Chapter 191: MTU Tank Engine, Unsuitable for the East

"Our engine's speed isn't that high, only 2600 rpm." Schultz introduced, this issue has already attracted the other side's high attention, even causing internal contradictions; he knows he cannot avoid it.

"That high? How much power does the radiator consume?" Zhu Lao continued asking.

"Not much, just 162 kilowatts."

"You heard that? Only 162 kilowatts, not a bit much!" Luo Qiang continued to pick up the conversation, and then…… he saw the people around looking at him like an idiot.

As the secretary of the Five Machinery Department's leader, this guy actually doesn't even know simple power size!

The international standard is kilowatts, everyday use is horsepower; 1 kilowatt equals 1.36 horsepower. The other side previously said horsepower, now says kilowatts, just to make the number appear as small as possible.

"Yeah, really not much, it's not even one-fifth of the engine's total power; how can that be called much?"

"Qin Miao, don't talk nonsense, 162 compared to 1500 is just one-tenth, not much, not a bit! Besides, we shouldn't just look at this point; Mr. Schultz just said so much, why are you fixated on this? We can't deny the whole engine just because of this point, can we?"

Before going abroad, he kept bragging about how good German diesel engines were; now, in front of the Germans, he's even trying to make everyone believe that German engines are truly advanced!

Besides, what are you thinking, Qin Miao? You're not here to buy a diesel engine, are you? If German diesel engines weren't good, would you buy them? Still speaking ill of the seller here—do you really believe Germany wouldn't sell diesel engines to you?

The people present have already stopped paying attention to him; just looking at the numbers, you kid, you're not looking at the units behind—kilowatts and horsepower can't be the same, can they?

"Secretary Luo, I forgot to bring some documents; go to the hotel and get the document bag made of No. 3 kraft paper from my suitcase."

"Yes, Leader Zhao." Secretary Luo stood up and walked outward; upon reaching the door, he suddenly realized.

What's inside that No. 3 kraft paper is British engine data, unrelated to this meeting! This is clearly…… them disliking him being in the way, kicking him out! Going back and forth, a whole morning just passed.

Thinking of this, his face grew even uglier; he had already utterly disappointed Leader Zhao. This overseas opportunity was hard-won; if he returns, he's likely to be transferred off his post……

Schultz took another deep breath, squeezed out a smile: "Everyone, our engine's structural dimensions are quite compact; the power density increased from MB838's 528 horsepower per cubic meter to 738 horsepower per cubic meter……"

He wanted to show the Easterners how powerful this engine was, but then…… he saw all the Easterners looking dazed; what's going on?

Just now it was only dissatisfaction with the speed parameter, the power loss is a bit high, but so what? You Easterners only have 500-horsepower tank engines, don't you? You still look down on our 1500-horsepower diesel engine?

"Ah!" Zhu Lao suddenly let out a sigh.

"What's wrong?" Schultz wondered curiously.

"It's nothing, nothing, please continue."

Zhu Lao's heart was filled with utter disappointment.

This engine really isn't suitable for the East!

Relying on high rpm to boost power, for the Germans with top-tier industrial technology, it seems not too difficult; although the thermal power is a bit larger, it's not unacceptable—the key is…… we Easterners can't copy it!

Increasing rpm raises the speed of internal pistons and connecting rods; this requires reducing mass to lower inertia, but…… do we Easterners have such suitable materials?

Worldwide, probably only Germany can boost power this way, right?

"Alright, our engine's length is 1.957 meters, width 1.7 meters, height 1.1 meters……"

Simply put, the Germans' engine is box-shaped, so horizontal or vertical mounting makes no difference.

And what about the Easterners' engine?

Take the current main L engine, which is a copy of the Soviet B2 diesel engine: length 1.583 meters, width 0.896 meters, height 0.897 meters; ours is a rectangular prism structure, so a horizontal layout makes the power compartment very neat.

Although both are V12 layouts, our engine has a 60-degree angle while the MTU's is 90 degrees, naturally making our engine wider; plus the cylinder center distance is also larger, making it longer; as for height…… it's dragged down by that huge annular radiator.

If we swapped in the Germans' engine, wouldn't the Eastern tanks' rear end bulge out a big lump?

From these angles, it really does seem unsuitable!

After Secretary Luo left, Qin Miao stopped speaking, quietly listening to the data there.

He didn't need to say more; aside from Luo Qiang, everyone else is professional and should realize that although the MTU diesel engine is good, it truly isn't suitable for Eastern tanks!

This is still the difference in technical routes between East and West; the Russians' tanks emphasize being small and agile, Western tanks emphasize comfort; the MTU MB873 suits Western equipment but not Eastern use, unless they also build 60-70-ton tanks—the question is, can the bridges bear it?

Thinking of these, the Easterners all lost interest.

"Everyone, our engine isn't just top-notch in quality, its price isn't high either—only 300,000 marks per unit……" Seeing the Easterners lack interest, Schultz then offered what he thought was a cheap price.

Over these years, the dollar has depreciated heavily, while the German mark has remained very strong.

In 1973, 1 dollar could be exchanged for 2.9 marks; by 1980, 1 dollar could only be exchanged for 0.58 marks! That is, the mark is worth more than the dollar, roughly twice as much.

300,000 marks, that is, 600,000 dollars!

In Europe, this price isn't high, after all it's a 1500-horsepower tank engine!

But…… in the eyes of Easterners, this price shoots through the roof! You know, in the 1980s, Eastern exports of large batches of Type 69 tanks to Yituo had a unit price of only 500,000 dollars—that was the whole tank's price! Generally, the engine accounts for one-third of the vehicle's price, meaning domestic engines cost only tens of thousands, and moreover, this is the selling price, not the production cost.

"We…… what if we introduce the technology for production?"

"No, we won't sell the production technology for this tank engine; if you want it…… then order 300 engines, and we can give you a set of the engine drawings! Then you'll be qualified to produce this engine, and it won't constitute infringement." Schultz said proudly.