Unlikely Cars You Didn’t Know Shared an Engine

It’s not unusual to see one engine powering multiple vehicles from the same brand. Developing one powertrain and adapting it to different cars makes financial sense in the automotive industry, so it’s a common practice. Engine sharing also happens with different brands that operate under the same larger parent company or corporate umbrella. There are also instances where one brand will buy engines from another brand even if there is no corporate relationship. For smaller automakers, developing an engine from scratch is an extremely expensive feat, so sourcing one from an established brand is a way to save on research and development costs. 

Here are some unlikely vehicles that you probably didn’t know have the same engine under their hoods. 

1. Mercedes-Benz S600 and Aixam Mega Track 

The 1990s Mercedes-Benz S-Class is the epitome of over-engineered luxury. Its 6.0-litre V12 engine was known for its smooth performance and was designed for blasting down the Autobahn. That Mercedes V12 was also put in the Aixam Mega Track, a very weird and forgotten 1990s supercar. Aixam is a small French manufacturer known primarily for making small city cars. However, in 1992, the brand made an odd decision to make an off-road, all-wheel-drive supercar that weighed a massive 2,280 kg (5,027 lb). Only six units were ever produced, with the Mega Track now being long forgotten but still extremely cool. 

2. Lotus Emira and Toyota RAV4 (2005-2012) 

Lotus is a small British automaker known for lightweight sports cars with brilliant handling that don’t rely on sheer power. While Lotus had produced some of its engines in the past, in the 2000s, Lotus used Toyota engines. Models like the Elise, Exige, and even the newest Emira all use Toyota engines that vary from four to six cylinders. The Emira, Lotus’ latest sports car, uses a Toyota V6 with the addition of a supercharger. This brings the power of Toyota’s V6 (which was used in previous Camry and RAV4 models) from 268 hp up to an astounding 400 hp. 

3. Various BMW V8 Models and Land Rover Range Rover  

The third-generation Range Rover used a BMW V8 engine. This may seem weird until you remember that BMW briefly owned Rover in the late 1990s, a group that also produced all Land Rover models. BMW sold the Rover group in 2000, including Land Rover with it. However, for the 2002-2005 model years, the Range Rover still used a BMW V8 engine, likely due to the third-generation Range Rover already being production-ready by the time BMW sold off the Land Rover brand. This is the same V8 that was used in the BMW X5, 5 Series, and 7 Series. Interestingly, 20 years later, the current Range Rover also uses a BMW V8. 

4. BMW 3 Series (E30) and Lincoln Continental (1984-1985)

Spurred by the fuel crisis, the early 1980s saw American manufacturers attempt to market diesel cars as a fuel-efficient alternative to gas. Ford followed the trend, but not wanting to develop a diesel engine from the ground up, it opted to buy one from BMW. As a result, for the 1984-1985 model year, Lincoln sourced a few BMW straight-six diesel engines for the Continental and Mark VII models. This engine produced 115 hp, and while that’s not a lot of power even in a relatively lightweight BMW, putting it in a heavy Lincoln made its performance laughable. The 1984 Continental equipped with a BMW diesel could go from zero to 100 km/h in 14.9 seconds. This engine lasted only one model year and was cancelled after poor sales and negative reception.

5. Mercedes-Benz SL 320 and SsangYong Rodius 

This is probably one of the weirdest cases of engine sharing on this list. SsangYong is a South Korean automaker that never sold cars in North America, but it did sell some vehicles in Europe. In the 1990s, SsangYong had a partnership with Mercedes-Benz, which resulted in SsangYong cars in the 1990s and the early 2000s using Mercedes platforms and parts. The weirdest example of this is the use of the Mercedes M104 inline-six engine, which was used in everything from the S-Class, E-Class, and the SL. This reliable powertrain found a home in one of the ugliest cars ever made, the SsangYong Rodius. 

6. Audi S6  and Lamborghini Gallardo 

In the 2000s, the Volkswagen Group was known for putting some crazy engines in its cars, from a V6 in the Golf to a W16 in the Bugatti Veyron. The oddest engine sharing was between Lamborghini and Audi. The R8 and Gallardo famously shared a platform, but the 5.2L Lamborghini V10 would also find a home in the Audi S6. This is particularly weird, seeing as the S6 wasn’t even intended to be the fastest version of the A6 sedan. Regardless, the S6 still had a 5.2L V10 detuned to produce 430 hp. 

7. Vertical Hummingbird and Corvette Z06 

While this isn’t a car, it’s certainly a cool example of engine sharing. The Vertical Hummingbird is a helicopter, and that’s as far as our knowledge extends. However, saying your helicopter has a 7.0L engine from a Corvette Z06 is certainly a worthy flex. The Hummingbird’s top speed is 180 km/h, making it far slower than the Corvette it shares an engine with. 

8. Audi A6 and Spyker C8 

As crazy as the Spyker C8 looked, it had a surprisingly normal engine. Audi’s 4.2L V8, which is typically found in its large luxury sedans, isn’t an engine designed for crazy performance, but is known for its tuning potential. Spyker took advantage of this, as different versions of the C8 could be naturally aspirated, twin turbocharged, or supercharged. Power ranged from 395 hp to 518 hp. This level of performance in a car that weighed between 1,250 kg and 1,424 kg (2,756 to 3,139 lb) was huge. 

9. Noble M600 and Volvo XC90  

In the early 2000s, Volvo’s flagship vehicles, the S80 and XC90, had an option of a V8 engine designed by Yamaha. While this V8 was good, it would also find an unlikely home in the Noble M600. Noble is a British sports car maker known for producing some seriously fast supercars. The M600 that came out in 2010 was the brand's last car, and it featured Volvo’s V8 with the addition of two turbos. This takes the power output from 311 hp in the XC90 to 650 hp in the Noble. This could take the M600 from zero to 100 km/h in just 3.0 seconds, onto a top speed of 346 km/h. 

10. Lincoln Continental and Koenigsegg CCR 

Ford’s modular V8 has seen a lot of applications, with the engine being known to be reliable and easily modified for different uses. The 4.6L four-valve variant was used in the late 1990s to the early 2000s in the Lincoln Continental, where it produced 260 hp. Swedish supercar maker Koenigsegg used this engine in its earliest production cars, the CC8S and CCR. The CCR took the Ford engine and heavily modified it to handle a massive supercharger, resulting in a very impressive power output of 806 hp. This pushed the CCR to achieve a top speed of 387 km/h.