This weeks technical article, although titled Chevrolet’s LS engine should really be simply called GM’s LS as it has gone into many of the old General Motors brands. The LS was the successor to the LT and its main difference is that the LS block is made from aluminium rather than cast iron and it has a smaller bore but longer stroke to provide the same capacity. The LS is also … [Read more...]
Boxer & Flat Engines
Like the W formation engine discussed recently, the flat engine has been around since the very early years, in fact Karl Benz used a boxer engine in his first car! There is actually a subtle difference between a flat engine and a boxer engine: both are flat however a boxer engine uses horizontally opposed cylinders where the corresponding pistons on each side reach top dead … [Read more...]
Cosworth
When you talk 1970s single seater or prototype sports car racing the one constant is Cosworth. Whereas Ferrari, Renault and Porsche built their own engines, many prototype and single seater manufacturers opted for a customer engine namely something out of the Cosworth range. Cosworth’s true competitors included Hart, Judd and Ilmor, but it is Cosworth that has survived albeit … [Read more...]