Outer Limits 4x4 Board

If you want a ripper little engine with plenty of character, take a look at the donk from the Japanese-market Daihatsu Charade DeTomaso.

Coded HD-EG, this 1.6 litre in-line four uses the same block architecture as any other H-series Daihatsu engine. This means the DeTomaso engine will quite easily snuggle into the engine bay of a mid ‘90s G200 Charade. The DeTomaso engine was used between 1993 and 1997.


With a modest 9.5:1 compression ratio and a SOHC, 4-valve-per-cylinder head with distributor, this engine puts out 92kW at 6300 rpm along with 144Nm at 4000 rpm. And it does this on regular unleaded petrol. Sure, there are other 1.6s that make more power (such as the Toyota 100kW 4A-GE) but the DeTomaso engine has plenty of character, it doesn’t need to be pushed to sky-high rpm (as shown in this power and torque graph) and its relatively low compression ratio lends itself to turbocharging. A 5-speed manual gearbox is commonly fitted to the HD-EG engine but a 4-speed automatic can also be found.

Bob Dunn says there are absolutely no problems with these engines – they’re relatively basic and very reliable. As a result, they’d be great in a Charade rally car, kit car or as a replacement engine for your tired G200 Charade.

one4worldpeace wrote:The only issue is silly me already has purchased this engine does anyone know if it will run on my ecu

one4worldpeace wrote:Thank you for your feedback.
. i am having a little trouble finding an ecu and loom to suit (motor did not come with one) i respect what mighty mouse has done with ferozas and the internet seems to have lots of conflicting info i would like ro know if i drop this engine in can i use my ecu and loom untill i am able ro find a replacement

MightyMouse wrote:As stated the ancillaries will need to be changed but the core engine will go in.

However the difference will then be about zero unless your old engines cactus. Without the HDEG electronics really the change is mostly in name only. Hope it turns out well.