Photos: BMW scoops pool at 2008 International Engine of the Year awards

By Derek Fung on 12 May 2008

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Image 11 - Photos: BMW scoops pool at 2008 International Engine of the Year awards

3- to 4-litre: BMW 4-litre V8
This year's category winner powers the current generation M3 and began life as the M5's V10 engine with two cylinders lopped off it. The engine which powered the previous generation BMW M3, a 3.2-litre straight six, won this category six years running.

While the new M3's engine boasts two extra cylinders it weighs 2kg less and is 30mm shorter than the old engine. In combination with the new engine's advanced construction techniques and an engine control unit that can do 200 million calculations per second — still less than an Intel Pentium Pro — the new engine boasts more power (309kW versus 252kW) and torque (400Nm versus 365Nm) than the old six.

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