The letters and numbers that make up an engine's model number are a series of codes to tell you the engine family, the number of cylinders, the emissions standard, the type of ignition, the capacity, the type of aspiration, and the generator set rating.
The Model Number :
It is easiest to demonstrate with a particular engine model a 1206E-E66TAG for instance.
- The first two digits – 12 – tell you the engine family, in this case, the 1200 Series.
- The next two digits – 06 – tell you the number of cylinders, in this case, six.
- The next letter – E – confirms the engine meets EU Stage IIIB/U.S. EPA Tier 4 Interim.
- The E after the hyphen says it has electronic fuel injection. If there were no letter, it would have a mechanical injection.
- The next two digits – 66 – give you the engine capacity in decilitres, in this case, 6.6 liters
- The following letters give their type of aspiration. In this case, T means it is turbocharged, and A says it is air-to-air charge cooled. W would mean it was water-to-air charge cooled, and if there were no letters, it would be naturally aspirated.
- The G in brackets gives the engine’s generator set rating.
You can also check out Engine nomenclature