Cosworth helped develop the engine for the Mercedes-Benz 190 E 2.3-16.
Mercedes originally approached the British engineering company Cosworth for a competition engine for its W201-based rally project. Cosworth developed a high-performance cylinder head for Mercedes’ M102 2.3-litre four-cylinder engine, adding twin overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder.
The result was a 16-valve engine, hence the “2.3-16” designation. Although Cosworth designed the head and contributed crucial engineering work, the production engine was not wholly a Cosworth unit: Mercedes assembled the complete powerplant and adapted it for road use with revised ports, camshaft profiles, lubrication and fuel injection.
The rally plan was overtaken by the arrival of the turbocharged, all-wheel-drive Audi Quattro. Mercedes then homologated a road-going version for touring-car competition. The 190 E 2.3-16 debuted at the 1983 Frankfurt Motor Show and later became famous in touring cars and at the 1984 Nürburgring Race of Champions, won by Ayrton Senna.