Photo: FCA US LLC via USPTO
Over in the United States, the peeps at Fiat Chrysler prepare to roll out a straight-six engine that’s expected to replace the Pentastar and HEMI at some point in the future. As per U.S. patent application number US20200347796A1, the company is also exploring four-pot mills.
Filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office in May 2020, the patent went public in November 2020. As the headline implies, the thing that makes the four-pot lump stand out in the crowd is the cylinder head.
The abstract description reads: “A cylinder head assembly for an internal combustion engine includes a cast cylinder head and a turbocharger housing integrally cast with the cylinder head and having an integrally cast wastegate housing. The turbo housing is configured to receive a cartridge rotatably supporting a shaft coupled between a compressor wheel and a turbine wheel.” As a packaging exercise, this mill certainly is fascinating.
Casting the spinny lad into the cylinder head would simplify production, which ultimately saves money. If any of the components that make up the turbocharger go wrong, the cartridge can be removed for servicing. What’s more, a water jacket is cast into the integrally cast turbocharger housing.
One implementation published by the USPTO reveals a charge air cooler passage cast into the head. The first end of the passage is connected to the compressor, that part of the turbocharger that draws in the air. As for the second end of the passage, FCA says that one connects to the intercooler.
"The integrally cast turbo housing is configured to direct a flow of wastegate exhaust gas from an exhaust manifold between the upper turbocharger housing water jacket and the lower turbocharger housing water jacket."
One of the engineers describes this design as the industry's first cylinder head-integrated turbocharger with as-cast turbine housing, cooling, and lubrication lines. This design allegedly reduces production costs by $200.
FCA, however, can't take all the credit. BMW always had a thing for excellent engines, although reliability isn’t their forte. Be that as it may, the B38 three-cylinder turbo is rocking the world’s first aluminum water-cooled integrated exhaust manifold turbine housing. The only difference is that it’s not cast into the head, which makes it easier to service than Fiat Chrysler’s design.
The abstract description reads: “A cylinder head assembly for an internal combustion engine includes a cast cylinder head and a turbocharger housing integrally cast with the cylinder head and having an integrally cast wastegate housing. The turbo housing is configured to receive a cartridge rotatably supporting a shaft coupled between a compressor wheel and a turbine wheel.” As a packaging exercise, this mill certainly is fascinating.
Casting the spinny lad into the cylinder head would simplify production, which ultimately saves money. If any of the components that make up the turbocharger go wrong, the cartridge can be removed for servicing. What’s more, a water jacket is cast into the integrally cast turbocharger housing.
One implementation published by the USPTO reveals a charge air cooler passage cast into the head. The first end of the passage is connected to the compressor, that part of the turbocharger that draws in the air. As for the second end of the passage, FCA says that one connects to the intercooler.
"The integrally cast turbo housing is configured to direct a flow of wastegate exhaust gas from an exhaust manifold between the upper turbocharger housing water jacket and the lower turbocharger housing water jacket."
One of the engineers describes this design as the industry's first cylinder head-integrated turbocharger with as-cast turbine housing, cooling, and lubrication lines. This design allegedly reduces production costs by $200.
FCA, however, can't take all the credit. BMW always had a thing for excellent engines, although reliability isn’t their forte. Be that as it may, the B38 three-cylinder turbo is rocking the world’s first aluminum water-cooled integrated exhaust manifold turbine housing. The only difference is that it’s not cast into the head, which makes it easier to service than Fiat Chrysler’s design.
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