There are car characteristics that are determined not so much by engineering necessity as by the tax table. Engine displacement is one of the most striking examples. The Haval turbo engine has a displacement of 1499 cubic centimeters, while the Chery engine, which powers the Tiggo 4 and Omoda S5, has 1498 cubic centimeters. The Volkswagen 1.5 TSI has exactly the same. The three-cylinder Toyota engine has an even slightly smaller displacement – 1490 cubic centimeters. The manufacturers are different, the factories are in different countries, the designs also differ, but the result is suspiciously close: the 1500 cubic centimeter mark is always just one step away.
Exactly 1500 cubic centimeters is not found in any of these examples. At the same time, the 1.6-liter volume, familiar to many family cars, is practically disappearing from price lists. The exception is the Lada Granta: it is still offered with engines of 90, 106, and 118 hp and retains a displacement of 1.6 liters.
Why 1500 cubic centimeters became an important mark
The reason for this situation in China is related to the excise tax, which is calculated based on engine displacement. The tax scale is divided into steps, so even a small exceeding of the established limit has very specific financial consequences.
For engines that do not reach 1.5 liters, a rate of 3% applies. If the displacement exceeds this mark but remains less than 2 liters, the rate increases to 5%. Therefore, the difference between 1499 and 1501 cubic centimeters has a completely different meaning for the manufacturer than for the driver.
This system itself has existed for a long time. Back in 2006, the rate for small-displacement engines was reduced from the previous 5% to 3%, while for engines over 2 liters, the tax, on the contrary, was increased.
As a result, an extra approximately 100 cubic centimeters turns into almost 2% of the car's ex-factory price. And this is not about a specific batch or a separate model, but about every car produced with such an engine. With large production volumes, this difference becomes a separate budget item.
How the 1.6-liter engine lost its former position
Just over ten years ago, the 1.6-liter engine in China felt quite confident. Such engines were used on the pre-restyling Changan CS35, and before that, such a volume was also found on the Chery Amulet.
But 1.6-liter cars had additional tax support. For cars with engines up to and including 1.6 liters, the purchase tax was halved to 5%.
The consequences were noticeable almost immediately: the very next year, the Chinese passenger car market set a record, reaching 24.3 million cars. However, the benefit was subsequently gradually phased out. First, the rate was raised to 7.5%, and starting from 2018, the previous 10% was restored.
After the abolition of this support, the 1.6-liter engine found itself without its former advantage and at the same time fell into a less favorable category of the excise scale. For the manufacturer, it became more expensive compared to an engine that managed to stay below the limit.
When one cubic centimeter can change the duty
A similar situation arises when exporting Chinese cars to Southeast Asian countries. For cars that China supplies there, a preferential customs rate of 5% applies, but it is maintained only if the total working volume of the cylinders does not exceed 1500 cubic centimeters.
The customs classification is quite strict: engines up to 1000 cubic centimeters are separate, and the next category starts from 1001 and ends at 1500 cubic centimeters. There are no roundings here.
This results in a telling boundary:
- 1500 cubic centimeters – the engine remains in the corresponding category;
- 1501 cubic centimeters – it moves to the next line;
- the duty increases from 5% to 30%.
For the driver, the difference between such engines is practically impossible to feel solely by one cubic centimeter. For customs payment, on the contrary, it is huge: the amount increases sixfold.
In the Philippines, the consequences of such a difference were also expressed in very specific money. A crossover with an engine up to 1.5 liters costing approximately 1.2–1.3 million, when switching to a 1.6 or 2-liter engine, became 200–300 thousand more expensive. This is essentially one-fifth of the car's cost due to an additional 100 cubic centimeters.
Therefore, manufacturers try not to cross the line even when the same engine is used on cars of completely different sizes. Geely, for example, uses one three-cylinder 1499 cubic centimeter engine on both the compact Coolray and the large seven-seater crossover. Instead of changing the displacement, engineers adjust the boost level.
How engineers reduce volume on paper
One way to stay below the tax threshold has long been known to engine builders. The cylinder bore can be kept the same, while the piston stroke can be changed.
This is exactly the approach Volkswagen used. The cylinder bore remained at 74.5 mm, but the piston stroke increased from 80 to 85.9 mm. As a result, the engine received a displacement of 1498 cubic centimeters.
At the same time, Volkswagen abandoned the two previous 1.2 and 1.4-liter variants and opted for one engine for an entire family of models – from the compact T-Cross to the Passat. The choice of volume turned out to be extremely pragmatic: 1.5 liters is the upper limit of the corresponding Chinese tax category, and exceeding it was unprofitable.
Ford followed a similar path, using the existing 1.6 EcoBoost and reducing its displacement to the required value. Changes were also made to the design: the exhaust manifold was integrated into the cylinder head, and the pump was equipped with a controlled clutch.
The new engine was presented in Shanghai, and by 2016, it finally replaced the 1.6-liter engine from the Fusion lineup. The explanation sounded quite neutral – tax savings in some countries.
It is interesting that a similar technique was once used at the Togliatti plant, only the direction was opposite. The 16-valve engine had its cylinder block height increased, and the piston stroke grew by 4.6 mm. As a result, the displacement increased from 1.5 to 1.6 liters.
However, it was not possible to achieve a full increase in characteristics. The catalytic converter, necessary to comply with the environmental standards then in force, almost completely absorbed the gained increase, and the new engine turned out to be even slightly weaker than its predecessor. But the designation 1.6 was fixed on its badge for two more generations.
What a 1.5-liter turbo engine gives to a Russian owner
For the Russian buyer, the 1.5-liter limit itself has practically no tax significance. The recycling fee is calculated for the range from 1001 to 2000 cubic centimeters, so 1.5 and 1.6-liter engines fall into the same category. Transport tax and OSAGO also do not directly depend on the displacement – here, horsepower is important.
But the difference between a modern turbo engine and an atmospheric 1.6 is already noticeable directly in terms of characteristics. The Chery, with a displacement of 1498 cubic centimeters, develops 147 hp and 210 Nm, and is designed for AI-92 gasoline. The Haval engine, with a displacement of 1499 cubic centimeters, produces 150 hp and up to 270 Nm. For a one-and-a-half-liter engine, the traction reserve is quite significant.
This design also has a downside. The compression ratio of the Haval engine reaches 11.8, which is rare for a turbocharged engine, and the fuel requirements remain quite strict.
In direct injection engines, gasoline does not wash the intake valves, which can lead to deposits on them. In addition, the oil has to be changed more often than the manufacturer's established service interval might suggest.
The resource guideline for such engines is approximately 200–250 thousand km, but achieving this mileage is associated with careful maintenance.
The Russian border now runs by power
In Russia, the situation with tax thresholds is different. Engine displacement is not the main factor here, but there is a noticeable power limit.
For cars with engines up to and including 150 hp, the excise tax is 64 rubles per horsepower. After exceeding this mark, the rate increases to 613 rubles, and the increased tariff applies not only to the additional horsepower but to the entire engine power.
Therefore, the difference between 150 and 151 hp is particularly telling:
- a car with a 150 hp engine brings 9600 rubles to the budget;
- at 151 hp, the amount exceeds 92 thousand rubles.
From December 2025, a recycling fee with its own limit – 160 hp – was added to the excise tax. For private import of a 150 hp car, the fee is 3400 rubles. If you choose the same model with a 170 hp engine, the amount increases to 1.32 million rubles.
Manufacturers react to such a system in the same way they previously reacted to displacement restrictions: they adjust engine characteristics to the favorable limit. For the Russian market, the Geely Preface's two-liter turbo engine was reconfigured from 200 to 150 hp. This was explained by the desire to maintain the car's cost. At the same time, the maximum torque remained the same – 325 Nm, and acceleration time to 100 km/h increased from 7.1 to 9.5 seconds.
A similar story happened with the Chery Arrizo 8. In China, its engine develops 186 hp, while for the Russian market, the power was reduced to 150 hp. The design of the power unit was not changed: the necessary characteristics are adjusted programmatically, through the control unit firmware. For what is happening, engineers already use their own designation – "the era of 160 hp."
The front-wheel-drive Geely Atlas also received an engine whose characteristics were managed to be brought below the same tax limit. Due to the excise tax alone, the savings on each car sold amount to about 23 thousand rubles.
Ultimately, the principle remains the same, regardless of whether it's about cubic centimeters or horsepower: the car engine is adjusted not only to technical requirements but also to a specific line in the tax table.