BMW has used the following engines in its vehicles:
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For information on single, two, three, four, and six-cylinder BMW Motorrad motorcycle engines History of BMW motorcycles.
BMW is best-known for its strong straight-6 engines, which have powered many of the company's best-loved cars, including the E46 BMW M3. BMW is one of the few auto manufacturers to have retained the FR layout for all vehicles, and never adopting the V6 engine. As of the 2010 model year, Straight-6s have been the base engines for BMWs sold in Canada and the US.
The "TwinPower Turbo" moniker initially denoted engines that utilize a twin-scroll turbocharger which was unveiled in 2009 (the calendar year, not the model year) with the N55 and N74 being the first engines to use this technology.[2] Nonetheless, BMW has started to apply the TwinPower label retroactively to earlier turbocharged engines that are still in production like the N54 and N63, although they do not use twin-scroll technology.[3] The N55 is the only single turbo engine in BMW's lineup as of the 2010 model year.
As the S85 was BMW's first V10 engine, it was given a new series in the nomenclature. As the V8 engines are designated by "60s" and the V12 engines which are designated by "70s", the S85 was badged with an "80" despite it having fewer cylinders than the "70"-series engines. The S65, although apparently out of order compared to the other V8 engines (which follow "62" and "63"), was designated as such since its design is largely derived from the S85 minus two cylinders, and not related to BMW's other V8s.
BMW was the first German manufacturer to revive the V12 engine in the model year 1986, forcing Mercedes-Benz to follow suit in 1991. Only the 7 Series and 8 Series have used V12 engines.
The 850CSi was the only V12-powered car produced by BMW M. There have been no M version of the V12-engined 7 Series, as BMW did not want a high-revving version in the vein of the M variants of its other lines, and also as the E65 760Li's naturally aspirated 6.0-litre V12 was deemed too heavy to have a sporty offshoot.[5][6][7]
While BMW sells far fewer V12-engined 7 Series than V8 versions, the V12 retains popularity in the US, China, and Russia, as well as maintaining the marque's prestige in the luxury vehicle market segment. The BMW-designed V12 also appears in Rolls-Royce cars. [8][9]
BMW vehicles follow a certain nomenclature; usually a 3 digit number is followed by 1 or 2 letters. The first number represents the series number. The next two numbers traditionally represent the engine displacement in cubic centimeters divided by 100.[10] A similar nomenclature is used by BMW Motorrad for their motorcycles.
The system of letters can be used in combination, and is as follows:
† historic nomenclature indicating "td" refers to "Turbo Diesel", not a diesel hatchback or touring model (524td, 525td)
†† typically includes sport seats, spoiler, aerodynamic body kit, upgraded wheels, etc.
For example, the BMW 760iL is a fuel-injected 7 Series with a long wheelbase and 6.0 liters of displacement. This badge was used for successive generations, E65 and F01.
When 'L' supersedes the series number (e.g. L6, L7, etc.) it identifies the vehicle as a special luxury variant, featuring extended leather and special interior appointments. The L7 is based on the E23 and E38, and the L6 is based on the E24.
When 'X' is capitalized and supersedes the series number (e.g. X3, X5, etc.) it identifies the vehicle as one of BMW's Sports Activity Vehicles (SAV), their brand of crossovers, featuring BMW's xDrive. The second number in the 'X' series denotes the platform that it is based upon, for instance the X5 is derived from the 5 Series. Unlike BMW cars, the SAV's main badge does not denote engine size, the engine is instead indicated on side badges.
The 'Z' identifies the vehicle as a two seat roadster (e.g. Z1, Z3, Z4, etc.). 'M' variants of 'Z' models have the 'M' as a suffix or prefix, depending on country of sale (e.g. 'Z4 M' is 'M Roadster' in Canada).
Previous X & Z vehicles had 'i' or 'si' following the engine displacement number (denoted in liters). BMW is now globally standardizing this nomenclature on X & Z vehicles by using 'sDrive' or 'xDrive' (simply meaning rear or all wheel drive, respectively) followed by two numbers which vaguely represent the vehicle's engine (e.g. Z4 sDrive35i is a rear wheel drive Z4 roadster with a 3.0 L twin-turbo fuel-injected engine).[11]
BMW last used the 's' for the E36 325is, which ceased production in 1995. However, the 's' nomenclature was revied on the 2011 model year BMW 335is and BMW Z4 sDrive35is. The 335is is a sport-tuned trim with more performance and an optional dual clutch transmission that slots between the regular 335i and top-of-the-line M3.[12][13]
The 'M' – for Motorsport – identifies the vehicle as a high-performance model of a particular series (e.g. M3, M5, M6, etc.). For example, the M6 is the highest performing vehicle in the 6 Series lineup. Although 'M' cars should be separated into their respective series platforms, it is very common to see 'M' cars grouped together as its own lineup on the official BMW website.
There are exceptions to the numbering nomenclature.[14]
The M versions of the Sports Activity Vehicles, such as the BMW X5 M, could not follow the regular naming convention since MX5 was used for Mazda's MX-5 Miata.
For instance in the 2008 model year, the BMW 125i/128i, 328i, and 528i all had 3.0 naturally aspirated engines (N52), not a 2,500 cc or 2,800 cc engine as the series designation number would lead one to believe. The '28' is to denote a detuned engine in the 2008 cars, compared to the 2006 model year '30' vehicles (330i and 530i) whose 3.0 naturally aspirated engines are from the same N52 family but had more output.
The 2008 BMW 335i and 535i also have 3.0-liter engine; however the engines are twin-turbocharged (N54) which is not identified by the nomenclature. Nonetheless the '35' indicates a more powerful engine than previous '30' models that have the naturally aspirated N52 engine. The 2011 BMW 740i and 335is shares the same twin-turbo 3.0 engine from the N54 family but tuned to higher outputs, although the badging is not consistent ('40' and 's').
The E36 and E46 323i and E39 523i had 2.5-liter engines. The E36 318i made after 1996 has a 1.9 L engine (M44) as opposed to the 1.8 L (M42) used in the 1992 to 1995 models.
The badging for recent V8 engines (N62 and N63) also does not indicate displacement, as the 2006 750i and 2009 750i have 4800 cc (naturally aspirated) and 4400 cc (twin-turbocharged) engines, respectively.
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