Small engine, BIG car....

[buzzer]

Following on from the thread about small cars with V8 engines, I was thinking about the opposite...

What are the big cars with small engines, either in capacity or physical size? I remember looking at a Ford zephyr Mk4 with the V4 engine in and thinking that it was lost in the massive engine bay.

what else is there?

[Quhet]

The new Mondeo's going to have a 1 litre engine is it not?

[kiethton]

1.6d in the volvo S80/V70?

[Jawaman]

Always thought the 4cyl 1.8 in the BMW E34 looked a bit lacking

[kambites]

Quhet said:

The new Mondeo's going to have a 1 litre engine is it not?

There's a 1.2 in the Passat too.

[DocArbathnot]

1.6 Passat, one of the old shape Audi A6s came with a 90bhp 1.9 tdi auto. You had to drive it like a racing car (maintain momentum) at all costs.

[groomi]

For a while I had a 2l Carlton which I was surprised to find had near as dammit the same power and same weight as the then GFs mk2 MR2.

I reckon the 1.6 would have been perfectly acceptable.

[Ozzie Osmond]

Jawaman said:

Always thought the 4cyl 1.8 in the BMW E34 looked a bit lacking

Not just the look of it - that was a slow car. In the E36 (3-series) that engine was fine, if not road-burning, but in the heavier 5-series it was overwhelmed. 5-series was 25% heavier than the 3-series, a difference of 300 Kg.

[eldar]

The 2.0l Discovery was a little underpowered and very thirsty.

[ejenner]

You could get a serria estate with a 1.6 back in the day. And a Granada

[Northernchimp]

Banner ad on here... CRV with a 1.6TDI. Sounds agonising.

[Sensibleboy]

ejenner said:

You could get a serria estate with a 1.6 back in the day. And a Granada

I'm sure they did a 1.3 Sierra at one point.

[Willy Nilly]

Quhet said:

The new Mondeo's going to have a 1 litre engine is it not?

but it's 125hp though.

[FairfieldSteve]

DocArbathnot said:

1.6 Passat, one of the old shape Audi A6s came with a 90bhp 1.9 tdi auto. You had to drive it like a racing car (maintain momentum) at all costs.

Yep, maintaining momentum at all times. In a perverse way, it's fun!

Wouldn't want a 1.2 in it though!

[backwoodsman]

Sensibleboy said:

I'm sure they did a 1.3 Sierra at one point.

They did, I had one for a while, combined with the 4 speed box, it was, interesting.

[Blakewater]

It's a 1.2T replacing the old 1.6 engine. The Ford 1.0 engine is the 1.0T which replaces the 1.6 and can already be had in the Fiesta and Focus. The engines aren't as low powered as they sound when you just state the cylinder capacity. Modern engines are more and more about getting the most power out of the smallest cylinder capacity with turbos and superchargers.

[FairfieldSteve]

Blakewater said:

It's a 1.2T replacing the old 1.6 engine. The Ford 1.0 engine is the 1.0T which replaces the 1.6 and can already be had in the Fiesta and Focus. The engines aren't as low powered as they sound when you just state the cylinder capacity. Modern engines are more and more about getting the most power out of the smallest cylinder capacity with turbos and superchargers.

With the 1.6TDi Passat you really notice a huge lack of tourque at low revs. It can be quite hard to pedal the boat round town without using the full rev range - Ruining any chance of the economy figures that are stated.
These small engines are great at passing tests and sitting on motorways but are bloody rubbish with a heavy car and town roads.

[BorkFactor]

According to Wikipedia they put a 1.6 petrol in the Vectra C, although I am pretty sure that wasn't in the UK.

Must have been dire, the 1.6 Vectra B was meant to be pretty glacial!

[jas xjr]

ejenner said:

You could get a serria estate with a 1.6 back in the day. And a Granada

I had a 2 litre Granada , that was just about OK. Don't think they sold a 1.6 granada

[AC43]

Capri 1.3.

Massive posing pouch of a bonnet. Teensy weensy ickle engine. Acres of fresh air. Laughable.