Chris Vander Doelen, Windsor Star
http://autos.canada.com/news/story.h...1f8226e441&p=1
"We're trying to show people a few of the things we can do with existing technology," said Fred Rosario, the grinning engineer assigned to accompany the car. "Go head, give 'er," he said when I asked if I could stomp on the accelerator a bit.
It was just a regular four-door Caddy - with 470 horsepower and an almost psychotic exhaust note that went like this when you mashed the gas pedal: Wh-A-A-A-R-R-R-R!
Imagine the roar of a Detroit V-8 crossed with the hysterical shriek of a high-performance European engine. It was spooky. I kept poking that gas pedal just to hear it roar.
The secret was three valves in an allegedly ancient GM pushrod block. A new valvetrain configuration and cylinder head boost power by up to 18 per cent, or 75 horsepower.
Three valves even reduce emissions, thanks to faster fuel burn. And the configuration is smaller than a double overhead cam engine, has lower mass, and is cheaper to build than a four-valve OHC.
The engine can also be fitted with cylinder displacement on demand, which shuts off half the cylinders at cruising speed to save fuel. They might even put it in a truck, GM says.