Best Engines in Indian cars

amit · 9th July 2004, 01:55

hey guys...
Just thought of this topic out of the blue. Which of the engines have the best configurations..it's all about cylinders, valves , ECU , hp and driveablity. Suspension, ride, handling , looks have to be ignored.
Here is my list of the best engines (in no particular order)

1. 1.6 ltr Torque - Fiat Palio 1.6
1.6 litrs DOHC 4 cylinders 16 valves 32 bit ECU 100 bhp@6500rpm and torque of 14kgm@3500rpm. A engine that screams performance and is shamelessly biased towards performance. Without doubt one of the best engines - refined, quiet but gets a sporty rasp at high rpm's u can switch off the stereo and listen to the throaty growl of the engine - sheer pleasure! this engine never feels out of breath. Drive the car in any gear at any speed , tap the accelarator and the engine zooms. Top Speed 181 kmph.Bravo FIAT!

2. 1.6 ltr ROCAM - Ford Ikon 1.6
1.6ltr 4 cylinder 8 valve SOHC 16 bit ECU 91bhp. the original Josh machine. Kudos to ford cuz they launched it when performance was a alien concept in the indian car market. Great engine to make that signal to signal dash. Great low end torque is the reason why the ikon lunges like a leopord every time the accelarator is pressed. Short gearing is the negitive feature- engine runs of breath at high rpms. Top Speed 174kmph

3. 1.6 ltr - Maruti Baleno
1.6 ltr SOHC 4 cylinder 16 valves 94bhp. Great revving engine. U never feel the lack of power with this engine. Low weight of the car results in the engine being able to take the car from 0-100 faster than both ikon and palio. Better top speed too. A engine thats so Un- Maruti like.

4. 1.9 ltr TDI - Skoda Octavia
1.9 ltr SOHC 4 cylinder 8 valve 90hp. europeon's are renowned for fantastic diesel engines and this unit tells us why. IT should be made a crime to buy a VW car with a petrol engine!.

. Wonder what the PD engine tech will do to the octavia. Can't wait for it!

5. 1.8 ltr VVTi - Toyota Corolla
1.8 ltr DOHC 4 cylinder 16 valves 16 bit ECU, 127bhp. Toyota at it's best. The fastest car in India. Even faster than the S class. Need anyone say more?

6. 2.4 ltr VTEC - Honda Accord.
2.4ltr SOHC 4 cylinder 16 valves 16 bit ECu 145bhp(?) (hope i got that rite). Honda makes some of the best petrol engines. No arguing with that!

7. 3.0 V6 I-VTEC - Honda Accord.
3.0ltr V6 SOHC 4 cylinder 16 valves 16 bit ECU 227 bhp. If anyone thinks the best in the D segment is the 2.4 ltr VTEc than he needs to look at this!

8. 2.0 CDI - Mercedes C class
With or without the kompressor , Merc's CDI engines are jewels. 158bhp (if i am rite) from the kompressor engine results in the merc being faster than all D segmenters including the Accord 2.4.

I am not going higher than this cuz Merc's have a monopoly in the higher segments. I guess we need to wait till BMW, Porsche, Audi come in with their wonderful engines.

Shan2nu · 9th July 2004, 03:49

I don't think it's that easy to determine which engine is the best. What finally matters is where that engine is placed.

Figures like FE, acceleration, top speed etc are more dependent on the overall design of a car rather than it's engine.

An Esteem engine in an Esteem chassis is considered to be a good performer, but the same engine in a Zen chassis will be considered lethal.

Specific output of a "naturally aspirated" engine is one good way of determining is design quality. Higher the bhp/ltr, more efficient the engine.

No wonder, F1 engines are considered to be one of the most technologically advanced engines in the world. Revving an engine to 19000 rpm is no joke. These engines are nothing like the ones you see in road going cars. The kind of importance given to each and every microscopic detail is just mind blowing.

2ndly, i wouldn't even consider turbo charged and supercharged engines on this front.

A TC'd or SC'd engine is like an athelete on Steriods. Don't have enough power........fit a TC/SC. Even on a TC'd engine, the specific output decides how much gain the engine should get.

We talk about turbo boost giving 50% gain in power. What is this 50% gain? It's nothing but 50% of your specific output.

So, i don't think there's any engine in India which can be called the best, they're all good in their own ways and for their specific uses.

Regards...
Shan2nu

Rehaan · 9th July 2004, 04:31

*Shan2nu wrote that whole post without the word "VTEC" !! *

Amit,
Thats a great list of engines you've got there! I have to agree with almost all of them, though i will say that my least favourite is the 1.6 Rocam of the Ikon.
This thread really got to the meat of the matter! i like it!

cheers
R

ps - also could add that i am quite impressed by hyundai's CRDI engines!

ajmat · 9th July 2004, 10:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (Rehaan @ July 09 2004,03:01)]ps - also could add that i am quite impressed by hyundai's CRDI engines!

actually made by Detroit Diesel - a daimler chrysler company

killjoy · 9th July 2004, 10:51

hmm, no honda city 1.5 vtec? [img]http://www.team-bhp.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/***.gif[/img]

GTO · 9th July 2004, 12:12

This is SACRILEGE!!! A list of the best Indian engines and there is no Honda City 1.5 Vtec mentioned!! High-revving, high-power, high-torque, amazing driveability and awesome fuel efficiency....Its this engine that makes the car. IMHO, its the best Indian engine yet with relevance to the segment it was in.

GTO

Rtech · 9th July 2004, 13:42

say what you will, I really admire the Honda 1.3. A small engine nd yet puts out 90Bhp!! Thats Honda for you!

rtech

Aditya · 9th July 2004, 23:24

I always rate cars and engines according to the time they were launched and the competition they faced in their days. I don't really care about no. of valves and the ECU.
I haven't driven the new Accord or the Corolla and am keeping all the Mercs aside because, very frankly, these cars are in a class of their own.
I have to admit, the best of the modern Indian engines is the Honda City's 1.5 VTec. It's very smooth, revv-happy and produces amazing power.
I don't like Hyundais much, but, the Detroit Diesel 1.5CRDi engine in the Accent happens to be a great one. The diesel Accent can almost outrun its petrol siblings and that's saying a lot.
Coming to my all time favourite Indian engine, it has to be the carburetted 1.8 Litre Isuzu unit fitted in the Contessa. This early 80s powerplant developed 88bhp, a figure alien to Indian cars till the advent of the Hondas, about 14 years later. If you talk of torque, this engine still holds its own against more modern and technologically advanced units. What more, this engine is also very simple and so, easy to tune up and easy to tune down. It's also very smooth in power delivery and reliable.

ported_head · 9th July 2004, 23:51

all my favourite engines are listed here, except the 1.5 VTEC. i guess i was wrong all along, but i thought the 1.9 engine in the Octavia was a PD engine. Damn, im disappointed if it's not, i mean if they can offer them in Golfs abroad, why not in a premium car such as the Octavia?

GTO · 10th July 2004, 00:56

Pretty cool noticing how almost every reply has the words Vtec or Honda in them.

What was that they say about Honda? They build the engine and then design the car around it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]I really admire the Honda 1.3. A small engine nd yet puts out 90Bhp!!

Maruti-Suzuki aint too far behind with their 1.3 churning out 85 bhp!

GTO

Shan2nu · 10th July 2004, 01:31

90bhp from a 1.3? 85bhp from a 1.3? Ok guys, since you're so interested in engines with high specific output, can you guess which "NA" engine in India produces the most bhp/ltr?

Honda City 1.3 - 69.23 bhp/ltr
Esteem - 65.38 bhp/ltr
City Vtec - 70.66 bhp/ltr
Ford Mondeo - 71 bhp/ltr
Corolla - 69.44 bhp/ltr
SL 500 - 61.2 bhp/ltr

But the king of them all is a real surprise, no.....it's not the Honda Accord 2.4, it's not the S350, or any of the NA mercs.

That first place goes to the "Honda Accord V6". 221bhp from a 3 ltr engine, thats exactly ""73.66"" bhp/ltr.

Just to give you an idea as to how good that figure is, the Accord 2.4 engine with that sort of specific output would have produced 176.78 bhp!!!

Regards...
Shan2nu

amit · 10th July 2004, 17:03

OOOPS!!! sorry for the goof up! Leaving out the 1.5 VTEC was reallly a huuuugeeee blunder.

Guess i was a lil too sleepy when i posted this msg ..i did it a mid nite.

or i guess the totally new un honda like engine in the new city has pissed me off more than i thought.

anywaz...sorry abt the goof up

killjoy · 12th July 2004, 11:26

ok bhp/litre are nice figures but if you want to get down to the actualy performance, you need bhp/ton figures. can anybody post this for the indian cars?

Shan2nu · 12th July 2004, 12:24

Oh yeah KillJoy, that's coming very soon........

but, remember we're talking only engines here. bhp/ton is really talking about the whole car and not necessarily the quality of the engine.

I have a feeling that the SL500 will have the best power to weight ratio. Will calculate and tell.

Regards...
Shan2nu

Cyrus · 16th January 2005, 19:20

My favourite engine as of today is the 1.8ltr turbo petrol of octavia which gives out a massive 150 bhp and 21 kgm of troque

9th July 2004, 01:55	#1
amit Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Mumbai Posts: 3,717 Thanked: 449 Times	hey guys... Just thought of this topic out of the blue. Which of the engines have the best configurations..it's all about cylinders, valves , ECU , hp and driveablity. Suspension, ride, handling , looks have to be ignored. Here is my list of the best engines (in no particular order) 1. 1.6 ltr Torque - Fiat Palio 1.6 1.6 litrs DOHC 4 cylinders 16 valves 32 bit ECU 100 bhp@6500rpm and torque of 14kgm@3500rpm. A engine that screams performance and is shamelessly biased towards performance. Without doubt one of the best engines - refined, quiet but gets a sporty rasp at high rpm's u can switch off the stereo and listen to the throaty growl of the engine - sheer pleasure! this engine never feels out of breath. Drive the car in any gear at any speed , tap the accelarator and the engine zooms. Top Speed 181 kmph.Bravo FIAT! 2. 1.6 ltr ROCAM - Ford Ikon 1.6 1.6ltr 4 cylinder 8 valve SOHC 16 bit ECU 91bhp. the original Josh machine. Kudos to ford cuz they launched it when performance was a alien concept in the indian car market. Great engine to make that signal to signal dash. Great low end torque is the reason why the ikon lunges like a leopord every time the accelarator is pressed. Short gearing is the negitive feature- engine runs of breath at high rpms. Top Speed 174kmph 3. 1.6 ltr - Maruti Baleno 1.6 ltr SOHC 4 cylinder 16 valves 94bhp. Great revving engine. U never feel the lack of power with this engine. Low weight of the car results in the engine being able to take the car from 0-100 faster than both ikon and palio. Better top speed too. A engine thats so Un- Maruti like. 4. 1.9 ltr TDI - Skoda Octavia 1.9 ltr SOHC 4 cylinder 8 valve 90hp. europeon's are renowned for fantastic diesel engines and this unit tells us why. IT should be made a crime to buy a VW car with a petrol engine!. . Wonder what the PD engine tech will do to the octavia. Can't wait for it! 5. 1.8 ltr VVTi - Toyota Corolla 1.8 ltr DOHC 4 cylinder 16 valves 16 bit ECU, 127bhp. Toyota at it's best. The fastest car in India. Even faster than the S class. Need anyone say more? 6. 2.4 ltr VTEC - Honda Accord. 2.4ltr SOHC 4 cylinder 16 valves 16 bit ECu 145bhp(?) (hope i got that rite). Honda makes some of the best petrol engines. No arguing with that! 7. 3.0 V6 I-VTEC - Honda Accord. 3.0ltr V6 SOHC 4 cylinder 16 valves 16 bit ECU 227 bhp. If anyone thinks the best in the D segment is the 2.4 ltr VTEc than he needs to look at this! 8. 2.0 CDI - Mercedes C class With or without the kompressor , Merc's CDI engines are jewels. 158bhp (if i am rite) from the kompressor engine results in the merc being faster than all D segmenters including the Accord 2.4. I am not going higher than this cuz Merc's have a monopoly in the higher segments. I guess we need to wait till BMW, Porsche, Audi come in with their wonderful engines.
	() Thanks

9th July 2004, 03:49	#2
Shan2nu Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Hubli - Karnata Posts: 5,533 Thanked: 125 Times View My Garage	I don't think it's that easy to determine which engine is the best. What finally matters is where that engine is placed. Figures like FE, acceleration, top speed etc are more dependent on the overall design of a car rather than it's engine. An Esteem engine in an Esteem chassis is considered to be a good performer, but the same engine in a Zen chassis will be considered lethal. Specific output of a "naturally aspirated" engine is one good way of determining is design quality. Higher the bhp/ltr, more efficient the engine. No wonder, F1 engines are considered to be one of the most technologically advanced engines in the world. Revving an engine to 19000 rpm is no joke. These engines are nothing like the ones you see in road going cars. The kind of importance given to each and every microscopic detail is just mind blowing. 2ndly, i wouldn't even consider turbo charged and supercharged engines on this front. A TC'd or SC'd engine is like an athelete on Steriods. Don't have enough power........fit a TC/SC. Even on a TC'd engine, the specific output decides how much gain the engine should get. We talk about turbo boost giving 50% gain in power. What is this 50% gain? It's nothing but 50% of your specific output. So, i don't think there's any engine in India which can be called the best, they're all good in their own ways and for their specific uses. Regards... Shan2nu
	() Thanks

9th July 2004, 04:31	#3
Rehaan Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Bombay Posts: 24,287 Thanked: 35,217 Times	Shan2nu wrote that whole post without the word "VTEC" !! Amit, Thats a great list of engines you've got there! I have to agree with almost all of them, though i will say that my least favourite is the 1.6 Rocam of the Ikon. This thread really got to the meat of the matter! i like it! cheers R ps - also could add that i am quite impressed by hyundai's CRDI engines!
	() Thanks

9th July 2004, 10:51	#5
killjoy BHPian Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 754 Thanked: 318 Times View My Garage	hmm, no honda city 1.5 vtec? [img]http://www.team-bhp.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/***.gif[/img]
	() Thanks

9th July 2004, 12:12	#6
GTO Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Bombay Posts: 71,445 Thanked: 308,518 Times View My Garage	This is SACRILEGE!!! A list of the best Indian engines and there is no Honda City 1.5 Vtec mentioned!! High-revving, high-power, high-torque, amazing driveability and awesome fuel efficiency....Its this engine that makes the car. IMHO, its the best Indian engine yet with relevance to the segment it was in. GTO
	() Thanks

9th July 2004, 13:42	#7
Rtech Team-BHP Support Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Bombay Posts: 5,770 Thanked: 364 Times View My Garage	say what you will, I really admire the Honda 1.3. A small engine nd yet puts out 90Bhp!! Thats Honda for you! rtech
	() Thanks

9th July 2004, 23:24	#8
Aditya Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Mumbai Posts: 18,695 Thanked: 80,793 Times View My Garage	I always rate cars and engines according to the time they were launched and the competition they faced in their days. I don't really care about no. of valves and the ECU. I haven't driven the new Accord or the Corolla and am keeping all the Mercs aside because, very frankly, these cars are in a class of their own. I have to admit, the best of the modern Indian engines is the Honda City's 1.5 VTec. It's very smooth, revv-happy and produces amazing power. I don't like Hyundais much, but, the Detroit Diesel 1.5CRDi engine in the Accent happens to be a great one. The diesel Accent can almost outrun its petrol siblings and that's saying a lot. Coming to my all time favourite Indian engine, it has to be the carburetted 1.8 Litre Isuzu unit fitted in the Contessa. This early 80s powerplant developed 88bhp, a figure alien to Indian cars till the advent of the Hondas, about 14 years later. If you talk of torque, this engine still holds its own against more modern and technologically advanced units. What more, this engine is also very simple and so, easy to tune up and easy to tune down. It's also very smooth in power delivery and reliable.
	() Thanks

9th July 2004, 23:51	#9
ported_head Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Mumbai, India Posts: 2,387 Thanked: 20 Times	all my favourite engines are listed here, except the 1.5 VTEC. i guess i was wrong all along, but i thought the 1.9 engine in the Octavia was a PD engine. Damn, im disappointed if it's not, i mean if they can offer them in Golfs abroad, why not in a premium car such as the Octavia?
	() Thanks

10th July 2004, 01:31	#11
Shan2nu Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Hubli - Karnata Posts: 5,533 Thanked: 125 Times View My Garage	90bhp from a 1.3? 85bhp from a 1.3? Ok guys, since you're so interested in engines with high specific output, can you guess which "NA" engine in India produces the most bhp/ltr? Honda City 1.3 - 69.23 bhp/ltr Esteem - 65.38 bhp/ltr City Vtec - 70.66 bhp/ltr Ford Mondeo - 71 bhp/ltr Corolla - 69.44 bhp/ltr SL 500 - 61.2 bhp/ltr But the king of them all is a real surprise, no.....it's not the Honda Accord 2.4, it's not the S350, or any of the NA mercs. That first place goes to the "Honda Accord V6". 221bhp from a 3 ltr engine, thats exactly ""73.66"" bhp/ltr. Just to give you an idea as to how good that figure is, the Accord 2.4 engine with that sort of specific output would have produced 176.78 bhp!!! Regards... Shan2nu
	() Thanks

10th July 2004, 17:03	#12
amit Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Mumbai Posts: 3,717 Thanked: 449 Times	OOOPS!!! sorry for the goof up! Leaving out the 1.5 VTEC was reallly a huuuugeeee blunder. Guess i was a lil too sleepy when i posted this msg ..i did it a mid nite. or i guess the totally new un honda like engine in the new city has pissed me off more than i thought. anywaz...sorry abt the goof up
	() Thanks

12th July 2004, 11:26	#13
killjoy BHPian Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Bangalore Posts: 754 Thanked: 318 Times View My Garage	ok bhp/litre are nice figures but if you want to get down to the actualy performance, you need bhp/ton figures. can anybody post this for the indian cars?
	() Thanks

12th July 2004, 12:24	#14
Shan2nu Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Hubli - Karnata Posts: 5,533 Thanked: 125 Times View My Garage	Oh yeah KillJoy, that's coming very soon........ but, remember we're talking only engines here. bhp/ton is really talking about the whole car and not necessarily the quality of the engine. I have a feeling that the SL500 will have the best power to weight ratio. Will calculate and tell. Regards... Shan2nu
	() Thanks

16th January 2005, 19:20	#15
Cyrus Newbie Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Surat Posts: 9 Thanked: 0 Times	My favourite engine as of today is the 1.8ltr turbo petrol of octavia which gives out a massive 150 bhp and 21 kgm of troque
	() Thanks