BMW reveals new quad-turbo diesel engine

New 3.0-litre, straight-six, quad-turbo diesel engine to debut in the BMW 7 Series, replacing the old tri-turbo unit.

BMW’s powertrain division has come up with a heavily boosted quad-turbo diesel engine. Set to be introduced in the flagship 7 Series sedan, the new motor develops 394bhp of maximum power and 760Nm of peak torque. All the details were revealed by BMW at the 7^th International Vienna Motor Symposium over the last weekend.

Called the B57, the new powertrain replaces the current N57S tri-turbo 3.0-litre six-cylinder motor. Headlining the new quad-turbo diesel unit is a set of two low-pressure and two high-pressure turbochargers. While this helps the new engine develop 19bhp and 20Nm over its predecessor, it also makes it 5 per cent more efficient than before. As per BMW, the low-pressure turbochargers help generate enough low-end torque while at higher engine revs the high-pressure turbos come into play. As a consequence, the engine produces its peak torque – all 760Nm of it - between 2,000 - 3,000rpm.

First application of the new quad-turbo 3.0-litre straight-six engine will be seen in the 750d xDrive. BMW claims the new engine can propel the luxo-barge from 0-100km/h in 4.5 seconds. The company also claims that the new engine can produce even higher torque but the current ZF 8-speed gearbox is at its limit.

The quad-turbo tech as well as the new B57 engine is likely to be introduced in other BMW models in the coming time. The 2017 BMW 5 Series sedan is probably going to be the second product to feature the new quad-turbo straight-six.

Also read: 2017 BMW i3 revealed