Four cylinders, 1488 cm3 of capacity, 50 or 67 hp depending on whether it adopted a turbo or not. Here are the main features of what is my favorite engine (perhaps the engine of my life), the Isuzu Diesel engine that powered the Opel Corsa A and B.
I know that this choice hardly gathers consensus and that there are much better engines, but you, attentive reader, I ask you for some patience while I explain to you why I made this choice.
Economical by nature and reliable by character, the Isuzu diesel engine that powered the modest Opel Corsa throughout the 1990s is far from being a gem of automotive engineering (so much so that it didn't even go beyond an honorable mention in this article).
However, if I was told that I could only choose one engine to accompany me for the rest of my life, I would hardly think twice.
The reasons that even the reason contradicts
First of all, this engine is to me almost like a (very) longtime friend. Present in the car that was there at home when I was born, a Corsa A in the “D” version that traveled up to 700,000 kilometres, its somewhat clumsy chattering was the soundtrack that lulled me on long journeys in my childhood.
All I had to do was listen to him in the distance and think “my father is coming”. When the little Corsa A retired, the replacement at home was his direct successor, a Corsa B that, as if keeping up with the times, appeared in the “TD” version.
Aboard it I was interrogating my father about the secrets of driving and dreaming of the day when I could get behind the wheel. And the soundtrack? Always the rattle of the Isuzu Diesel engine, the T4EC1.
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Many cars have passed by my house since then, but that little black Opel Corsa remained until the day I got my license (interestingly with some lessons behind the wheel of a… Corsa 1.5 TD).
There, and despite having at my disposal a sportier and even dynamic Renault Clio equipped with the carburetor version of the 1.2 Energy, whenever I could I “stole” the car from my mother. The pretext? Diesel was cheaper.
The years went by, the kilometers accumulated, but one thing is certain: that engine continues to captivate me. Whether it's the slight drag of the starter motor (which usually makes two turns before the engine starts), the economy or the fact that I already know all its sounds and tricks, I would hardly choose another engine to accompany me for the rest of my life.
I know that there are better engines, more powerful, economical and even reliable (at least less prone to overheating or losing oil through the valve caps).
However, whenever I turn the key and hear that four cylinder start I always have a smile on my face that no other car has ever caused me, and that's the reason why this is my favorite engine.
And you, do you have an engine that has marked you? Leave us your story in the comments.