SAIC Kavachi engine

The Kavachi engine or TCI-Tech as it's commonly known was developed by SAIC Motor, based on a re-engineering of the Rover K-series engine.[1] It is used in Roewe and MG Motor vehicles.

The 1796cc Kavachi engine is produced in two versions, a naturally aspirated producing 98 kW (131 bhp; 133 PS) at 6,000 rpm and 168 N⋅m (124 lb⋅ft) @ 4,500 rpm, and a turbocharged version producing 118 kW (158 bhp) at 5,500 rpm and 215 N⋅m (159 lb⋅ft) of torque from 2,500 to 4,500 rpm. It is Drive-by-wire.

UK engineering firm Ricardo plc were tasked with remedying the well known faults of the K series by SAIC Motor for its introduction into the Chinese marketplace. With a redesigned head, improved waterways, stiffened block as well as changing the manufacturing process and quality of material, the Kavachi is seen as the pinnacle of K-series development. As of 2015, with more than half a decade in the market, there have been no reported issues of head gasket failure on cars using the Kavachi engine.

A point to note, the Kavachi engine is sometimes referred to and often confused with the N Series engine. The N Series is also a development of the original K Series but was in fact produced by Nanjing Automobile (NAC) a rival company at the time to SAIC. (later merged)

N Series was fitted into the relaunched MG TF in the UK and in the MG3 SW and MG7 in China.