BMW N54 inline 6 twin turbo

Previous post we have featured the 2JZ inline-6 engine of Toyota. Today we will talk about the innovative BMW heritage inline-6 N54 engine. This is the first turbo engine offered in the US market for a long time. The old M52/M54 in the E46 platform were already a great engine but for the new E90 platform they needed a greater engine.



The E90 debuted the 3 series in the US with the 325i and 330i. Both have the same engine size but with different HP and torque. Differences between these 2 are the intake system, exhaust and the ECU/software. The competitions are offering better and more powerful engines, especially from Infiniti's G35 which has the VQ 3.5 liter V6 engine.


BMW debuted the N54 in late 2006. It is a giant step up. This engine is made from aluminum block and iron lined cylinders. It is also twin turbo with the help from Mitsubishi Industries..hint hint...Lancer Evolution??? BMW chose 2 smaller turbos rather than 1 big turbo. Turbo usually associated with turbo lag. Turbo lag is the time the turbo takes to spin up to speed, to generate enough pressure into the cylinder chamber for combustion. With 2 smaller turbos, running in sequential, the turbo lag is almost eliminated.


N54 won the international engine of the year for 2007 and 2008. Enuff said for a great car and also a great engine.

N54—3.0-liter I6 engine turbocharge
326 hp @ 6,300 rpm
332 lb-ft @ 4,300 rpm
Redline: 7,000 rpm
10.2:1 compression ratio
Aluminum engine block with iron lined cylinder
Valvetronic
0-60 in 5.6 sec

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