The name “Superturbo” sounds like it belongs to a character from a comic book, not something found under the hood of a car. The reason for this technology–a pairing of a supercharger and turbocharger on a single engine–is to provide boost across the full rev range of a downsized engine. This gives full-size engine power without affecting fuel economy. Come to think of it, maybe it is a comic book superhero, but without the cape and tights.

“The concept was in development for almost three years,” says Grant Terry, customer manager, New Business Development, Eaton Automotive Air Management Operations (Marshall, MI), “and will help manufacturers meet future emission and fuel economy regulations and give a 15% to 20% increase in both fuel economy and performance while aggressively downsizing their gasoline engines.” The idea–which has been developed for inline engines, mainly those with four cylinders–pairs an Eaton M24 supercharger with a garden variety turbocharger with an integral wastegate. The supercharger provides boost from just off idle until its clutch progressively disengages near mid-range. At that point, the turbocharger begins to take over and carries on to the redline.

“There’s a step-up gear in the supercharger so it produces full boost at one-half engine speed,” says Terry, who notes that the M24 unit is normally used for engines in the 800-cc to 1.0-liter range, not the 1.5 liter envisaged. “We use the smaller unit because we’re only covering half the rpm range, and its smaller size makes it easier to manage the thermal output.” Coupling the supercharger, turbocharger and electronic throttle under a single electronic controller eliminates torque spikes by trading off boost production between the two units. “All the customer feels is uninterrupted power,” claims Terry. In the case of the 1.5-liter engine, power that is equal to or superior to that found in a 2.0-liter engine.

The idea isn’t limited to gasoline engines, however. Eaton says the Superturbo concept can be applied to diesel engines as a way to meet future emission requirements. However, Eaton claims, its real talent lies in the fact that–on a systems basis–a Superturbo gasoline engine is less expensive than a turbo diesel while providing similar fuel economy. Also, automakers can use the technology to decrease costs by using a two-valve head in place of more expensive four-valve technology on a gasoline engine.

Paired to gasoline direct injection technology, the Superturbo concept makes it possible to aggressively downsize the engine, eliminate low- to mid-rpm turbo lag, and more efficiently scavenge residual gasses for greater torque. These are all items that are high on the list of Eaton’s development partner, Volkswagen. A Superturbo engine using components sourced from Eaton’s plant outside of Gdansk, Poland, will enter production in the last quarter of 2005 for use in the 2006 VW Golf GT. The 1.4-liter engine produces 168 hp and 177 lb-ft of torque (available from 1,750 to 4,500 rpm), and returns a claimed average of 39.2 mpg. Rather than use the “Superturbo” moniker, VW refers to the Golf GT’s engine as the “Twincharger.” It claims 0-62 mph acceleration of 7.9 seconds and a top speed of 136 mph for the Golf GT fitted with this engine. The Golf-based Touran MPV will get its own version of the Twincharger, though it will produce 138 hp and a maximum of 162 lb-ft of torque, numbers more in line with its role as a family hauler. VW also is expected to include the Twincharger unit in a future variant of the Jetta sedan, and may offer it outside of Europe.

VW’s Golf GT is the first vehicle to use the Eaton Superturbo concept. Eaton will supply components for the engine from its plant near Gdansk, Poland. The 1.4-liter engine has a broad torque curve that greatly reduces the need for changing gears, and returns exceptional fuel economy.

By Kevin M. Kelly, Senior Editor

Although some people think that the only place to build new manufacturing plants in the U.S. is in the southern states, a team of global companies has constructed one of the most flexible powertrain plants in the world in Michigan. Why? One answer is talent.

The Global Engine Manufacturing Alliance will be put to the test when Chrysler begins installing the Dundee, MI, plant’s engines in its new family of C- and D-Segment cars beginning next year.

There is a part of the industrial Midwest where a team of auto makers–American, Japanese and Korean–are investing hundreds of million of dollars to build class-leading 4-cylinder engines, right in the backyard of the UAW, in facilities that are characterized not only by flexible equipment, but also flexible work rules. The people behind this endeavor?—DaimlerChrysler, Mitsubishi and Hyundai—are betting the highly-skilled workforce in the region will be the gem that makes GEMA (Global Engine Manufacturing Alliance LLC) a success.

In the rural locale of Dundee, MI, (population 3,500) the partners have invested approximately $400 million in the North plant, which began pumping out saleable engines in late-September. An additional $320 million will be plowed into a second South plant, which will mirror the 600,000-ft2 North plant when it begins production in October 2006. Each plant will have built-in capacity of 420,000 engines at full-line speed. Although $720 million sounds like a lot, Bruce Coventry, president and CEO of GEMA, says the amount of total investment at the plant is nearly 50% less than a typical powertrain plant of its size and output. (Similarly unusual is that when we meet with Coventry, he is outfitted in the same GEMA uniform—a black and grey GEMA shirt and black Dockers pants—worn by everyone else in the facility: “I’m not the important one here,” he says.)

How are they achieving the savings? GEMA utilizes CNC machining technology to an extent not typical of powertrain manufacturing. This helps not only provide flexibility, but also keeps tool costs down. Coventry says the 168 Nippei Toyama Corp. CNC machines, along with the total 222 pieces of automated equipment within the plant, reduced overall manpower requirements to a 3:1 ratio, with most of the manual labor limited to the final assembly operations. The extensive use of CNC also paves the way for the plant to potentially produce hybrid and diesel powertrain systems on the same machines as today’s line. “A machine that is making cylinder heads today can be making different parts tomorrow,” Coventry says. “We can do housings for a hybrid motor on the same tool as the existing engines.”

VW's Gold GT is the first vehicle to use the Eaton Superturbo concept. Eaton will supply components for the engine from its plant near Gdansk, Poland. The 1.4-liter engine has a broad torque curve that greatly reduces the need for changing gears, and returns exceptional fuel economy.

Many observers would surmise the lower employment levels might ire the union, but labor was willing to work with plant management to build an operation that is both flexible and sustainable long-term. “The union demonstrated a tremendous willingness to compete on a global basis,” Coventry says. Among the advancements agreed to by the UAW were streamlining job classifications to a single listing—operator—and flexibility in work scheduling. The high level of automation helps limit the number of people used on the full line during a single shift to 27, a significant reduction from the 350 people level used at Chrysler’s four-liter engine plant in Kenosha, WI. Automation rates are nine machines to each operator on the block line, 11:1 on the header line and 10:1 on the crank line. To further demonstrate the leanness of the plant: There is only one mechanical and electrical engineer assigned to each shift, with the traditional “manufacturing engineering department” mothballed, replaced by “technical support specialists” integrated onto plant floor operations. The plant operates on a three-crew, two-shift operation at 120 hours per week. Workers rotate on a regular basis through the various day/afternoon/midnight shift patterns. Workers are required to have a minimum of a two-year college degree.

The GEMA experiment relies heavily on supplier support. In the area of tooling, GEMA relies on its cutter grind supplier, Mahar, to maintain tooling inventory. GEMA does not pay for any of the tooling on site until it is installed in the machine. “All that (tooling) inventory on the floor is not on my books,” Coventry says. “I pay for that tool when it comes out to my line.” Minority-supplier TDS/US manages all material handling and logistics within and outside the plant. The supplier will provide the completed engines to Chrysler’s Belvidere, IL, assembly plant, where the World Engine will find its way into the Dodge Caliber and other Chrysler vehicles. Coventry says Mitsubishi will begin sourcing engines from GEMA in the fall of 2008, while Hyundai-Kia has been in discussions about obtaining engines for its Montgomery, AL, assembly plant, but no firm decision has been made.

Modularity is another important function that helps GEMA stay lean. Pistons arrive at the plant with rings already installed, while balance shaft modules arrive ready for direct installation. Casting suppliers are responsible for completing up to 80% of grinding operations, which will likely prevent defective parts from arriving at GEMA’s docks. “What we really want to do is keep the problems at the supplier and identify them before they get into our production system,” Coventry says. Complete engine parts, including accessory drives, intake and exhaust manifolds, are shipped directly to TDS/US, where the engine receives its final dressing before shipment.

While Coventry and his team would be among the first to downplay GEMA’s significance within the auto industry, there’s little doubt GEMA is a breakthrough. Using proven tooling and processes, GEMA was able to acquire its hardware at a much lower price point than it would have if it used custom tooling, while management monitored every aspect of the manufacturing process with a mindset for continuous improvement. Line workers even attended “Pit Stop Practice” with teams from Roush Racing to shift their thinking to identify ways to speed processes inside the plant. Coventry says management had set a goal to get tool change times down to five minutes, but through the Pit Stop classes, line workers were able to identify ways to conduct tool changes in less than one minute on mill cutting operations.

The key point in the GEMA exercise is the ability to control every input within the organization. Planners were able to design the operation from the ground-up, working alongside engineers to develop a product that was less complex to assemble, while training a fresh workforce. Now, it’s time for Coventry and his team to hold their breath and hope everything runs like clockwork. If it does, Coventry is likely to be a popular man within Chrysler, where he will undoubtedly be asked to provide insight on how to improve powertrain manufacturing operations at other facilities down the road.

By Christopher A. Sawyer, Executive Editor

Can three Australians produce a free-piston engine efficient, clean and powerful enough to power a series hybrid vehicle?

The reply to an earlier e-mail from a powertrain engineer at one of the Big Three was to the point: “Interesting technology. They came to see us almost two years ago, and the general impression was that their estimates were questionable. However, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot of potential in the technology. At one point there was even talk of investing in them.”

The horizontally mounted FP3 can run on any fuel, or be developed to use a homogenous charge compression ignition system. It’s designed to provide the electrical power for a series hybrid powertrain.

After looking at the design for the Free Piston Power Pack (a.k.a. “FP3”) from Pempek Systems (Sydney, Australia; www.freepistonpower.com) you can understand the reticence of the engineer quoted above. The FP3 has no crankshafts, connecting rods, or flywheel because its pistons don’t move up and down to create reciprocating motion. Its pistons are paired together, slide back and forth, and create electrical power when the permanent magnets attached to them move through fixed coils wrapped around the cylinders. This self-contained internal combustion electric generator is proposed for a series hybrid with 50-kW motors at each wheel.

According to Bert van der Broek, managing director of Pempek Systems, the project was begun on Valentine’s Day 2001, by Ed Wechner. “He came up with the idea of putting the valves in the crown of the piston, which made it possible to make a very compact design,” he says. These intake valves–they draw air into the combustion chamber through ports around the piston’s inner wall–are passive in that they have no drive mechanism, and open when cylinder pressure drops after the electro-pneumatic exhaust valves open. “The intake air scavenges the exhaust gases, and the exhaust valve’s variable valve timing and lift lets us choose how much exhaust gas we retain, keep the intake charge from escaping, and vary the compression ratio dynamically.”

Rather than use a sensor to determine the location of the horizontal piston pair, Pempek determines its location based on information from the coils. “At start-up,” says van der Broek, “we fire the coils in sequence to get the pistons going, and can determine its whereabouts to about one-quarter of a millimeter.” The spark ignition prototype is a one-quarter slice of the proposed 100-kW output unit, and has been under test in Australia since late 2004. Unfortunately, it has fallen short of the expected 25-kW output thus far. “We’re getting a consistent 15 to 18-kW out of it right now,” says van der Broek, “but inefficiencies in the generator and problems with the scavenging process have kept us from getting more out of it. So the three of us [Pempek Systems is a three-man company] are redesigning parts of it for better performance.”

Despite these shortfalls, the trio is sufficiently encouraged by the performance to have started development of a diesel version of the design. This common-rail injection diesel features four passive intake and four electro-pneumatic exhaust valves per piston, and runs at the same 1,800 cycles per minute as the gasoline version. “With the benefit of hindsight,” laments van der Broek, “we should have started with the diesel because it is easier to control, and would have made our learning curve less steep.” Nevertheless, Pempek hopes to bring the diesel up to its 300-kW output potential, and has plans to eventually produce a 450-kW engine that is 1/7 the size of a conventional diesel. “If we’re successful, it could basically sit in the crankcase of a diesel V8 with the same output,” says van der Broek.

Hurdles remain, including the design and development of a compact intake manifold, and emission and exhaust systems. Van der Broek feels the engine’s constant speed will make pollution control relatively simple, while the intake and exhaust are minor worries as the design evolves. The biggest hurdle he sees is convincing OEMs the promise is real.