Launch Site #2 Starts at Tweeter, Etc.1712 Boston Post St.Milford, CT 06460(Exit 39B off 95)203/877-4644Get there at: 7 a.m.We leave at: 9:30 a.m.Goes to: Gravity Games CentralProvidence, RIArrive at 2 p.m.
Technology On The MarchVariable Compression Ratio Engine Soon?
Tired of the knocking and pinging of high-compression engines but don't want to give up the performance? Saab, would you believe, could have the answer. At the Geneva Motor Show this past March, Saab Automobile AB introduced an experimental variable-compression OHC in-line turbocharged five-cylinder engine that varies between 8:1 and 14:1 compression, depending on conditions.
The secret is in the "monohead," which integrates the cylinder head and the cylinder walls. The monohead pivots four degrees at the crankcase; the bottom end contains the block itself, plus crankshaft and pistons. This changes the volume of the combustion chamber. The stout 14:1 compression would run under low loads to prevent detonation, while a supercharger would pump out 40 psi max at 8:1 compression under load. The monohead is sealed at the crankcase by a rubber bellows.
Even with the blower, preliminary results show that this concept reduces fuel consumption by nearly a third and delivers power ratings of 140 lb-ft of torque and 150 horsepower per liter of displacement. Another bonus is the system's adaptability to a variety of fuels with different octane levels, since the engine will adjust itself to compensate for whatever octane fuel it's running on.
The project had been put on the backburner years ago because Swedish auto-maker Saab lacked the money to fully develop the concept, but now that GM has purchased the other 50 percent of Saab, funds have been freed up to proceed. Press releases caution that this is only an engineering study, but considering how long it's been in the works (about a dozen years), it seems hard to believe that Saab isn't working hard on production variants as we speak. As a bonus, Saab owns the patents and GM owns Saab, so it seems a natural that this technology would trickle down to other GM engine projects throughout the world as well.
Name That Engine
RJ and Mike came back from the Tokyo Auto Salon with so many photos that we thought we'd do one of those cool back-of-the-cereal-box-type thingys. So, here are photos of 10 different engines. Whoever can correctly identify all 10 will receive a lipstick kiss from the Lovely Bryn (No, you will not.-BM). The winner will also receive a Super Street T-shirt. Send your answers to sstreet@emapUSA.com, or by snail mail to Name That Engine, Super Street, 6420 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90048. One winner will be selected randomly from a pool of correct answers.
Hint: At least one of these isn't street-legal.
Get The Best
That's right, the Best of Super Street is out right now on your local newsstand. It's even out in the not-so-local newsstands. Inside, you'll find all the hottest cars, hippest installs, and coolest events collected in one place. No more digging around your old magazine piles anymore (you do keep your mags, right?) for old issues and tech references. Want to know how to swap a turbo SRZODET into your 240SX? Or want to know how to save money while building up your ride? Or do you just want to know Bryn's deepest darkest secrets? All that's in the Best of Super Street. But it's not going to be out forever. So go to the newsstand and save your soul.
Losing A Friend
In February, Car and Driver's Senior Technical Editor Don Schroeder was killed during a high-speed test in Texas. He was 35. Don was one of the best car writers around and an amazingly talented driver. But that was only what we saw as colleagues in the same industry. Our resident Cyber-Guru John Pearley Huffman knew Don as a friend, so it is more appropriate that he voice our memorial: