If there is one company that is widely renowned for its perfectly smooth straight-six engines, that would most certainly be BMW. The truth is though the Bavarian firm’s arch-rival Mercedes-Benz also has a long history of using the exact same type of engine before it switched to a more space-efficient V6 layout.
Now, Britain’s CAR magazine is reporting that Mercedes has signed-off a completely new family of engines for 2015, which aside from smaller V8s and a fresh batch of four-cylinder power plants, surprisingly enough, also includes a new generation of straight six units.
The report goes on to say that, Merc’s large-capacity V8 engines will be replaced by downsized turbocharged units with a displacement of 4.0-liters in the name of fuel efficiency and reduced CO2 emissions.
The new four-cylinders were or more or less expected, especially after Daimler’s tie-up with the Renault-Nissan alliance and their common development of smaller models.
The replacement of the current V6 units by inline-six engines is a rather surprising move from the Stuttgart carmaker. Even more so if you consider that BMW is rumored to be contemplating a switch to turbocharged V6s…
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