“Congratulations to Audi for winning the South African Car of the Year 2006. From the Winner of World Car of the Year 2006.”

This was the very statement that set off an advertisement war between Audi and BMW that continues even today. Audi, obviously, didn’t find it funny and, as an act of vengeance, shot back at BMW with an ad that read:

“Congratulations to BMW for Winning World Car of the Year 2006. From the Winner of Six Consecutive Le Mans 24 Hour Races 2000-2006.”

This was classic – a definitive example of Audi’s supreme engineering capability and an honour that BMW could not have matched. And so, you’d imagine it was the end of the fight. Well, not if Subaru had anything to do with it!

Cashing in on the clash between the two German giants, Subaru jumped into the mix, and made Audi and BMW look childish in their acts.

Subaru’s advertisement said, “Well done to Audi and BMW for winning the beauty contest. From the winner of the 2006 International Engine of the Year.”

That was when the world sat up and took notice of the International Engine of the Year awards in earnest. It became perhaps as important as the International Car of the Year award. Established in 1999, International Engine of the Year is an annual competition for automotive engines. BMW has been the most successful automotive manufacturer in this segment, and has won the coveted award a record six times since its inception.

The International Engine of the Year Award honours automakers across segments like Best New Engine of the Year, Green Engine of the Year, Best Performance Engine, Sub 1-litre, 1-litre to 1.4-litre, 1.4-1.8, 1.8-2.0, 2.0-2.5, 2.5-3.0, 3.0-4.0, and above 4-litre. The winners of the engine capacity class are then automatically shortlisted for the overall prize of International Engine of
the Year.

In its twelfth edition, and judged by 72 members from the motoring fraternity, the 2010 International Engine of the Year Awards saw Volkswagen walk away with the overall top honours for the second year running. The two-time (2009 & 2010) award winning 1.4-litre TSI engine from Volkswagen combines petrol direct injection with twin-charging – a turbocharger and a supercharger working in tandem. Powered via belt drive from the crankshaft, the supercharger is engine-driven and operates at lower revs, while the turbocharger – powered by exhaust gases – kicks in as engine speeds rise.