318is

Construction time: 1989 - 1996
Capacity: 1,796 cc
Motor type: Four-cylinder in-line engine
Description: The engine with 4-valve technology was only manufactured in Steyr (Assembly Line 2). 267.244 units were produced between 1989 and 1996.

Two years after the launch of the M40 engine featuring 2 valves per cylinder, the related 4-valve M42 version goes into volume production in 1989. This engine produces a far higher output of 136 bhp without any loss of torque in the lower rev range as compared with the M40. It features a new cylinder head with two overhead camshafts and bearing rails, a design principle based on the M50. The camshafts are driven by a double chain. The cylinder head is similar in design to that of the M50 6-cylinder engine, allowing both to be processed on the same production facility. The bucket tappets have been designed as elements with hydraulic valve-clearance compensation. The centrally positioned spark plugs are supplied with the requisite firing voltage from four individual coils. This "stationary high-voltage distribution" is concurrently introduced to the M50 6-cylinder engine in a fundamentally similar version.

The camshaft is a forged version operating in the unaltered crankcase. The engine weighs 140 kg.

In the course of its further development the engine is provided with anti-knock control and an ICIM Individual Control Intake Manifold in 1992. Torque and output (140 bhp) are improved along with fuel efficiency.

On November 9th, 1989, the millionth engine left the Steyr production line - a 4-cylinder, 16-valve M 42. Dr Hans Koch, BMW AG Board Member for Technology, pressed a button to send it on its journey to the Munich plant where it was installed in a BMW 318is (E30).

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