OBI WAN
01-01-05, 03:24 PM
GM Revved for New Aluminum V-10 Engine in 2007
General Motors Corp. is developing a V-10 gasoline engine for use in some of its biggest sport utility vehicles, pickup trucks and crossover vehicles starting in 2007, with both an all-aluminum version and an iron-block model planned, American Metal Market reported April 17, 2003.
The aluminum versions could enter the market with 210 pounds or more apiece of finished aluminum components, company sources said. The Detroit-based automaker doesn't currently build an engine with that much aluminum.
GM sources said the V-10s are intended for use in such vehicles as the Cadillac Escalade, an SUV, and the Escalade EXT, a sport utility truck with a cargo box at the rear. Those vehicles are available with V-8 engines only, as GM doesn't currently have a V-10 in its product line.
As power options in those vehicles, the big automaker figures the 10-cylinder units will attract more Cadillac buyers and enable the company to increase its share of the luxury truck market. As conceived, the V-10s are overhead-valve (OHV) units based on GM's existing 4.8- to 6.0-liter small-block V-8s.
The V-10 is a separate design from the Cadillac Cien V-12 concept engine introduced last year, a GM source said. That engine was based on the dual-overhead-cam Northstar V-8. The V-10 also is smaller, and considered to be more practical, than the OHV V-16 concept engine introduced early this year by GM in its experimental supercar, the Cadillac Sixteen.
The V-16 is not a viable candidate for production, GM sources said, but the DOHC V-12 is. However, the V-12, which is also all aluminum, is more likely to be used in cars than trucks and is not as close to production as the V-10, one GM source said.
Although GM's plans for the V-10 represent good news for the aluminum industry, they could get the big automaker into more trouble with energy conservationists and environmentalists.
GM recently took a position against any increase--even the modest uptick of 1.5 miles per gallon ordered by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration--in federal fuel economy standards for light-duty trucks, saying, among other things, that an increase would cost the automaker too much money (AMM, March 10).
GM does intend to team the V-10s up with a new rear-wheel-drive six-speed automatic transmission, which will benefit the Cadillac models using the engines in the fuel economy area, company sources said. In addition, the V-10s probably will be equipped with fuel-saving features, such as GM's displacement-on-demand system and/or variable valve actuation.
GM sources said they don't yet know how many of the V-10s the company will make each year.
However, they did say GM's long-term plans include making the big engines available in more than just Cadillacs. GMC trucks, in particular, are likely to eventually make use of the engines, they said.
General Motors Corp. is developing a V-10 gasoline engine for use in some of its biggest sport utility vehicles, pickup trucks and crossover vehicles starting in 2007, with both an all-aluminum version and an iron-block model planned, American Metal Market reported April 17, 2003.
The aluminum versions could enter the market with 210 pounds or more apiece of finished aluminum components, company sources said. The Detroit-based automaker doesn't currently build an engine with that much aluminum.
GM sources said the V-10s are intended for use in such vehicles as the Cadillac Escalade, an SUV, and the Escalade EXT, a sport utility truck with a cargo box at the rear. Those vehicles are available with V-8 engines only, as GM doesn't currently have a V-10 in its product line.
As power options in those vehicles, the big automaker figures the 10-cylinder units will attract more Cadillac buyers and enable the company to increase its share of the luxury truck market. As conceived, the V-10s are overhead-valve (OHV) units based on GM's existing 4.8- to 6.0-liter small-block V-8s.
The V-10 is a separate design from the Cadillac Cien V-12 concept engine introduced last year, a GM source said. That engine was based on the dual-overhead-cam Northstar V-8. The V-10 also is smaller, and considered to be more practical, than the OHV V-16 concept engine introduced early this year by GM in its experimental supercar, the Cadillac Sixteen.
The V-16 is not a viable candidate for production, GM sources said, but the DOHC V-12 is. However, the V-12, which is also all aluminum, is more likely to be used in cars than trucks and is not as close to production as the V-10, one GM source said.
Although GM's plans for the V-10 represent good news for the aluminum industry, they could get the big automaker into more trouble with energy conservationists and environmentalists.
GM recently took a position against any increase--even the modest uptick of 1.5 miles per gallon ordered by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration--in federal fuel economy standards for light-duty trucks, saying, among other things, that an increase would cost the automaker too much money (AMM, March 10).
GM does intend to team the V-10s up with a new rear-wheel-drive six-speed automatic transmission, which will benefit the Cadillac models using the engines in the fuel economy area, company sources said. In addition, the V-10s probably will be equipped with fuel-saving features, such as GM's displacement-on-demand system and/or variable valve actuation.
GM sources said they don't yet know how many of the V-10s the company will make each year.
However, they did say GM's long-term plans include making the big engines available in more than just Cadillacs. GMC trucks, in particular, are likely to eventually make use of the engines, they said.