The Range Rover is a best-seller in the luxury car segment, but nobody could suggest that this is because of its diesel engine.
Even though some 95 per cent of sales in Ireland are with the 3-litre oil-burner rather than the smooth and thrusty V8 petrol power units, the diesel has been no better than any competitor's, and with a 12 seconds-plus 0-100km/h performance, not particularly exciting.
But if recent experience with the latest diesel power for the Range Rover is anything to go by, a new benchmark has just been notched. It might remain such for some time. The new engine is a V8, has a capacity of 3.6 litres, and comes with 272bhp and a peak pulling power of 640Nm.
For those who know their torque, that last figure promises punch. Then there's the fuel consumption. Which, despite the V8 diesel cutting the significant sprint to 8.5 seconds, remains the same as with the smaller current engine at 11.3 L/100 kms.
In summary, there is over 50 per cent more power, 64 per cent more torque, and 33 per cent better acceleration than in the 2006 model diesel.
The engine also has twin turbochargers, which provide a faster and smoother response than a single one. For this application, Land Rover's engineers invented a special vacuum lubrication system so that the turbo wouldn't be starved of oil in the kind of exceptional angles which a true off-road machine can be subjected to on extreme terrains.
For 2007 Land Rover also decided to upgrade the general drivetrain specifications. This means that all Range Rovers now have the patented Terrain Response system which allows the operator to choose from five modes, each designed to give the best possible mix of engine and transmission attributes.
The six-speed automatic is the latest of its kind, and its ratios are chosen to match the characteristics of the diesel engine. A central electronic differential is standard across the range, but a new rear e-diff is available as an option (standard on the R supercharged car).
The suspension has been upgraded too, as have the brakes, and the handling dynamics of all 2007 Range Rovers are now on a par with those of the supercharged model.
As an engineer's engine, the new TDV8 is probably a technical delight. For the owner of a Range Rover it will likely be so just for the way it works.