hp version of the turbocharged flat-four in the Impreza WRX STI, as well as the tamer, 224hp version used in the Impreza WRX, Forester 2.5XT, Legacy 2.5GT and Outback XT.
The Audi / VW 2.0-liter turbo inline-four with direct injection took the 1.8 to 2.0 liter class for three years running, edging out the BWM Best New Engine by just 2 points. The widely used engine makes 200hp in the VW GTI, and up to 272hp in the Audi TT -S.
The 1.4 to 1.8 liter class was dominated by the 1.6 liter inline four found in the Mini Cooper S, good for 175 horsepower. Developed in conjunction with BMW and Peugeot, the engine features a twin-scroll turbocharger, an overboost function and direct injection, and took the class win for the second straight year.
The 1.0 to 1.4 liter class was won by an engine not familiar to North Americans, as VW’s 1.4 liter direct-injected and twin-charged unit is not featured in any products available on the continent. The mill uses both a supercharger and turbocharger to return impressive fuel economy. The engine makes 168hp, or about what a naturally aspirated 2.0 liter would make, says VW.
Toyota rounded out the winners as one of the only Japanese manufacturers to make the list, with its inline-3 1SZ-FE 1.0-liter engine taking the sub-1.0 liter category. The built-in-Poland 67hp engine weighs just under 148lbs thanks to all aluminum construction and resin throttle body and fuel delivery pipe, among others. It wins the class for the second year in a row.
Toyota also earned the Green Engine award for its advanced 1.5-liter Hybrid Synergy Drive powerplant found exclusively in the Prius. The powerplant won this category four years in a row, and racked up a total of eight International Engine of the Year awards in total.
