Engine: Description and Operation

This fuel-injected engine is a four-cylinder dual overhead camshaft design with a 9.2:1 compression ratio. The fuel-injected engine incorporates a cast iron block/aluminum head combination that provides superior heat conductivity and heat resistance. The combustion chamber of the cylinder head contains four valves (two intake and two exhaust) per cylinder. The engine has a Sequential Multiport Fuel Injection (SFI) system and uses Hydraulic Lash Adjusters (HLA) to reduce engine noise.

The cast-iron cylinder block has five main bearing supports for the crankshaft. The front and rear crankshaft seals are one piece. The large rod ends use a replaceable bearing insert. Grooves on the connecting rod and rod cap provide lubrication to the cylinder walls and cool the pistons. In addition, piston cooling jets (threaded into the main oil galley of the cylinder block) provide additional cooling to the pistons and additional lubrication to the piston pins whenever oil pressure rises above 25 psi.

The lubrication system is a wet sump type that distributes pressurized oil throughout the engine from the oil pan. The oil travels from the oil pump throughout the engine, including the crankshaft main bearings, the connecting rod bearings and the camshaft bearings.

The engine cooling system includes a forward-mounted water pump, a thermostat and a thermostatically operated cooling fan. The thermostat controls coolant temperature, and is located within the water outlet housing at the front of the cylinder block. The cooling fan is mounted on the front side of the engine at the radiator, and is controlled by a bimetal device.