These days, the German car maker BMW is celebrating 30 years of diesel engines. Even though today these units are very appreciated back in the ’80’s the diesel engines were considered "loud and dirty."
But this thinking was changed. When BMW had to develop the first diesel engine, the engineers were asked to combine fuel efficiency and durability with "high performance, spontaneous power delivery and optimum smoothness."
The result was an astonishing 2.4 turbocharged unit that was able to deliver 115 horsepower and 210 Nm peek of torque. For the first time, the engine was fitted into the 1983 524 tD model.
After that, the Bavarian model has become the fastest diesel car in the world. It could sprint from stand still to 100 km/h in just 12.9 seconds, while the top speed was clocked at 180 km/h. More than that, the fuel consumption was just 7.1 liters per 100 kilometers.
Source: WCF
