Stricter emissions regulations in Europe are accelerating the demise of diesel engines in passenger cars, but tuners are not giving up on the once hugely popular oil burner just yet. UK-based diesel tuning company Darkside Developments recently spent some quality time with a 5 Series from the F10 era to give this 530d a lot more juice.
The “N57” engine originally made 241 hp and 398 lb-ft (540 Nm) before BMW bumped it to 255 hp and 413 lb-ft (560 Nm). Lest we forget BMW also sold an M550d with three turbochargers increasing output to 375 hp and 546 lb-ft (740 Nm). Well, Darkside Developments has managed to eclipse them all by fitting its own hybrid turbo, a custom intercooler, and other mods.
After remapping the ECU and doing some necessary tuning, the dyno run showed a massive 417 hp and 650 lb-ft (884 Nm) of torque from the inline-six turbodiesel 3.0-liter engine. All that oomph is channeled only to the rear wheels, which should make it a real hoot. As a matter of fact, it still breaks traction even in fourth gear because of the immense torque and lack of xDrive.
Looking at the final output numbers, they’re even stronger than those of the discontinued quad-turbo M550d version of the current-generation 5 Series Sedan. As a refresher, the B57S was pushed to 394 hp and 561 lb-ft (760 Nm). The diesel monster was also retired from the M50d versions of the X5 and X7 with a Final Edition.
BMW believes diesel engines still make sense in today’s hectic automotive world, hence why you can have one for the 1 Series all the way up to the 8 Series. The M340d and M440d with their inline-sixes are among the last performance-oriented diesel cars money can buy, but the question is for how long. With Euro 7 regulations coming into effect in a couple of years, it remains to be seen how many diesel engines automakers will still offer by then.
Source: Darkside Developments / YouTube
