Characteristics of the M43 engine
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing | Steyr Plant |
| Engine make | M43 |
| Years of manufacture | 1992-2001 |
| Cylinder block material | cast iron |
| Power system | injector |
| Type | row |
| Number of cylinders | 4 |
| Valves per cylinder | 2 |
| Piston stroke, mm | 81 |
| Cylinder diameter, mm | 84 |
| Compression ratio | 9.7 |
| Engine displacement, cc | 1796 |
| Engine power, hp/rpm | 115/5500 |
| Torque, Nm/rpm | 168/3900 |
| Fuel | 95 |
| Environmental standards | Euro 2-3 |
| Engine weight, kg | 133 |
| Fuel consumption, l/100 km | |
| – city | 11.0 |
| – highway | 6.2 |
| – mixed | 7.9 |
| Oil consumption, gr./1000 km | to 1000 |
| Engine oil | 0W-30 |
| 0W-40 | |
| 5W-30 | |
| 5W-40 | |
| 10W-40 | |
| 15W-50 | |
| How much oil in the engine, liters | 4.0 |
| Oil change is carried out, km | 7000-10000 |
| Engine operating temperature, deg. | 90-95 |
| Engine life, thousand kilometers | |
| – according to the plant | – |
| – in practice | 300+ |
| Tuning, hp | |
| potential | 150+ |
| -no loss of resource | n.d. |
| Motor installed | BMW 318i E36 |
| BMW 518i E34 | |
| BMW Z3 |
Reliability, problems and repair of the BMW M43 engine
In-line four of the M43 family (it also included M43B16 and M43B19), released in 1992 as a replacement for the M40B18. The M43 cylinder block is almost unchanged from the M40, the crankshaft now has 4 counterweights (the M40 had 8) and lost a little weight, the stroke remained unchanged. In addition to the crankshaft, the pistons have changed, and the compression ratio has been increased to 9.7.
The cylinder head was significantly changed for chain drive timing (there was a belt), the chain serves about 300 thousand kilometers. The camshaft is the same (SOHC 8V), changed rockers, lightened valves, different springs, nowhere went hydrocompensators. Valve diameters have not changed: inlet 42 mm, exhaust 36 mm. Characteristics of the standard camshaft M43B18: phase 244/244, lift 10.6/10 mm. Also on the M43B18 was used intake manifold with adjustable length DISA, which allowed to increase torque at both low and high speeds. The ignition system was also changed.
This motor was used on BMW cars with the index 18i.
The replacement engine came out only in 2001, in the person of two-liter N42B20, which within a year took the place of M43B18.
Problems and disadvantages of BMW engines M43B18
- Oil leaks. Common for the engine M43, leaks most often valve cover, treated by replacing the gasket with sealant and HVAC.
- Knocking, crackling, noise of M43 engine. Extraneous noises are often created by a failed DISA damper. Check, look for a repair kit and put the intake in order. Hydrocompensators are less likely to knock.
In addition, there are problems characteristic of the past M40B18: dips in acceleration, floating revs, overheating, you can read about them in detail here.
But the main disadvantage for the owner is not even this, the main disadvantage of the M43 engine is its low power. The power plant is very weak, even light E36 with M43 goes very sluggishly and does not correspond to the image of BMW as a sports car.
Summarizing, it is necessary to say that despite all the above described, the engine BMW M43 is quite reliable and has a good resource, with proper care and maintenance, is able to roll not one hundred kilometers. However, those copies, which are presented on the market today, their motor resource has gone away and do not expect trouble-free operation.
Tuning the engine BMW M43B18
Atmospheric. Stroker
The easiest and most proven way to increase the power of the M43 engine is a stroker with a head from M42/M44, the basic manipulations are described here.
You can go another way and install cold intake, sport intake manifold and camshaft with phase from 266-272 (from Dbilas for example), exhaust manifold 4-2-1, flash and squeeze out another 20-30 hp, losing a little in the lows.
The most correct choice is to buy a contract engine BMW M50-52 and install initially powerful and reliable engine.
ENGINE RATING: 4