BMW signs diesel-engine supply deal with maker of police cars

BMW has agreed to supply turbocharged diesel engines to Carbon Motors Corp. to power Carbon's purpose-built police cars.

In a deal signed on Monday, Carbon ordered more than 240,000 units of BMW's 3.0-liter inline six-cylinder turbodiesel--the same engine used in the X5. In the X5, the diesel is rated at 265 hp and 425 lb-ft of torque.

The deal calls for BMW to deliver the diesel engines complete with a cooling system, exhaust gas recirculation and an automatic transmission.

Carbon is developing the E7, a purpose-built patrol car that will be sold only to police agencies. The E7 is expected to launch in 2012, and the company says it currently has 12,500 reservations for cars. The company is based in Connersville, Ind., where it plans to build cars in a former Visteon plant.

According to the Carbon Web site, the E7 will use an aluminum spaceframe structure, will be built to survive a 75-mph rear impact and designed to last for 250,000 miles. It lists the performance targets at 0 to 60 mph in 6.5 seconds, a top speed of more than 150 mph and combined city/highway fuel economy of 28 to 30 mpg, which is where the BMW diesel comes in.

By Dale Jewett