Daimler-Benz DB 601

The Daimler-Benz DB 601 was a German liquid-cooled inverted V12 aircraft engine of the Second World War. It was an improved DB 600 with direct fuel injection, which gave better low-speed response and kept the engine running in manoeuvres where carburetted rivals such as the Rolls-Royce Merlin lost power. Displacing 33.9 litres and rated at about 1,175 PS at takeoff in the DB 601A, it powered the Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Bf 110 and many other aircraft. Serial production began in November 1937 and about 19,000 were built before the DB 605 replaced it in 1942. Licence-built versions were made in Japan and Italy.