20:40 21-05-2026

Autocar Ranks the Best German Engines of All Time

Discover Autocar's selection of the greatest German engines ever made, from Audi's diesel Le Mans winner to Porsche's iconic flat-six and Bugatti's W16.

Autocar has put together a list of the best German engines of all time. It covers not just production-car motors but also racing, record-setting, and even a marine MAN engine. The lineup highlights why Germany became one of the automotive world's top engineering hubs.

One of the most iconic entries is the Audi R10 TDI. In 2006, its 5.5-liter diesel V12 claimed victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 12 Hours of Sebring, and the LMP1 class in the American Le Mans Series. For a diesel, that was a breakthrough — though after the TDI emissions scandals, those letters now seem like a relic of a bygone era in racing.

BMW appears multiple times on the list. The M20 straight-six earned a reputation for smoothness, the S14 turned the first M3 into a racing icon, and the N74 V12 took a different path toward the luxury of the BMW 7 Series and Rolls-Royce. Mercedes is represented by the M139, M156, and M196 — ranging from a 2.0-liter AMG turbo producing up to 416 hp to a racing inline-eight with direct injection and desmodromic valvetrain.

Some engines matter less for their specs than for their impact. The Volkswagen Type 1 ran from 1938 to 2003, powering the Beetle, Transporter, Karmann Ghia, and even light aircraft. The EA827 served under the hoods of countless VW, Audi, Seat, and Skoda models, including the original Golf GTI. And the Porsche 911's flat-six is a rare case of an engine that evolved for decades without losing its soul.

Then there's the extreme: the Bugatti W16 — 8.0 liters, four turbos, and as much as 1,479 hp in the Chiron. Engines like that feel almost unimaginable in a future obsessed with emissions and fuel economy. So the list reads less like a museum exhibit and more like a reminder: the ICE era is fading, but its greatest hits were thunderous.