Cylinder Cut-out?

Note: The text and figures are selected from various Internet sources listed in the end of this
document. They have been edited to present the material in a concise, succinct, and sequential
manner.

Mercedes springs a cylinder cutout system for its new 5.OL V-8, while Honda debuts a VTEC for engines
with bucket-type tappets.

Mercedes-Benz-V8
It uses many of the same technologies that were developed for the company's recently introduced V6s.
These include three valves per cylinder, phase-shifted dual ignition, friction optimized cylinder liners, and
an active service system.

The removal of one exhaust valve per cylinder reduces the surface area of the exhaust ports by about 30%
compared to a four-valve engine, considerably reducing heat losses in the exhaust flow. Subsequently, the
catalytic converter reaches operating temperature after a cold start about 12 s earlier. Instead of cast iron
cylinder liners, the engines feature a low-friction aluminum-silicon alloy that contributes to 50% lower
piston ring stress. With the Active Service System (ASSYST), which monitors not only oil level but also
contamination, oil-change intervals are extended to an average 22,500 km (14,000 mi.).

Now, with the new 5.0-L S-Class V8 engine, Mercedes-Benz has become the first European automotive
manufacturer to offer cylinder cutout. It is available as an option on the S 500. The technology provides a
fuel savings with no impairment of the performance potential and refinement of the engine. During part-
load operation, the system deactivates four of the eight cylinders, and brings them back into operation
when greater performance is required. The S 500 V8's cylinder cutout system deactivates all 12 valves of
the four cylinders. When the system shuts off four of the eight cylinders, the S 500's fuel consumption in
the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) is reduced by about 7%. Even greater savings are possible in
other driving situations. At a constant 120 km/h, consumption is cut by around 13%, and at a steady 90
km/h, by as much as 15%.

Mercedes explains that, in conditions such as city traffic, out-of-town driving, or when traveling at
constant speed on the motorway in the mid-speed range, an eight-cylinder engine suffers due to impaired
volumetric efficiency and high charge-cycle losses. In some cases, the large-displacement engine has to
be throttled to the point that cylinder pressure at top dead center is roughly half that of a four-cylinder
engine. Lower cylinder pressure means lower fuel efficiency, in turn leading to high consumption. Briefly
shutting off four of the cylinders eliminates this inherent drawback of a V8 power unit. In four-cylinder-
mode, volumetric efficiency is greater and the quantity of exhaust gas re-circulated into the engine can be
increased for additional efficiency. As soon as the engine drops into part-load operation, the electronic
engine management system deactivates cylinders two and three on the right cylinder bank and five and
eight on the left. Deactivating the corresponding intake and exhaust valves and cutting off the fuel supply
to those cylinders does this.

The transition between modes of operation is made imperceptible because the electronic engine
management system briefly alters the throttle valve position and adjusts the ignition timing to prevent any
sudden jump in torque. Automatic cylinder cutout is operational between 1000 and 3500 rpm in third,
fourth, and fifth gear with the automatic transmission. This corresponds to a speed range of 40 to 160
km/h.

Dr. Kalim- Supplementary Notes/S 2005/ME328- Pg. #1

To stop actuation of the valves, the link between the valve and the camshaft is interrupted. To achieve
this, the one-piece roller-type rocker arm is replaced by two special arms on each cylinder, which are
referred to by engine development engineers as the primary and secondary arms. The role of the primary
arm is valve control, while the secondary arm follows the cam lift. When the engine is in eight-cylinder
mode, a locking piston links the two arms. Automatic cylinder cutout breaks this link hydraulically by
forcing the locking pistons against special return springs by means of electromagnetic shift valves. Valve
actuation on that cylinder then ceases. To reactivate the cylinders, the hydraulic pressure acting on the
pistons is released, via electromagnetic shift valves, and the springs return them to their original position,
where the primary and secondary arms are locked.

Control of the hydraulic valve by the engine management computer ensures that the changeover always
takes place at the proper time and the valves are shut off in the correct sequence. To prevent the
deactivated cylinders from cooling down during the cutout phase, the exhaust valves are always closed
immediately after a power stroke. The mix therefore remains in the cylinder after combustion, keeping the
cylinder walls warm. When the engine is required to produce power from all eight cylinders again, the
system actuates the exhaust valves first. These open, allowing the exhaust gas to leave the cylinder; a
fresh air/fuel mixture then enters the chambers again, and the combustion process starts once more.

Engineers have also modified the exhaust system to ensure smooth transitional operation of the power
units. An exhaust valve in the mixing tube downstream of the catalytic converter closes immediately after
the cut out of the four cylinders. This lessens the high-pressure waves occurring in the exhaust-gas system
in four-cylinder mode and the resulting tendency of the engine and transmission assembly to oscillate.
This acoustic trick is said to also favorably affect exhaust system exit noise. The alterations to the engine
are said to not affect overall torque characteristics. However, power output drops slightly from 225 kW
(306 hp) to 220 kW (299 hp) in the S 500.

Honda's Variable Cylinder Management:

Honda's popular Odyssey minivan
has undergone a major redesign for
2005. From bumper to bumper, this
vehicle is loaded with new
technology. One of the more
interesting features of this new van
is their Variable Cylinder
Management. This system is found
on the Odyssey Touring model and
in the new Honda Accord Hybrid. It
allows the i-VTEC V6 engine to
operate on three cylinders or on all
six.

Honda was not the first to try a

cylinder deactivation or cutout
concept. Cadillac tried to cut out
cylinders on a V8 engine back in
the early 1980's with limited
success (no success if you talk to
technicians of the time!). Modern
electronics have now made this
concept possible. Chrysler was the
first to bring it to market on the V8

Dr. Kalim- Supplementary Notes/S 2005/ME328- Pg. #2

Hemi engines in the Chrysler 300C and the Dodge Magnum RT. General Motors has their first light duty
truck system just appearing in the marketplace. Honda's Variable Cylinder Management (VCM)
technology is different than Chrysler and GM's.

While Chrysler and GM are using solenoids to activate special lifters that prevent the valves from
opening, Honda is using their i-VTEC technology to stop the valves on three cylinders from opening. The
Honda i-VTEC engines use overhead camshafts with a pivoting cam follower riding on the camshaft.
Two rocker arms on either side of the cam follower are interlocked with the cam follower so that every
time the follower moves, the rocker arms open the valves.

To deactivate the valves, hydraulic oil pressure, controlled by the computer with a solenoid, moves a
synchronic-pin that interlocks the rockers and cam follower. Now the cam follower is still free to move as
the camshaft rotates but the rocker arms are no longer linked to it. This pin-pin will move back and forth,
linking or unlinking the rocker arms to control valve operation.

It seems impossible for parts that are moving at several hundred cycles per minute to be linked or
unlinked in a fraction of a second by a moving pin, but that is the principle that Honda's VTEC engines
are designed on. It has proven itself in racing and millions of kilometers in passenger vehicles over the
years.

With the valves deactivated on three cylinders, the engine now provides the economy of a four-cylinder
engine. There are some frictional loses with all the moving parts. When more power is needed, the
computer activates the valves and the engine has 255 horsepower from all six cylinders. A light on the
Odyssey's dash indicates whether the engine is operating in economy or full power mode but this light
isn't directly related to cylinder deactivation. Generally, when the economy light is on, you are probably
operating with three cylinders but not necessarily. The switch over from 3 to 6 cylinder operation or back
to 3 cylinders again is so smooth that you cannot feel it inside the van even when trying to.

References
• http://www.sae.org/automag/newenginereview/mercedes.htm
• http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3012/is_3_179/ai_54216811

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