Cadillac Expands to Become Separate Business Unit
As part of the continued expansion of Cadillac, General Motors has announced a strategic realignment that will establish the flagship brand as a separate business unit. In addition, the new Cadillac organization will expand to New York with a new global headquarters opening in 2015.
Reman Tradeshow Reports Positive Interest in Event
With just six weeks to go before the inaugural BigR/ReMaTecUSA will open its doors, the show is set to be a true international marketplace. Both the exhibitors list as the attendee registration indicates that lots of reman professionals will travel huge distances to get to Las Vegas. BigR/ReMaTecUSA Event Manager Niels Klarenbeek: “We are very
Replacing Crankshafts, Connecting Rods and Bearings
The crankshaft, connecting rods and bearings are extremely important in every engine build, whether mild or wild, because they convert the reciprocating motion of the pistons into rotational torque. The longer the stroke, the greater the leverage effect and the greater the torque output of the engine. There are three things that need to be
Turbochargers: Small Engine Performance – Turbo Technology
Turbochargers are making a comeback, big time! Auto makers are under pressure from the government to boost their Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) numbers to over 40 mpg by 2021. One of the ways they are going to accomplish this is to downsize engines and add turbochargers to boost performance so smaller engines can still
Honeywell Expects to Launch 100 New Turbos in 2014
Honeywell Turbo Technologies says it expects to launch more than 100 turbocharger applications involving more than 20 new technologies in 2014. These new applications will serve Honeywell’s global customer base with gasoline, diesel, natural gas and hybrid powertrains in both light vehicle passenger and commercial vehicles. Honeywell states it has more than 500 current turbo programs
BorgWarner Launches its New Low-Friction Timing Chain
BorgWarner’s next-generation 6.35 mm inverted tooth silent engine timing chains are launching on engines from Mitsubishi, Suzuki, Hyundai, General Motors Korea and one Chinese automaker. The innovative engine timing chain is designed to reduce friction, resulting in as much as 0.3 to 0.6 percent improvement in fuel economy based on customer testing. BorgWarner will produce
Building Blocks: The Foundation of Any Engine Build
Every engine project starts with the block because the block is the foundation for everything else that follows. The block determines bore and stroke, camshaft and lifter location, oil pump location and oil galley configuration, what kind of main bearing caps can be used to support the crankshaft, and what kind of cylinder heads, oil
Maserati Enters its 100th Year as a Company
Maserati produced its first car in 1926 – a race car named Tipo 26. With the month of December, Maserati officially enters the 100th year of its history. It does so in a period of unprecedented health and unparalleled growth. More than 23,000 orders worldwide up to date are propelling Maserati into a new dimension.
APRA and ReMaTec Team Up for New Automotive and Heavy Duty Remanufacturing Show
The new show will be positioned as an annual kick off for the automotive aftermarket tradeshows in Las Vegas each Fall. The first edition will be held in Las Vegas NV, November 1-3, 2014 The Automotive Parts Remanufacturers Association (APRA), the global association for remanufacturers all over the world and Amsterdam RAI, owners and organizers of ReMaTec, the world’s
A Look Into the GM 3.1L Engine
Over the years, GM has saved a bundle on manufacturing the 3.1L engine by using the production line tooling it originally developed for the 2.8L V6. By simply changing the bore diameter, the displacement of the same engine block could now be increased for more power and torque. The General Motors 3.1L V6 engine enjoyed a long
International Remanufacturing Forum Scheduled for Shanghai
APRA has joined with Automechanika Shanghai as the co-organizers of this International Remanufacturing Foum that will be held just prior to Automechanika Shanghai on December 11-14, 2012. Gager stated, “APRA is pleased with the strong support of our Forum and the Remanufacturing Pavilion within the exposition by the Automechanika Shanghai Team. This is a win-win
Keeping Valve Jobs Profitable
Okay, so head work accounts for a large percentage of your business. But is it as profitable as it should be or could be? Do you have a good handle on cylinder head related costs (parts, labor and cleaning)? Are the employees who are doing the head work competent and productive? Is your valve guide
Building Pontiac Excitement
Each GM division had its own engineering staffs and even its own assembly plants. There was very little parts interchange between the different divisions. Each unit had its own engines. Each division had its own personality. When Bunkie Knudsen became general manager of Pontiac in June of 1956 he set the world on fire. His
Sunnen Receives Global Pioneer Award for International Trade Initiative
Sunnen Products Company has received the 2012 Global Pioneer Award from the St. Louis Regional International Partnership (SLRIP). The award is given annually to a St. Louis-based company that demonstrates an exemplary understanding of, and commitment to, innovation for global expansion. Matthew Sunnen Kreider, president of Sunnen Products, accepted the award at the 4th annual
Labor Costing Study: Rebuilding the GM 3.4/3.5L Engine
But in many cases, “performance excellence” takes a back seat to “excellent performance,” and for millions of car, minivan and crossover vehicle owners, the development and growth of the 3.4L/3.5L platform of V6 engines has been just as important. Back in 1980, with the introduction of its new line of front wheel drive cars, GM
GAAS 2012: Economy Continues to Expand, But Slowly
ByaftermarketNews staff CHICAGO – Relative to what he presented last year at GAAS 2011,William Strauss, senior economist and economic advisor, Federal Reserve Bank ofChicago, says he believes the economy has continued to expand, but not by much. "We’re lookingat an economy that will continue to grow, slightly on trend or a little betterthan
Caterpillar Announces New Parts Distribution Center in Mexico
Caterpillar Logistics Inc.(Cat Logistics), a wholly owned subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc., has announced further enhancements to its parts distribution network with the addition of a new parts distribution center in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. The 500,000-square-foot facility will employ up to 150 people and is expected to be operational mid-2013. The capital city, San Luis
Today’s Performance Connecting Rods
The crank and rods handle all the stresses of converting up and down motion to reciprocal motion. And when you are building a performance engine, those stresses are much higher and consequences of a failure are much greater. Therefore, selecting the right parts for your build is critical to the success of your engine and
HPBG:Grassroots Engine Market – The Grass MAY Be Greener
Since most people who are involved in racing do not run in NASCAR Sprint Cup, IndyCar or NHRA Top Fuel, we think that it is fair to say anything below these high profile professional racing series is a large group of grassroots racers who support the industry through the dollars they spend, not the sponsorships
Rebuilding the Chevy 3.4L/3.5L Engine
(Download the illustrated pdf here) We’re going to take a look at two of these engines, including both versions of the latest 3.4L that was used in the Chevy Equinox (and Pontiac Torrent) and the original 3.5L that was installed in several ’04-’07 Chevy cars and crossovers. And, we’ll give you an overview of what