Car engine preference: 3-cylinder, 4-cylinder or car/brand dependent

Each of the options has its use cases & value proposition with some of the variables including refinement, NVH, cost, fuel efficiency & power spread.

BHPian ajayc123 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

When in the market for a car, one encounters engine options with 3 and 4 cylinders. Sometimes, the same model offers both 3-cylinder and 4-cylinder variants, and that becomes confusing. Add turbo to the mix, it becomes even more confusing.

Each of the options has its use cases & value proposition with some of the variables including refinement, NVH, cost, fuel efficiency, and power spread.

While theoretical comparisons are available, and even engineering solutions to overcome some of the weaknesses of each type have been devised, the available information is often laced with hype and marketing.

Real user feedback is the ultimate armoury to improve the understanding (proverbially: separate the wheat from the chaff) and help reach an informed decision on the choice of a suitable engine for a specific use case.

I am requesting the team-bhp members for their poll on their preference for 3-cylinder vs 4-cylinder. Also, requesting their commentary on their experiences about these and use cases where one option should be preferred over the other.

Also, if it's a turbo engine, how different would the experience between a 3-cylinder vs a 4-cylinder be when compared to an NA engine?

What are the good and bad use cases for:

• 3 cylinder NA
• 3 cylinder turbo
• 4 cylinder NA
• 4 cylinder turbo

PS- I have intentionally left out 6 cylinders or more so that we can stay focussed on the two options, but any commentary that helps the discussion is welcome.

Hopefully, this discussion will be helpful in choosing the right engine for our needs and make us happy.

Here's what GTO had to say about the matter:

All things being the same, I would obviously pick 4-cylinders over 3 (and 6-cylinders over 4, 8 over 6 but NOT 12 over 8 due to complexity). But in the real world, all things aren't the same. As an example, Skoda-VW's 1.0L turbo-petrol is a maniac to drive - too much fun. I would buy that over some competitor 4-cylinders. Among NA motors, Ford's 1.5L 3-cylinder Dragon was a jewel of a motor and I'd pick that over Maruti's 1.5L 4-cylinder NA & Hyundai's 1.5L / 1.6L NAs. Although there are many tamer ones too (Maruti's 1.0L Boosterjet) and ones that suck (Ford's 1.0L EcoBoost with horrible lag, questionable FE & suspect reliability).

Hence, voted for "depends on the car / brand".

Here's what BHPian Jeroen had to say about the matter:

I voted "depends on the car". I have driven cars where I did not even know it was a three-cylinder until somebody told me.

In general, I like the "more cylinders the better". Not necessarily a very rational choice I admit. Just a gut feeling and I am an engineer at heart. More bits to fiddle with!

Here's what BHPian Gypsian had to say about the matter:

I voted for "depends on the car". For instance, the Mahindra XUV 300, VW 1.0 TSI 3 cylinder petrol engines are preferred over Suzuki K12 engines in refinement and performance. However, if technology is at par in both engines, I would prefer one with more cylinders.

Basically, these cylinder configurations are much more significant in motorcycles as they define the very characteristics of that respective motorcycle. In cars though, technically it makes a difference, but it is not as evident as in motorcycles.

Here's what BHPian tharian had to say about the matter:

Voted for 'depends on the car'.

Although I prefer 4 over 3 cylinders, a recent purchase of a 3 cylinder engined WagonR made sense over the 1.2 litre 4 cyl engine.

The car was for my father who would be driving it only in the city. I thought of going for the 1.2 engine while booking and that was only for me to enjoy the car whenever I use it and at times take it for a short burst on the highway. I didn't think about the 3cyl thrum or vibrations and the fact that the 1.2 is much smoother and priced only slightly more. The 3 cylinder is not bad either when it comes to vibrations.

It's been 6 months with the WagonR and I realized I made the right decision by not going for the 1.2 engine. The car is just too light and only a commuter car basically, for the more powerful engine. Even with the 1 litre engine, it picks up speed quickly and is perfect for city use.

The tall boy design and the light weight of the car make it a risky proposition with the 1.2, at least for me.

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