BMW Reportedly Working on 1.3-liter and 1.8-liter Turbo Engines with 163 to 321HP

It's a rumor we've been hearing about since the beginning of the decade; BMW's turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engines, yet up until now, the only small capacity turbo unit we've seen from the Bavarian group is the MINI's 1.6-liter engine that was co-developed with PSA Peugeot-Citroen. Now, Britain's Sky Motoring is reporting that BMW is well ahead in the development of not only a 1.8-liter turbocharged four pot, but also a smaller 1.3-liter 3-cylinder unit, both of which will be available in the next generation 1- and 3-Series models.

The author of the article does not state where he got the information from, but he does give out detailed output and torque figures for all the possible variants of the two turbocharged engines. For example, the 1.3-liter 3-cylinder engine is said to be offered in three guises with 163, 201 and 241HP while the larger four-cylinder unit in two variants with 273 and 321HP. That means that the 1.3L unit tops out at an amazing 185hp per liter while the 1.8L at 178HP per liter.

The numbers are suspiciously high for a pair of gasoline engines designated to find their way under the hood of mainstream models such as the 1-Series, so for the time being and until we hear something new, this story remains in 'Rumorville'

source: http://carscoop.blogspot.com