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2010 2011 BMW 5 Series Forum F10 BMW 5-Series (F10) Forums General 5-Series Sedan and Wagon (F10 / F11) Forum Watch the 2012 528i Turbo 4 (N20) Take on Its Older 6 Cylinder on the Road and Dyno
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      04-25-2012, 02:14 PM   #1
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Cool Watch the 2012 528i Turbo 4 (N20) Take on Its Older 6 Cylinder on the Road and Dyno

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Watch the new turbo 4 cylinder 528i take on the old 6 cylinder 528i in a head to head race and dyno, conducted by Classic BMW.

The 2012 528i features the N20 turbo 4 cylinder engine which is quoted at 240hp/260lb-ft torque, 0-60 in factory quoted 6.2sec and is 15% more fuel efficient.

The previous F10 528i was powered by the N52 6 cylinder engine which had 240hp/230lb-ft torque and ran from 0-60 in factory quoted 6.6sec. And although the two engines are factory rated at the same 240hp, on this particular dyno, the N20 engine vastly outpowered the N52 engine - 240hp vs. 208hp at the crank.

The result seen here is obvious based on the factory quoted numbers alone, but seeing a visual of the speed/acceleration difference is always useful.

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      04-25-2012, 02:49 PM   #2
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No surprises here. The N20 is a great engine!
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      04-25-2012, 03:00 PM   #3
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those looked brand new , still had the delivery labels inside, so much for running in!
can't really hear them though - figures fair enough no argument, but what about the sound? The smoothness of a 6?
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      04-25-2012, 07:08 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AP View Post
those looked brand new , still had the delivery labels inside, so much for running in!
can't really hear them though - figures fair enough no argument, but what about the sound? The smoothness of a 6?
The sound?

At cold startup and idle, it's terrible. Like awful. After it warms up, it sounds like a normal 4 banger. Under load, though, it does not sound like a typical 4. It sounds much better. Kind of like the 6 with a bad case of laryngitis.

Smoothness?

As smooth as the 6. Really.
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      04-25-2012, 07:46 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AP View Post
those looked brand new , still had the delivery labels inside, so much for running in!
can't really hear them though - figures fair enough no argument, but what about the sound? The smoothness of a 6?
The video is posted by a dealer, so no doubt they were having some fun with their new cars, probably making a point to their skeptical clients.

I have the 4 cyl and the engine is very smooth and the sound is very good to compared to my 6 cyl e46. It certainly doesn't sound like my ex-Civic. I posted a brief vid of the sound of my F10. Not too shabby considering I am hardly pushing it here

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      04-26-2012, 11:23 AM   #6
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N20 is no doubt a great engine. Just the smoothness of the NA I6 will be missed though...
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      04-26-2012, 11:36 AM   #7
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a street racing video by a dealership is being featured on bimmerpost?
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      04-26-2012, 11:36 AM   #8
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Nice comparison video!

My car came from Classic BMW, at their old location though...
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      04-26-2012, 11:43 AM   #9
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Techno nd ish... What's the difference in the two cars?? They are both 528i, they look the exact same tho
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      04-26-2012, 11:52 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mohsenadbz88 View Post
Techno nd ish... What's the difference in the two cars?? They are both 528i, they look the exact same tho
the engine mostly. new one has a 4 cylinder turbo and old one has I6
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      04-26-2012, 11:58 AM   #11
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I understand fuel efficiency but can a 4-cyl really be that much quicker than an I6 given that everything else remains about the same? That's pretty cool/interesting.

Kudos to BMW for building such a fantastic 4-cyl engine.
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      04-26-2012, 12:18 PM   #12
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Quite impressive! I drove 2012 528i loaner car and I enjoyed it, agreed with the fuel efficient and great performance.
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      04-26-2012, 12:29 PM   #13
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turtle wins the long race.

it's near impossibe to outlive naturally aspirated I6.
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      04-26-2012, 12:45 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 宝马.e90 View Post
I understand fuel efficiency but can a 4-cyl really be that much quicker than an I6 given that everything else remains about the same? That's pretty cool/interesting.

Kudos to BMW for building such a fantastic 4-cyl engine.
Be careful when you say, "... can a 4-cyl really be that much quicker than an I6 given that everything else remains about the same?"

Here's you answer:
HP may be the same on both cars @ 240, but the 4-cyl has 30 more torque. A difference of 30 in torque is quite a lot.

Take note that torque helps a car accelerate faster. 6.2 seconds to 60mph for the 4-cyl, and 6.6 seconds to 69mph for the 6-cyl.
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      04-26-2012, 01:02 PM   #15
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240HP at the crank is damn good.
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      04-26-2012, 01:07 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by e92_m3 View Post
Be careful when you say, "... can a 4-cyl really be that much quicker than an I6 given that everything else remains about the same?"

Here's you answer:
HP may be the same on both cars @ 240, but the 4-cyl has 30 more torque. A difference of 30 in torque is quite a lot.

Take note that torque helps a car accelerate faster. 6.2 seconds to 60mph for the 4-cyl, and 6.6 seconds to 69mph for the 6-cyl.
I didn't see the distance of the sprint, any one know what it was? If it was short, the N20 is going to have the advantage like you said but how would the N52 compare in a proper race? That's what I would like to see but still, the 4-cyl N20 is a great engine.
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      04-26-2012, 01:13 PM   #17
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it's funny how ppl look at it one dimension about these mechanics and be so amazed about it...

4cylinder turbo vs inline v6 that lasted part 20~30 yrs of BMW history.

Good power
Goof efficiency
They will last a good 4 yrs, what about reliability of those turbos afterwards?
what about the longetivity of those 4 cylinder turbo engines compared to inline 6 bmws?
Especially living in the US where people usually drive more than 12,000 miles a year in all types of terrain, can we really say 4 cylinder turbo is the way to go than a bigger more stable inline 6?

i dunno why but somehow looking at virtually all bimmer lines being turboed now... this looks like a sweet candy "rental car" that will last a good 4 yr and be gone....instead of the good old inline 6 silky smooth reliable engine....they will be missed...
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      04-26-2012, 01:21 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jaehshim View Post
it's funny how ppl look at it one dimension about these mechanics and be so amazed about it...

4cylinder turbo vs inline v6 that lasted part 20~30 yrs of BMW history.

Good power
Goof efficiency
They will last a good 4 yrs, what about reliability of those turbos afterwards?
what about the longetivity of those 4 cylinder turbo engines compared to inline 6 bmws?
Especially living in the US where people usually drive more than 12,000 miles a year in all types of terrain, can we really say 4 cylinder turbo is the way to go than a bigger more stable inline 6?

i dunno why but somehow looking at virtually all bimmer lines being turboed now... this looks like a sweet candy "rental car" that will last a good 4 yr and be gone....instead of the good old inline 6 silky smooth reliable engine....they will be missed...
Turbo's staying around for only 4 years? I think not. Based on that logic, the 335 powerplant should have been dead for a few years already.

Change is difficult sometimes. I personally would like the turbo 4 instead of my NA I6. More torque would make it more fun.
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      04-26-2012, 01:32 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 宝马.e90 View Post
I didn't see the distance of the sprint, any one know what it was? If it was short, the N20 is going to have the advantage like you said but how would the N52 compare in a proper race? That's what I would like to see but still, the 4-cyl N20 is a great engine.
In a drag race stock vs stock the turbo 4-cyl will win every single time over the NA 6-cyl.

In a proper race stock vs stock on a track, I'm pretty sure it will be a very close race considering the only difference between the two cars is the torque. However with a torque of 260 vs 230, the 2012 528i may be coming out of a corner a little faster than the 6 cyl.

Although the 2012 528i has more torque, it may all come down to the driver when it comes to a stock vs stock race on a track.
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Last edited by e92_m3; 04-26-2012 at 01:43 PM.. Reason: Corrected typos
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      04-26-2012, 01:37 PM   #20
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It might be a tough sell in the US to have a 4 cylinder in a larger car like the 528.
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      04-26-2012, 01:59 PM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by e92_m3 View Post
In a drag race stock vs stock the turbo 4-cyl will win every single time over the NA 6-cyl.

In a proper race stock vs stock on a track, I'm pretty sure it will be a very close race considering the only difference between the two cars is the torque. However with a torque of 260 vs 230, the 2012 528i may be coming out of a corner a little faster than the 6 cyl.

Although the 2012 528i has more torque, it may all come down to the driver when it comes to a stock vs stock race on a track.
Thanks. I expect it to be somewhat close. In the video it looked like the N20 was at least half-car ahead. I thought it would be a bit closer than that.
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      04-26-2012, 02:06 PM   #22
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I test drove both myself. The four is definitely quicker. There is no tip in issue on the throttle either. The six really had a dead spot on acceleration.
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