Thirteen-plus decades. That’s how long we’ve been building engines. You can’t keep track. You won’t keep track.
The Chevy Small Block stays. So does the Porsche Boxer. Legends, mostly. But there are dozens of others? Forgotten. Fading. Just names to guys who really know cars.
Here are 30 of them. Alphabetical. A mix. Maybe you knew the AMC. Maybe you didn’t know the BMW M10. If you know them all, congrats. You’re probably weirdly cool.
The AMC straight-four
Look at it. Looks like Chrysler. Because Chrysler ate AMC in ’87. But nope. This is AMC steel. Built tough. Specifically for off-road use. Durability wasn’t an afterthought, it was the job description.
Debuted in 1983. Inside Jeeps. Inside the Eagle. Pictured, presumably. Still chugging away in early 2000s Wranglers. Even in a Dodge Dakota pickup. Long legs this one.
Austin Seven
Forget it for a second. Hard to do in the UK in the 30s. Everyone knew this thing. It had a song. Can you imagine a car getting a song now? No.
Small engine. Four cylinders. Usually 747cc. Cheap. Efficient. But supercharged? Terrifyingly fast. More than eighty years dead. You shouldn’t care. Unless you dig deep. Then you find them everywhere. Derivatives. Relics.
BMW M10
Bad name. “M10”. Doesn’t scream speed. Does it scream anything? No. But it was there from 1962. New Class sedans. Hung around for over 25 years. 1.5 to 2 liters.
The turbo version? Insane. The BMW 2002 Turbo ran it. The base for the S14 in the E30 M3? M10 blood. Then there’s the Formula 1 beast. The 1.5-liter twin-turbo. Boost up during qualifying. Estimated at 1,400 horsepower. One thousand. You could smell it from the grandstand.
The first BMW V8
BMW does sixes. Everyone knows the six. They dabbled in V12s too. And this one. The oldest V8. The only “overhead-valve” one. (Valves high, cams side). Sounds technical. Should stay that way.
It hasn’t been used since 1966. Basically dead. Debuted in 1955 as a 2.6. Grew to 3.2. Powered the 502 sedan. And the 507. The sports car that failed. Fabulous shape. Terrible sales.
Chevrolet 90-degree V6
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