Verso 1.6 D-4D first Toyota to be equipped with BMW-sourced diesel engine

• New engine to expand clean diesel range offered on Toyota Verso
• Toyota Motor Europe R&D engineers ensured a seamless integration between engine and vehicle
• Diesel supply agreement first step of mid- to-long-term collaboration on next-generation environmentally-friendly technologies with BMW
 
Two years after entering into a contract with the BMW Group to source diesel engines, the Verso 1.6 D-4D will be the first Toyota to be equipped with a BMW engine.
 
The arrival of the 112 DIN hp 1.6 D-4D widens the engine-range available on Verso, which now comprises of 4 diesel and 2 petrol engines.

Didier Leroy, Senior Managing Officer of Toyota Motor Corporation, and President and CEO of Toyota Motor Europe (TME), said: “At Toyota, we believe that tackling environmental challenges facing our industry will require more than one single approach. Although hybrid is increasingly at the core of our strategy towards sustainable mobility, we also see a role for clean diesel in Europe. Working together with an industry leader like the BMW Group allows us to benefit from economies of scale to reduce development costs as well as improve our time-to-market.” 

TME’s Belgium-based Technical Centre led the development of the Verso 1.6 D-4D, ensuring a seamless match between the engine and the Toyota gearbox and vehicle electronics, while safeguarding the comfort and dynamic performance of the original Verso. Several components were newly developed, ranging from engine mounts over a dual mass flywheel, a new gearbox housing and gearing and a Stop-and-Start system to further improve efficiency and reduce emissions. 

Production of the Verso 1.6 D-4D will commence in January 2014 at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Turkiye in Adapazari, Turkiye – the sole production facility of the Verso range which also produces the latest generation Toyota Corolla.

Sourcing diesel engines fits within a wider collaboration between the BMW Group and Toyota, under which the companies announced plans to:
 
• Co-develop a fuel-cell system
• Conduct a feasibility study for the joint development of a sports car platform
• Work together on creating lightweight vehicle body technologies
• Undertake joint research into lithium-air batteries