BMW’s history was dominated by inline 6-cylinder powerplants that revved into oblivion and made unbelievable sounds on the way. They were also used on lightweight cars, mostly coupes or sedans. However, as the auto industry evolved, so did the philosophy of BMW.
They made diesels, a bit reluctantly at first, but ended up making some of the smoothest, most powerful models ever sold as production cars. Actually, at the moment, the N57S engine holds the world record for the most powerful 3-liter diesel in production: 381 HP and 740 Nm (546 lb-ft) of torque.
The codename we wrote might seem a bit off but you should know that this powerplant is used on the BMW X5 M50d, BMW 750d and BMW M550d xDrive models. Are you less confused now? Sure you are, we even tested the former.
The guys from Cars.co.za wanted to see just how powerful this diesel is and how it would stack up against a good old-fashioned petrol V8. The only problem is this is now random V8. This is the supercharged version on the Range Rover Sport.
Yeah, they pitted the M50d in a drag race against a Range Rover Sport Superchaged. The specs look something like this:
Power: 381 hp vs 502 hp
Torque: 740 Nm (546 lb-ft) vs 625 Nm (461 lb-ft)
Weight: 2,190 kg (4,828 lbs) vs 2,310 kg (5,093 lbs)
Average fuel consumption: 6.7 l/100 km (35.1 mpg) vs 15.3 l/100 km (15.4 mpg)
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