[WapCar] The engine of a car usually has several cylinders, and the volume swept by the piston inside a cylinder is defined as the displacement of that cylinder. The sum of the displacement of all cylinders is the engine displacement.
Displacement is one of the most significant parameters of an engine, and it affects many specifications directly. In general, for naturally aspirated engines and turbo-charged engines, power, as well as fuel consumption and carbon emission are proportional to displacement.
But this ratio is not absolute. An 1.6 L naturally aspirated engine nowadays can be on par with an 1.8 L or even 2.0 L engine designed a few years ago in terms of power, while having better fuel economy thanks to the development of technologies.
Overall, the extensive use of boosting technologies have increased the power and reduced the fuel consumption for cars with smaller engine displacement. But engine displacement is still an expression of the level of a car. Besides, the power and fuel consumption of different engines with the same displacement may differ, due to technical factors.