Chrysler Starts Production of New-Age V6
March 19, 2010
A crucial symbol of Chrysler Group LLC's prospect for survival as a car company with a future came today with hitting the start button on the Trenton, MI, assembly line for Chrysler's all-new Pentastar V6 engine.
The new-generation Pentastar eventually will supplant no less than seven dated V6 engines, Chrysler says, but its first application is a critical one: the Pentastar is the standard engine for the 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee, due for showrooms in the second quarter.
"The Pentastar engine is a cornerstone of Chrysler's efforts to re-invent its business model with strong, brand-focused, world-class quality products," Scott Garberding, head of manufacturing, summarized in a statement.
Chrysler said it also plans for the Pentastar V6, which began development prior to Italy's Fiat S.p.A. becoming the company's managing owner, to eventually use Fiat-developed technologies such as the efficiency-enhancing Multair variable valve timing and lift system, as well as turbocharging and direct fuel injection.
The Trenton South Engine Plant is earmarked for capacity of more than 400,000 Pentastar engines, Chrysler added, although production starts on one shift. The company expects the plant to be running a 3-crew/2-shift operation six days per week by the end of 2010, however.
A second plant in Saltillo, Mexico, is slated to begin production next year, followed by a third site planned for Kenosha, WI.
Modern-Day Power
The quad-cam, all-aluminum 3.6-liter V6 - the architecture will generate future 3-liter and 4-liter variants - develops 290 horsepower at 6,350 rpm and 260 pound-feet of torque at 4,300 rpm.
Those numbers - the engine initially will not feature direct injection - compare favorably with most contemporaries, such as rival General Motors Co.'s 3.6-liter direct-injected DOHC V-6 that produces 280 horsepower in the Buick LaCrosse (304 horsepower for Cadillac's CTS), or Ford Motor Co.'s 3.5-liter V-6 that generates 262 horsepower for the Flex.
The 3.7-liter V6 used in the current Jeep Grand Cherokee develops just 210 horsepower and 235 pound-feet of torque, figures the new Pentastar V6 comfortably exceeds. Chrysler's 3.5-liter SOHC V6, used in models such as the 300, currently develops 250 horsepower and 250 pound-feet of torque.
In addition to the 3.7-liter and 3.5-liter V6s, Chrysler also has 2.7-liter, 3.3-liter, 3.8-liter and 4-liter V6s currently in service, thus the drive to consolidate the company's raft of V-6s onto a common architecture.
Chrysler also said the Trenton site is the world's first engine plant ever to win United States Green Building Council's LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold Certification and is one of only four automotive plants of any kind to win Gold Certification. The plant will reduce typical carbon-dioxide emissions by 12,000 metric tons annually, the equivalent CO2 emissions of about 1,000 homes and cut energy costs by $1.25 million annually. - Bill Visnic, senior editor
Photos by Chrysler
Posted by Bill Visnic at 1:31 PM under Business , Chrysler , Companies , Featured , Technology | Comments (5) | digg this | Seed Newsvine
Chrysler has all those v6 variations, and not one is a world class engine. What is supposed to make us believe that they have suddenly got the designers, manufacturing ability, and wherewithal to accomplish this? I mean, it sounds good on paper, but so did the K-car.
Posted by: ed124c | March 19, 2010 at 3:14 PM
Everyone I know who wants a minivan cannot find one with the 4.0 motor. Chrysler is sitting on a gold mine with the 4.0 and won't properly market it.
Posted by: canddmeyer | March 20, 2010 at 1:00 AM
ed124:
All major manufacturers incorporate the same technology into modern fengines. Chrysler was simply behind the times due to lack of capital investment. Its not rocket science and if you think Chrysler can't make a competitive engine I guess you've never heard of the HEMI. Chrysler also has the best minivan V6 and delivers class leading mileage in the segment. This new Chrysler V6 will easily outclass HOnda's 3.5L V6 which makes only 250hp in the Pilot and 271hp in the Accord.
Posted by: 1487 | March 22, 2010 at 5:33 AM
Too little too late for this pathetic car company. I will consider buying a Chrysler when it's really a Fiat. Chrysler makes some of the worst cars ever. Their minivans are terrible too. Their engines are pathetic. It already sounds to me like this new engine is behind the competition already. I'm more in the market for a minivan with an efficient, and powerful 4-cylinder. But Honda and Toyota 6-cylinders are wonderful too.
Posted by: wikiwiki | March 24, 2010 at 7:56 AM
Replace seven outdated engines with one contemporary is a good idea, but replacing it with a state of the art engine would be a better idea. Which is this?
I've been itching to see what Chrysler has been up to, For their sake I hope there's more (a lot more).
How long will it take Fiat to contribute engineering, car models, or corporate culture into Chrysler? And how long can Chrysler (and their dealers) hold on like this?
Posted by: mcmanus | March 24, 2010 at 1:27 PM