Engine code
Engine code letters ( MKB ) are a coding scheme that Volkswagen AG developed in the mid-1960s to clearly differentiate the various types of engines from one another. The engine code is placed in front of the consecutive engine number. Both are stamped into the engine block together . This provides a unique identification for the procurement of spare parts or exchange purposes.
The predecessor system was the identification of the vehicles and the engines by serial chassis number . For years, attempts were initially made to keep the engine number the same as the chassis number - a procedure that was increasingly difficult to maintain with exchange engines.
Historical development
In the early years of VW, vehicles with unrelated chassis and engine numbers were viewed with suspicion and were only available at a discount on the used vehicle market. In the 1960s, engine numbers still had to be entered in the vehicle documents in Germany (in other markets until today); Changing the engine required the TÜV to give way to register the new machine. Anyone who did not do this had to reckon with difficulties during police checks and was often officially invited to a demonstration of the vehicle by an expert.
The engine numbers of VW Beetles can be found in the cast of the engine housing, directly below the base of the alternator . In the case of replacement engines, the original engine number of the defective engine delivered there was first milled away at the VW plant in Kassel - Baunatal and then the previous number of the vehicle that this repaired replacement engine was to replace was hammered into the milling surface in the same place two VW stamps in front of and behind the number as proof of authenticity.
The new identification letters
Initially, a single code letter was used essentially in the chronological order of engine development (A for the oldest engine type). This code letter was attached in front of the consecutive serial number. The old engine number scheme was a seven-digit number, e.g. B. 1 234 567. The new engine number was z. B. D - 0 000 123.
When you got to Z in the alphabet, new MKBs were held in two digits from the 1970s, and the consecutive engine number is only six instead of seven digits. Finally, from 1990 the system was expanded to three letters. The system of assigning letters is essentially alphabetical and chronological. In some cases, gaps were left in order to be able to mark small modifications of existing engines with neighboring letter combinations.
At the time when the MKB was introduced in September 1965 (model change after the factory holidays , beginning of the 1966 model year), VW had the following engine types:
- VW 1200 - 30 hp. Motor with short crankshaft, last installed in the successor to the standard, VW 1200 A, recognizable in vehicles on the speedometer, which only goes up to 120. Predecessor types of these engines also had 24 or 24.5 hp until the early 1950s. Since this engine was no longer used in the current range of new vehicles, it did not have its own code letters. Later exchange engines were given the letter "A" (first VW engine) stamped in a flat milling under the alternator base in front of the consecutive number. Built from December 1953 to July 1965.
- VW 1200 - 34 hp. Engine with “long” crankshaft (increased distance between the cylinder axes), from this point on still installed in the current “Sparkäfer” VW 1200 A. This engine type was given the code letter “D”.
- VW bus engine of the older type with 1500 cm³ and 42 HP, code letter "G"
- VW 1300 - 40 hp. Engine with extended stroke of the crankshaft of the bus engine, but retained cylinder bore of the 1200, new engine type for the newly introduced VW 1300, VW 1300 Cabrio, Karmann-Ghia 1300, code letter "F", 8-1965 to 7-1970
- VW 1600 - 45 HP flat engine for the VW 1500 Type 3, successor to the original engine with 1500 cm³ in the VW 1500 N, enlarged to 1600 cm³ through different cylinder bores. Engine with single carburetor (flat current), code letter "K"
- VW 1600 - 54 hp. Flat engine for the VW 1600 Type 3 with double downdraft carburetor, successor to the twin carburetor engine of the VW 1500 S. Code letters "R", "T" and "U"
Later there were the following "Beetle-typical" engines (based on the layout with radial cooling fan in the Beetle and also usable for buses and vans):
- 1500 cm³, 44 HP, code letter "H", 8-1966 to 7-1970, i. W. for vans
- 1600 cm³, 48 HP, code letter "B", 8-1969 to 7-1970, i. W. for vans
- 1300 cm³ 44 PS "AB" 8-1970 to 7-1973 // 44 PS "AR" 8-1973 to 7-1975
- 1600 cm³ 44 PS "AG" 8-1970 to 5-1973
- 1600 cm³ 48 PS "AE" 8-1970 to 7-1971 // "AH" 8-1971 to 1-1976 // 48 PS "AK" 8-1972 to 7-1973 // "AL" 3-1973 to? / 2003? // "AM" 3-1973 to 12-1977
- 1600 cm³ 50 HP "AD" 8-1970 to 7-1973 // 50 HP "AJ" 8-1974 to 12-1977 // 50 HP "AS" 8-1973 to 1978
Engines with reduced compression (hollow pistons) for countries with low octane fuel:
- 1300 cm³ 37 PS "E" from 8-67 to 7-70 // 40 PS, "AC" from 8-70 to 7-72
- 1500 cm³ 40 PS "L" from 8-67 to 7-70
- 1600 cm³ 46 HP "AF" from 8-70 to 12-77
Classic Beetle engines of the later years are the 1200 series with 34 PS ("D") and the 1600 series engines with 50 PS ("AD", "AJ" and "AS") and the 1600 series catalytic converter engine "AL" with 48 PS. There were also Beetle engines with 1700 cm³ and 58 HP, the most powerful series Beetles, from Latin American countries.
In addition, there were a few modifications as industrial engines of the Beetle engine design, which were fitted with modified exhaust systems in pumps ( fire brigade ), combine harvesters , cement silo vehicles and power generation units, as well as emergency drives e.g. B. for cable cars ( Westfalenpark Dortmund) and cement works were used to provide auxiliary drive after possible power failures .
Development over four decades
Subsequently, VW continuously expanded the system of engine codes. As an exception to the rule, there were sometimes aggregates with a number instead of letters at the beginning, e.g. B. the first "standard TDI engine " with 90 HP, which is called "1Z".
The repertoire of engine types became more confusing from the 2000s onwards, because the MKB were partly expanded to four letters. In some cases, engines have been renamed with code letters that differ only in details, for example for the requirements of specific export markets.
After the takeover of Audi AG (purchased by VW around 1970), the Audi engines were also included in this labeling system. Engines from other VW subsidiaries Škoda and Seat also have these code letters; It is often identical engines that are used within the framework of the “ platform strategy ”.
transmission
The transmissions of the VW vehicles and their subsidiaries are also designated according to a similar system. This used to be limited to two, currently three letters to identify a type of gearbox. While motors are numbered consecutively according to the code letters, the five-digit number of the gearbox number indicates the date of manufacture. The first two digits mark the day, the following two the month and the last the year of manufacture. The decade is not given, which is unnecessary because no transmission model is manufactured over such a long period of time.
other producers
Other vehicle manufacturers also use identification systems for engines.
Ford z. B. has a combined system of letters and digits to identify the types.
Mercedes-Benz engines have an identifier that denotes the main model with a preceding "M" (for "engine", Otto engines) or "OM" ("Oel engine", diesel engines) and a three-digit number, and with a Identify the detail pattern dot separated with the second group of three digits. For example, one of the most successful engines in Mercedes history has the code " OM 615 .010" as a two-liter diesel engine with 55 hp, to be found in the smallest diesels for decades.
Opel , for example, designates 1.6-liter engines of the Astra model with combinations such as X16SZ or C16NZ, in which the middle digits indicate the displacement size. This is also the case in other Opel series; isolated numbers are in front. However, it is not uniform: the abbreviation “4JGT”, for example, designates the engine of the Opel Monterey 3.1-liter turbo diesel, without any “speaking” parts being recognized.
BMW also names its engines according to series; a motor M43B16 is e.g. B. the drive for the BMW 316i; it is based on the basic engine based on the M43 model and can be identified by the "16" as an engine with 1.6 liter displacement. The "B" stands for "gasoline", a "D" for "diesel". New generation engines are identified by an "N" in place of the "M". Motors from M GmbH are marked with an "S". BMW has been using a modular system for three, four and six-cylinder engines since 2013 - both for diesel and gasoline engines. The engine designation of this series begins with the letter "B" for construction kit.
Porsche names the engines after the vehicle model. An engine type "930.20" is, for example, the drive of the Porsche 911 3.2 SC (model 930) until mid-1989. The ".20" is essentially a consecutive numbering within a vehicle series, without displacement or performance identification.
Volvo has long used a very simple engine code that was further refined in the early 1980s and again in the early 1990s. The old designations consisted of 4 characters (with the exception of the turbo). The first identified the engine as petrol (B) or diesel (D). The next two numbers indicated the displacement in deciliters (e.g. 19, 20, 21, 23 & 28) and the last letter identified the version (e.g. E = injector, F = injector with cat, etc.).
With a new engine variant, the codes were expanded to 5 digits in the 1980s (with the exception of the turbo): B / D + displacement in deciliters + 0 or 4 (number of valves) + letter (version). Examples: B230F, B230FT, B234F, B204FT. Exceptions were the rule - simplified terms were used for many purchased engines: e.g. B. the D24TIC (VW machine from the LT , diesel, 2.4-l turbo intercooler) or the B20F in the 400 Volvo .
When the so-called "whiteblocks" appeared in the early 1990s (4, 5 and 6 cylinder engines in modular design), the number of cylinders was also added in order to better distinguish the engines. So the coding is very advanced. The first engine with the new designation was the 3.0-liter in-line six-cylinder in the 960 Volvo . This was called B6304F (petrol, 6 cylinders, 3.0 l displacement, 4-valve, injector with catalytic converter). From then on, the number of valves per cylinder (no matter whether 2 or 4 valves) was also included in the designation. The version (since all engines have a catalytic converter) of the engine was introduced. This was indicated by a number at the end. A few examples: B4204S3 (petrol, 4 cylinders, 2.0 l displacement, 4 valves per cylinder, naturally aspirated engine, 3rd series), D5244T2 (diesel, 5 cylinders, 2.4 l displacement, 4 valves per cylinder, turbo engine, 2nd series) . Series), B6294T2 etc.
See also the list of engines from Mercedes-Benz .
literature
- Dieter Korp: Now I'm helping myself . Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart
- Hans-Rüdiger Etzold: The Beetle - A Documentation . Vol. I-III, Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart