6/25/2014 Tech Talk - Focus Turns To The Cylinder Head

[Snick]

I'm not enough of a gearhead to know whether this is good news or blowing smoke, but I like pictures of things getting made.

It's positive in that it demonstrates that EM is at least in serious design development. Still a LOOOOOOOOOOOOONG ways off from design verification and validation /process validation, but still positive. It indicates to me they are 2-4 years from real production because this is really early phase work.

 

[CheeseheadEarl]

Maybe its a revised version? It would be nice to see a fully machined block and head. Or even better a complete assembled engine.

I'm guessing here, but the A in the casting number is likely the revision level. What we don't know is if A is the original, or if the original was Rev _.

I'm with you guys. Machined parts will get my interest up more.

Castings are the big investment tooling wise though, so it's good to see.

I'd bet Snick's time line doesn't hold water, and I wouldn't bet that the block and head we've seen aren't already machined, assembled and in testing.

 

[msmith5150]

Cool stuff! Can't wait to see what the block and head look like ready to bolt together, hopefully they are farther along than these pics show us

 

[olddog1946]

It's positive in that it demonstrates that EM is at least in serious design development. Still a LOOOOOOOOOOOOONG ways off from design verification and validation /process validation, but still positive. It indicates to me they are 2-4 years from real production because this is really early phase work.

Snick, prepare for a beating...your morale needs to improve, lol. I'd bet they are a lot closer to a finished product than you might think, and I'm sure the camshaft and other associated parts are in the works as well. It would indeed take years if they only did one part at a time. But I'm thinking they are doling out information one piece at a time.

 

[Hog]

Of interest to me, aside from the lack of any machining at all, is the 'integrated cam caps' in the cover. While certainly a cost saving move for Elio, not such a great deal for the consumer, who if somehow runs a bit low on oil and spins a cam bearing, now must replace the entire cover, or at least remove it and have it re-welded (filled) and re-machined, instead of simply getting a new bearing cap. Of course we future owners would never let a thing like that happen, but someday, somehow, someone will.

 

[CheeseheadEarl]

Hog, if a cam bearing spins, the block half will have damage too.
With a small motor like this one, pulling the motor and line boring it should be relatively "easy".

 

[PJ]

To the guy who forgets todo his maintenance all I have to say is.

It's your own dam fault !

 

[Hog]

True, the lower half would also be damaged, which I assume would be the head. I just remember the Vegas, and this did happen, especially to us poor guys who had to buy them used. Although the Vega had top caps if I remember right, it was the lower halves that ruined it.

 

[Kuda]

Kinda nice seeing a casting with the Elio logo on it. Gotta say as a machinist in my not too distant past, I'd like seeing MACHINED castings even more.

Something about freshly milled, bored and/or honed surfaces... "Uuu... SHINYYYYYY!"

Hipp

Having also been a machinist (in another life) & having spent a few years @ an investment casting foundry, what I'm seeing so far is very positive. Casting Aluminium is as much black art as science & owes much to controlling humidity. Whomever is doing these castings knows their stuff.

 

[ICret]

I found this post interesting. The term "line of sight tumble port intake ports" was a term I wasn't familiar with. I did some research and found this link that explains the term and other head design theories. I found it interesting.

www.austincc.edu/wkibbe/headdesign.htm