BMW wins again!

BMW has been named the outright winner of the International Engine of the Year (IEotY) awards for a record-breaking fourth year in succession. A global panel of judges awarded the top honour to the 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged petrol engine. It powers the 1 Series, 3 Series and X6 in the 135i, 335i and X6 xDrive35i models respectively. BMW and MINI drove off with five category wins between them to dominate the 2008 awards.

The 3.0-litre twin-turbo petrol engine beat an impressive list of powerplants from rival competitors to claim the outright award. The BMW 3.0-litre twin-turbo petrol engine also won ‘Best engine 2.5-litre to 3.0-litre’. The previous International Engine of the Year winner, the 5.0-litre V10 powerplant, won its category of ‘Best engine above 4.0-litres’, a feat that it also achieved in 2005 and 2006 on its way to winning the overall awards in those years. The 1.6-litre unit in the MINI Hatchback and Clubman won ‘Best engine 1.4-litre to 1.8-litre’.

The IEotY honours are the most prestigious in the automotive world recognising engineering excellence. Rounding off a satisfying year BMW was presented with ‘Best engine 3.0-litre to 4.0-litre’ and ‘Best new engine of 2008’. The 4.0-litre V8 in the current generation of M3 took top spot in its class, while the twin-turbocharged 2.0-litre diesel engine, that powers the 123d, was voted the best newcomer. Incidentally, its closest rival to this award was the 4.0-litre V8 from the M3.

Klaus Kibsgaard, Managing Director of BMW (UK) Ltd, said: “To win the International Engine of the Year is an immense achievement and underscores the technical expertise and dedication of BMW’s engineers and designers. But to win it four years in a row in such a convincing fashion is unprecedented. BMW Group’s winning engines were, in many of the categories, competing against our own products for top position.”

BMW’s trophy sweep in 2008 comes after the marque won outright honours in 2007, 2006, 2005, 2002 and 2001.

Credits: Jarvis