MWM Develops Small Diesel Engines in Record Time

In order to address the customer demand for small diesel engines in various market segments, MWM designed and built small diesel engines within a short time in the early 1930s. The need for small, high-performance diesel engines is high especially in the fields of construction, shipping, industry, and agriculture. Initially, MWM delivered the KD engines (“KD” for “Klein-Dieselmotor” = small diesel engine) in a one-cylinder variant and a two-cylinder variant. Both variants were offered with all attachments required for the respective application. The KD15 continued to be developed for many years and achieved its highest output as KDW615, with 20 hp per cylinder. From development level 3, a three-cylinder engine was delivered under the name KD415/KDW415 (“W” stands for “Wirbelkammer-Verbrennungs-Verfahren” = turbulence chamber combustion method). Small MWM diesel engines underwent ongoing further development and modification in order to meet growing customer demands. The market success of the small diesel engines enabled MWM to address new customer groups and win new market segments. Up to 70,000 small MWM diesel engines were shipped until the engine type was replaced by a new, more modern small diesel engine in 1954.