Cadillac’s new generation of V-6 engines, led by the Twin Turbo V-6 that the automaker says will be one of the industry’s most advanced gasoline engines of its kind, will be built in Romulus for final assembly in Hamtramck.
Announced Friday, Cadillac’s assistant chief engineer Rich Bartlett says, the powerplant leverages the latest technology to balance efficiency, performance, and refinement in the upcoming, top-of-the-range CT6 luxury performance sedan.
“The all-new 3.0L Twin Turbo powers past the traditional segment leaders with higher degrees of the performance and refinement their reputations were built on,” Bartlett says.
The all-new 2016 Cadillac 3.0L Twin Turbo will make its world premiere on March 31 at the New York International Auto Show. Production begins late this year at General Motors’ Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly Plant, while the engine will be produced at the automaker’s Romulus Powertrain Operations assembly facility, which received a $540-million investment to build the next-generation V-6 engines.
Peak output is estimated at 400 horsepower (298 kW) and 400 lb-ft of torque (543 Nm), making it one of the most power-dense V-6 DOHC engines in the world, developing 133 horsepower (99 kW) per liter.
Bartlett says the 3.0L Twin Turbo is the only six-cylinder engine to combine turbocharging with cylinder deactivation and stop/start technologies to conserve fuel. Cadillac expects the combination to enhance fuel economy by up to an estimated 6 percent. Cylinder deactivation temporarily deactivates two of the cylinders in light-load driving conditions to enhance efficiency and seamlessly reactivates them when the driver demands full power.
With the stop/start system, the 3.0L Twin Turbo is shut down in certain driving conditions such as stop-and-go city driving to reduce fuel consumption, automatically restarting when the driver takes his or her foot off the brake pedal.
Cadillac’s new 3.0L Twin Turbo is part of a new generation of technologically advanced V-6 engines, which includes a new version of the award-winning 3.6L naturally aspirated engine employed for years across the brand’s model range. Each features all-new structural and combustion elements designed to complement higher performance and greater efficiency with exceptional quietness and smoothness.
The 3.0L Twin Turbo is up to 5 dB quieter than the Audi 3.0L TFSI engine, while the 3.6L is up to 4 dB quieter than the Infiniti 3.7L V-6.
Features shared by the 3.0L Twin Turbo and 3.6L include:
- Stronger, stiffer aluminum block with increased structure in the bulkheads for superior rigidity
- Tough, refined rotating assembly with a stiff forged-steel crankshaft, friction-reducing polymer-coated pistons and strong high-copper-content, sinter-forged connecting rods
- New four-cam phasing system with intermediate park technology that enhances efficiency by enabling late inlet valve closing in certain conditions
- All-new, patented “targeted” cooling system that provides strategic cooling of the engine’s hottest areas while simultaneously fostering faster warm-up, which enhances efficiency
- New cylinder heads that enhance combustion performance and include direct injection and feature integrated exhaust manifolds
- Revised, simplified timing drive system with cushioned chain sprockets contributing to quieter engine operation
- All-new oiling system moves the pump inside the block for quieter operation. The two-stage oil pump also enhances efficiency.
“This new architecture leverages the best of Cadillac’s proven, awarded V-6 engine technology and takes it farther with a finer focus on refinement and durability to match its benchmark output and efficiency,” Bartlett says.
