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When the V6-powered 2011 Ford Mustang arrived with 305 horsepower - one more pony than the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro - the engineers at General Motors didn't take long to up their power quotient to 312 hp. There are reports that GM has no intention of resting on its seven pony victory, as the 2012 Camaro will received an updated 3.6-liter mill capable of 325-330 horsepower.

The rumored engine will reportedly carry the LFX designation, with the same direct injection, variable valve timing and dual overhead cams as the 2011 model, but that's not all. The rumored LFX also lists "E85 MAX" as a technology, giving the updated engine the ability to burn ethanol as its primary fuel. So how does E85 equal 330 horsepower? It doesn't, really, but some estimate the new number based off the improvements made to the 270 horsepower 3.0L LF1 V6 (in the same engine family as the current 3.6-liter V6) that currently resides under the hood of several GM products. So if 3.0-liters equals 270 horsepower, then 3.6 liters can somehow net you somewhere between 325 and 330 ponies.

Okay, so A² plus B² divided by unicorn dust somehow equals 330 horsepower? That's not exactly the scientific method, but at least one forum poster claims that the LFX will also carry larger heads and exhaust valves, a new "tunable" ECM and a revised intake manifold. We have no idea how accurate any of this information is, but we'll be more than happy to welcome a 330-hp V6 Camaro if this turns out to be true. Hat tip to Rick!


Gallery: The Joy of Six: 2010 Chevy Camaro V6 RS



Rumormill: 2012 Chevrolet Camaro equipped with 330-hp LFX V6 originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 04 Jan 2011 09:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.



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HAZ-Matt

The NewsBot is quick.

Can anyone on here substantiate this?

jg95z28

So basically it'll be 330hp on E85 and 312hp on E10? While cool, it certainly isn't earth-shattering or should make Ford quake in their boots.

King Moose SS

E85 FTW. 15hp more than fords V8 only 2 years ago... I'd be more than happy to welcome a 330hp model, if the price and MPG for the V6 remains true.

Also is there a torque increase? That's what the V6 model is lacking.

guionM

One of the moderators can give a better explaination of NewsBot than I can, but it basically looks for keywords under news headings then posts it.

Trouble is, those "news" posts aren't always from great sources or very knowledgable ones. However, it is accuate to note that it's the pony car's V6s where all the action is.

It's not too big of a secret that GM is working on/has ready for production a V6 that will run with the current Mustang V6 (whether it's going to be a base or a "mid" engine is anyone's guess).

Nor is it any secret whatsoever that not only does Ford have the ability to tweak their V6 for more power, that Direct Injection capability has been engineered in and hardware is already developed.

For what it's worth, the article is wrong in one area.

The 5th gen Camaro V6 always put out about 312 horsepower. GM underated it in 2010, but in 2011 the advertized horsepower is more like the actual output.

Far as I can tell it wasn't done as a devious or misleading move. It had more to do with last minute tuning.

GM was hellbent on getting an EPA rating of 30mpg from the V6, and was still doing final engine programing tweaks almost literally up till the 1st 5th gen V6 started rolling down the assembly line. The 304 figure seems to be more of a litagation saving move (think Cobra & RX8 lawsuit from about a decade ago) either in case that 312 output had to be tuned downward (or that 304 output couldn't be turned back upward...either/or) at the last moment to achieve the fuel economy goal.

GM left the 304 horsepower figure unchanged as the advertized output and simply corrected it for 2011.

HAZ-Matt

Yeah. I stated that because I saw this 'story' over on autoblog and decided to head over here and see if anyone was talking about this. At any rate, they re-reporting what some guys on camaro5 have been saying.

As far as the power output, I don't know that they way the guys at camaro5 calculated the power for the 3.6L version of the new 3.0L is 100%... power doesn't necessarily scale with displacement like that. It should be neat to see what they can do, it really shouldn't have been outside the realm of possibility to make that much power, certainly not on 91+ octane. This of course makes me wonder if it does get a power bump if it will be for premium fuel only... that is to say if the car becomes premium fuel recommended and advertised with that rating. E85 compatibility is hardly a selling point here in Houston it isn't really available at nearly any stations.

DAKMOR

i just want a decent v6 thatll run on 87 octane.. is that hard to design, ...

JasonD

We covered this in CamaroZ28.Com Podcast #279. Download for free and have a listen!

IZ28

How about a power boost for the SS? That's what's necessary here.

NASCR46

What is the horse power and torque on the stock 2011 v-6?

guionM

Again, there is no difference in in horsepower or torque output between the 2011 Camaro V6 and the 2010 Camaro V6. The GM simply rated the V6 more accurately for 2011.

It's rated at 312 horsepower and 278 lbs/ft of torque.

I wouldn't get too attached to the idea that the SS is going to get a lot more power, or is going to continue to one up the Mustang GT through horsepower. Looking at what Ford has at it's disposal and what GM seems to be planning, I simply don't see that happening.

A version of the Boss engine (with different cams geared towards more low end torque) is going to likely become the Mustang GT engine if the SS gains any more power. Also, keep in mind that Ford is basically sitting on a direct injection system for not just the 3.6, but the 5.0 V8 as well.

Meanwhile the LS3 (like the LS2 and LS1 before it) are pretty much maxed out in power and GM durability standards without a displacement increase... which is a much bigger investment than Ford putting new cams on a Boss engine (which in turn is a tweaked 5.0). GM is seems to be investing on smaller displacement V8s with better mileage without much loss in power output.


Where the SS does show potential is with Holden working to take weight off the Zeta architecture (which is going nowhere for at least the next 8-10 years).

All the action is at the V6 level. But if you're still stuck on V8 SS's, expect:

1. an LS3 boost in output (say 10-20hp) within the next year or so...and expect Ford to up theirs by the same amount, keeping the performance lead.

2. A new direct injected GM V8 along with a weight decrease...realistic guess, 100 to 150 pounds... midway through it's life (my guess is 2014...a year after the next Mustang is due) which I feel would be the only hope the SS would step ahead of the GT performance-wise.

The smaller, lighter 6th gen Camaro won't be out till at the very earliest 2017.

CAFE is the focus of GM the next decade. The relatively low volume of Camaro's sales combined with making the V6 more appealing makes replacing the 5th gen Camaro a very low priority.

I'd expect a refresh, but I wouldn't hold my breath for a new car till after mid decade.

IZ28

Wow, no new Camaro for 6 more years and just a 10-20HP boost. This is just about as close as things were during the 3rd Gen, if not worse since the SS seems to be the slower car and things are less of a drivers race than in the 80s between the top cars. I hope they at least address the SS's handling and the Z28 can give us a lead somewhere in this lineup again. We really need that weight reduction you mentioned, any word on how far along that is?

King Moose SS

I thought a new generation of small block v8's were coming soon? I mean the C6 vette is 6 years old now, and will probably need replacement within the next 3 years.

krj-1168

Actually the next generation small block will debut in the C7 - which set to hit the showrooms in 2013. It's said to displace about 5.5L making at least 440hp, and get better gas mileage than the LS3 gets.

The next generation of Camaro is said to be based on the Alpha platform(so it will be smaller and lighter), and released in late 2015, as a 2016 model.

Still I agree that the current generation Camaro needs both a minor hp boost(10-15 additional hp) across the board and a modest weight reduction (100-125lbs in the LT/RS, about 125-150lbs in the SS).

Silverado27

I'll only be able to afford the V6, so I'm excited about the future! In Philly, E85 isn't a selling point either...but give me 87 and 300 horses, thats plenty for a daily driver. I really love these cars, just hope the people around here stop making fun of me for wanting the new V6, lol