Defi ning car culture 057E36 BMW
It’s as clean as it is fast
when tuned properly. And besides, highly tuned OM605s
sound awesome; the big turbo 5cyl breathing through a
4-inch exhaust sounds like a mix between an ‘80s Audi
Quattro rally car and a huge American big rig!
It’s not just the engine choice which is unexpected,
but how the engine behaves too. Diesels, they make lots
of torque but don’t rev, right? Well, normally yes, but
in this case, hell no! This thing revs like a typical 2.5ltr
petrol lump, pulling all the way to the 6500rpm rev limit
- almost 2000rpm further than most diesels usually pull
hard to. But why is that? Special fuel? Some high tech
trickery? Black magic? Nope. In fact, as diesels go, this
engine is pretty low tech; it’s all about good old tuning...
You see, most diesels don’t rev simply because they’ve
been designed that way. They’re intended to make good
grunt from almost idle, and have great fuel economy, so
generally have a tiny little turbo that strangles power as
the revs rise, as well as a fuel system and engine design
only really intended for low rpm use. Even tuned diesels
with uprated turbos still run relatively tiny turbos for the
capacity compared to petrol engines, but this one? Well,
this one has a beast of a turbo: a BorgWarner S366 with
a twin scroll T4 turbine housing. And the exhaust is just
as manly too, with a 4inch diameter from the turbo right
THIS ONE’S MINE-
Name: Scott Smith
Age: 22
Occupation: Mechanic/
Owner at S&B Motorsport
How long owned: Only
a year, and the main
modifi cations took about
six months to complete
What’s next for the car:
To just enjoy using it! It’s
pretty perfect as it is
Why an OM605?: The
noise and the revs