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There’s a (not so) quiet revolution going on under the hoods of today’s cars, trucks and crossovers if the latest list of best engines compiled by the experts at WardsAuto is any indication. Turbocharged, supercharged and diesel engines – and even one electric motor – dominate the 20th annual 10 Best Engines awards, which, according to Wards, “recognize outstanding powertrain achievement, world-class technologies and those rare engines or electric propulsion systems that are so compelling they help sell the vehicle.”
如果美国汽车行业杂志《沃兹汽车》（Wardsauto）的专家最新编撰的最佳引擎榜单可作为一种指示，那么在当代轿车、卡车和跨界车的引擎盖下面正发生一场静悄悄的革命。涡轮增压、机械增压和柴油引擎——甚至还有一款电动发电机——主导了第20届年度十大最佳汽车引擎奖；根据《沃兹汽车》，这些奖项“表彰了杰出的动力系统成就、世界级技术以及那些帮助推动汽车销售的稀有发动机或者电力推进系统。”
No matter what the inherent method of momentum, all of these engines leverage the latest engine technology to maximize both their power and fuel economy, and run the gamut from the tiny and efficient 1.0-liter turbocharged three-cylinder unit offered in the Ford Fiesta to the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray’s mammoth 6.2-liter V8 that proves there’s no substitute for sheer displacement. We’re featuring Wards’ 10 Best Engines in the accompanying slideshow.
不管使用什么样的固有动力方式，所有这些引擎都利用最新的发动机技术，从而使性能和燃料经济最大化，其范围包括从福特嘉年华（Fiesta）的小型、高效1.0升涡轮增压三缸发动机到雪佛兰科尔维特Stingray已经被证明无可替代的巨大6.2升V8引擎。我们在本文的幻灯片里列出了《沃兹汽车》十大最佳引擎。
While at least four engines tend to repeat from one year’s 10 best list to the next, only two of last year’s powerplants remain recognized for 2014, the Honda Accord’s peppy and fuel-efficient 3.5-liter V6 and the powerful supercharged 3.0-liter V6 featured in the Audi S5.
尽管通常每年的十大榜单中至少有四款引擎会在第二年再次上榜，但去年动力强劲的引擎中只有两款仍然出现在2014年榜单上，它们分别是本田雅阁（Accord）动力十足、节能高效的3.5升V6引擎以及奥迪S5所配备的强劲机械增压3.0升V6引擎。
“We weren’t looking to throw the bums out, as they might say about an election. We were just really impressed with a flood of new powertrains, ” says Drew Winter, WardsAuto World Editor-in-Chief. “What was great yesterday might be less impressive tomorrow because engine technology is changing so rapidly.”
“我们的初衷并不是要‘弃暗投明’—— 像他们在选举时说的那样。我们只是对大批新出现的动力引擎感到惊艳不已，” 《沃兹汽车世界》杂志（WardsAuto World）总编德鲁·温特（Drew Winter）表示，“昨天非常优秀的东西到了明天可能就不会再吸引人们的注意，因为发动机技术的改变是如此迅猛。”
The inclusion of three turbodiesel engines this year could be considered controversial, especially as diesels remain far less popular in the U.S. than in Europe, where they tend to dominate the discussion. This is the first year in which more than two diesel-powered mills made the top 10 list and ironically two of them come from domestic automakers, including the only current full-size domestic half-ton pickup to offer one, the Ram 1500.
今年的榜单包括三款涡轮增压柴油发动机，但这一点可能引来争议，尤其考虑到柴油在美国的普及程度低于欧洲；在欧洲，柴油引擎已经成为发动机话题的主角。这是第一次有超过两款柴油动力引擎跻身十大榜单，并且讽刺的是，其中这两款引擎均来自于美国国内汽车生产商，包括当前美国国内唯一一款全尺寸半吨皮卡Ram 1500所使用的引擎。
What’s more, a Fiat engine not only places among Wards’ top 10 for the first time, it’s for an electric motor, the 83-kW unit found under the hood of the diminutive 500e. Unfortunately the car is only sold in California, though market forces might convince the automaker to send it into wider distribution should gas prices gain spike up to the $4.00/gallon mark or above.
此外，菲亚特一款引擎不仅首次进入《沃兹汽车》十大引擎榜单，而且还是一款电动发动机，这就是起亚500E所使用的83千瓦发动机。遗憾的是，该车只在加利福尼亚州发售，但是如果汽油价格上涨至每加仑4.00美元大关或以上，市场力量可能说服这家汽车生产商进行更大范围的分销。
Other engines cited among 2014’s best include turbodiesels in the BMW 5 Series luxury sedan and the compact Chevrolet Cruze, the horizontally opposed 2.7-liter six-cylinder in the Porsche Cayman two-seat sports coupe and the 1.8-liter turbo-four in the compact Volkswagen Jetta sedan.
2014年最佳引擎榜单的其他入选者还包括宝马5系豪华轿车和紧凑型雪佛兰科鲁兹（Cruze）所使用的涡轮增压柴油发动机，保时捷Cayman双座运动跑车的水平对置2.7升6缸发动机以及大众汽车捷达紧凑车的1.8升4缸涡轮增压发动机。
A panel of eight WardsAuto editors evaluated 44 engines among all vehicle types during October and November in the course of their daily commutes and weekend activities in and around the Detroit metro area. Engines were rated according to a wide range of characteristics including horsepower and torque, fuel economy, noise, vibration and harshness characteristics, technology and how they fared against competing powerplants.
一个由8位《沃兹汽车》编辑组成的专家组在10月和11月评估了所有汽车车型使用的44款引擎，测试时间为日常上下班和周末在底特律都市区及附近进行的活动。各位专家根据多项特征进行打分，包括动力和扭矩、燃料经济、噪音、抖动和声振粗糙度、技术以及这些发动机相对于竞争对手的表现。
WardsAuto will present its Top 10 Engines awards on Jan. 15 at a ceremony held in conjunction with the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
《沃兹汽车》将于1月15日在底特律一个与北美国际汽车展（North American International Auto Show）联合举办的仪式上颁发十大最佳引擎奖。
