I don't disagree with you. Overhead cam engines are superior for higher rpm operation. European engines have traditionally been made to be small displacement and lightweight to match the small, light cars they have powered. One way to get more horsepower out of a smaller displacement engine is to allow it to rev higher. So OHC configurations became the norm. American engines, on the other hand, were much bigger, heavier, and matched to big, heavy cars. They needed a lot of power available at low RPM (a "torquey" engine). So they were able to use the easier to manufacture and less expensive pushrod arrangement. So one arrangement is not "better" than the other. It depends on how the engine is going to be used.

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1987 W201 190D