Cosworth F1 engine for the road
How Cosworth's abandoned four-cylinder F1 engine may yet live on in road cars
We spoke to Cosworth's principal engineer Andy Ball, who told us the engine the firm first built way back when Formula 1 thought it was shifting to four-cylinder turbos for next year (before deciding a V6 was more fitting) is still alive with a road-car manufacturer.
He declined to say which manufacturer, but it was no secret that Cosworth was the maker behind the four-pot, 10,000rpm screamer that Jaguar had earmarked for the C-X75.
Whether it's with Jaguar or not, Ball told us Cosworth were still working to adapt for an eventual production car. "We've being doing development engines. We're still partnering on this," he said. "As a road-going engine it could have similar specific power as a Formula 1 engine of 300hp/litre," he said.
The firm has been squeezed out of F1 next year after its final customer Marussia switched engine supplier but Ball says what could have been an expensive cul-de-sac with the four-cylinder development has in fact opened doors with car makers in an era of downsizing.
"We're talking with quite a few manufacturers about doing engines of this ilk - downsized, high specific power output engines," Ball said.
Of course they'll need a bit more longevity than the average F1 engine, but Cosworth knows a thing about that. "We're very good at taking engines of the limit and knowing where that limit is. With our F1 engines, if we're not breaking stuff, we don't consider we're near the limit." He was reassuring about not just power but also the emotional punch of very high performance four-cylinder engines. "If you hear the engine I don't think you'd be too disappointed with how it sounds. It doesn't have the V8 rumble but it still sounds impressive and racy," he said.
It's a big deal when the likes of Alfa with the 4C and the proposed Alpine/Caterham are using (or are likely to use) sub 2.0-liter four-cylinder engines but come with a price tag around £50,000.
It's also good to hear that F1 technology does filter down to road cars, and not just exotica like the Enzo. Ball says it's happening more and more: "Race-bred components are starting to find their way into mainstream automotive applications already, like DLC [Diamond-like Carbon]." This low-friction coating for elements like valves and pistons was mostly announced for a revised diesel engine in the Nissan Juke, of all things.
Meanwhile Jaguar is saying that while the C-X75 is dead, technology like the engine and the hybrid system isn't. "With projects like C-X75 we are laying the foundations for the next generation of Jaguar innovations," Jaguar's global brand director, Adrian Hallmark, said in a statement recently.
It's reassuring really. If the test-bed of racing can help lower emissions on road cars at all levels, then we know it'll be safe in the future.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embed...
Would love to see it made - surely one of the best looking cars for many many years.
Was quite impressed, talking to Andy recently and he mentioned the goal of 100,000 mile lifespan for the engine. It might not sound much but when you consider the lifespan of an F1 or WRC/Race engine, it's about 20 times better!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embed...
Would love to see it made - surely one of the best looking cars for many many years.
My second guess is that Jaguar will run the C-X75 at Goodwood this year as a foretaste, not of this model, which they have already said they will not produce, but of some of the technology we may expect in the C-X16. Jaguar`s teaser video of that prototype closed with a brief shot of "Hybrid" as the tailgate was shut. As a bonus we might get to see the coupe version of the F-Type as well. What better way to rain on Porsche`s anniversay parade!
My third guess is that a productionised version of this technology will appear in the 4 cylinder Hotfire engine that will be produced by JLR in their new Wolverhampton factory now under construction.
Of course once that technology is applied to the 4 cylinder engine, it does not take much imagination to suppose it could read across to 3 cylinder in line and v6 engines too.
Of course it is all guesswork. But Jaguar do not release videos like this without a reason.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embed...
Would love to see it made - surely one of the best looking cars for many many years.
My second guess is that Jaguar will run the C-X75 at Goodwood this year as a foretaste, not of this model, which they have already said they will not produce, but of some of the technology we may expect in the C-X16. Jaguar`s teaser video of that prototype closed with a brief shot of "Hybrid" as the tailgate was shut. As a bonus we might get to see the coupe version of the F-Type as well. What better way to rain on Porsche`s anniversay parade!
My third guess is that a productionised version of this technology will appear in the 4 cylinder Hotfire engine that will be produced by JLR in their new Wolverhampton factory now under construction.
Of course once that technology is applied to the 4 cylinder engine, it does not take much imagination to suppose it could read across to 3 cylinder in line and v6 engines too.
Of course it is all guesswork. But Jaguar do not release videos like this without a reason.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embed...
That's an impressive car/engine combination. Would make a fab Alfa 4c competitor.
"The great achievements in the development of C-X75 prototypes - including cutting-edge hybrid technologies, carbon composite materials and advanced design solutions pioneered in association with Williams Advanced Engineering - will be utilised in other areas of research and development, innovative future products and next-generation engineering for the Jaguar and Land Rover brands."
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