FORCE4x4.COM
Where world class
performance speaks for itself
Ain't no poser
If you are impressed by cheap plastic and fake wood, the Gurkha is
not the vehicle for you. 
If you want
unrelenting world class performance, you have few options other than
the Gurkha.
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What is so great about this engine?
For those who are unfamiliar with Diesel engines, Mercedes Benz is one of the world leaders in diesel engines. The trusty OM616 engine is designed with the objective of maximizing the engine performance without compromising on the life of the engine.
Would you believe it if some one told you that an engine can last 500,000 Kilometers? Well, I did not either. But the more research I did about the OM616 engine, the more I was amazed!!!!
It is not just the longivity of the engine that is remarkable, but the consistent performance it delivers through out it's life span. The engine can be best described as a "beauty of german engineering".
You really have to drive it to experience it. The engine happily pulls the vehicle along at 50kmph in the 5th gear at 1200 rpm!!! No stalling, shuddering or jerking and can take the vehicle to 135 Kmph at 3900 rpm, red lining at 4200 rpm.
Enough about the naturally aspirated OM616. The Judo/Gurkha 4x4 family of vehicles comes with THE TURBO CHARGED OM616 or TD-2400 FT.
TD-2400 FT takes most of it's design cues from the bigger 5 cylinder turbo charged OM617.
The TD-2400 FT engine has special oil cooled pistons. This is one of the secrets behind why the engine lasts a very long time while giving superb performance.
One of the most dangerous things to a diesel engine is heat. Heat generated during combustion causes minor structural deformation, fractures and failures. Prolonged stress and deformation leads to deformation of the pistons and liners, and eventual engine failures.
The engineers at Mercedes tackled this problem at the source. There is a mechanism through which the piston's crown (which bears the brunt of the combustion process) is exposed to a constant cooling shower of oil from underneath.
This oil shower keeps the pistons and liners cool and do not have to solely depend on the more inefficient water jacket and radiator system. The oil spray also takes care of the problem "in-situ" and there is no delay in the cooling process.
Furthermore the FT2400 features a special oil cooler which helps the engine oil shed most of the heat it has absorbed, before it is sent back into the engine to do it's job.
The result is better cooling and better lubrication.
This causes less fatigue and less failure. To the user it means almost obscenely long engine life.
Yes!!! this engine is truly built to last.