The Yaroslavl Motor Plant only produced in-line engines, the 4-cylinder YaAZ-204 and the 6-cylinder YaAZ-206. The YaMZ-236 engine is the first of YaMZ’s V-shaped power units. The production of in-line versions of the previous model was stopped in the 1980s because the new engine’s layout proved to be more successful. The design of the YaMZ-236 engine is the foundation for all other V-shaped diesel engines made by YaMZ.
Regardless of whether a turbocharger is installed or not, every six-cylinder engine in the YaMZ-236 series has the same volume of 11.15 liters, dimensions of DxS 130 by 140 mm, and a camber angle of 90°. The six-cylinder YaMZ-236M2 engines belong to the Avtodiesel OJSC family of four-stroke diesel engines.
Specifications
| Manufacturer | JSC «Autodiesel» |
| Engine’s type | diesel |
| Displacement | 11 150 cm3 |
| Max power output | 150-300 hp at 1700-2100 rpm |
| Max torque output | 667-1275 Nm, at 1200-1500 rpm |
| Configuration | V |
| Number of cylinders | 6 |
| Valves | 12 |
| Euro standards | Euro 0 – 3 |
| Piston stroke | 140 mm |
| Cylinder bore | 130 mm |
| Compression ratio | 17,5 |
| Fuel system | low booster pump and high pressure fuel pump, direct injection |
| Cooling | water |
| Valvetrain | OHV |
| Cylinder block alloy | cast iron |
| Cylinder head material | cast iron |
| Engine lifespan | 800 thousand km |
| Strokes of engine | 4 |
| Firing order | 1-4-2-5-3-6 |
| Fuel type | diesel |
The technical characteristics of the YaMZ-236 engine are relatively high. It has six parallel, ninety-degree-tilted cylinders. The direct injection type involves the fuel going straight into the cylinders. The engine’s pressure is 16.5 atmospheres. The piston’s diameter is 140 mm in the repair version and 130 mm in the base, with a 140 mm stroke. The engine has injectors that directly inject fuel into each cylinder and a mechanical high-pressure fuel pump. There are six valves in each block head: three inlets and three outlets. A water pump powers a liquid cooling system with forced circulation.
In addition to operating in ambient temperatures ranging from minus 60°C to plus 50°C, power units can withstand relative humidity levels of up to 98% at 25°C, dust concentrations of up to 0.4 g/m3, and driving in mountainous environments up to 4500 m above sea level and over passes up to 4650 m above sea level with a corresponding drop in power and economic indicators.
Suggested fuel grades for the engine, based on the surrounding temperature:
| Temperature | Fuel in accordance with GOST 305-82 |
| 0° C and above | L-0.2-40; L-0,2-62 |
| Above minus 20° C | 3-0.2 minus 35 |
| Above minus 30° C | 3-0.2 minus 45 |
| Above minus 50° C | A-0,2 |