Four-cylinder engines have been around forever. They are compact enough to fit in any engine bay yet powerful enough to push and pull most cars. For this reason, the four-cylinder engine was and still is the engine of choice for millions of regular car buyers. For those who need a little more, there are six and eight-cylinder engines, but if your needs are just for transportation, the four-cylinder engine will do.
Despite the spike in power, four-cylinder engines never earned performance engine credentials. In fact, most true sports car fans never accepted the four-cylinder engine as a proper power plant for a performance car. If you are one of them, keep reading, because here are 36 powerful and potent four-cylinders that have astonished the automobile public with the performance they deliver.
36. BMW M3 E30
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When most people think of BMW performance, they think of the “M” class cars. But among dozens of models that wore the M badge, the M3 E30 is the most iconic. BMW produced them from 1985 to 1992. The E30 M3 was a homologation special which they designed to compete in the European Touring Car Championship.
At first, BMW didn’t envision the performance version of their E30 3-Series, but when Mercedes introduced the 190E 2.3-16 model, BMW quickly reacted and the M3 was born. The heart of the E30 M3 was the S14 straight-four engine with 2.3-liters of displacement and 195 and later 215 HP. Since the car was light, its performance and road-holding were great and the M3 turned out to be the most successful racing car in touring car racing history.
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The road-going variants lead to the creation of a bigger 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine that could produce 238 HP, a hefty number even by current standards. Whichever version of the E30 M3 you test, the 0 to 60 mph will be under seven seconds and the top speed will be over 150 mph. That’s quite respectable for a 30-year-old car with a small four-cylinder engine. All that cemented the M3`s reputation and helped turn it into one of the biggest legends in four-cylinder car history.