An interesting patent has come out of the Ferrari wheelhouse: a new engine layout. It has been reported by AutoGuide that they recently uncovered a possible four-cylinder engine for Maranello.
The concept itself isn’t a big deal as lots of vintage Ferraris had four-cylinder racing engines in the past, but it’s the way that it’s designed. Basically, they have an electronic turbine that works to reduce turbo lag and(!) to control exhaust pitch. Now, that’s the intriguing part,
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[column size='1/2'][…] But whereas most exhaust valves operate by being either ‘on’ or ‘off ‘, the turbine wheel allows for greater differentiation in tone. Due to the generator that stores energy away, the engine won’t suffer a dip in performance if the electronic control unit slows the turbine wheel down in order to deliver the desired exhaust tone.
We posted the detailed patent application and it’s quite a read, to say the least. To sum things up, what we’re looking at here could be the next Ferrari four-cylinder or half of a hybrid V8 that has a way of controlling exhaust sound. Let’s see where the future takes us on this one.[/column]
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