There won't be a government limit on horsepower. It goes against the whole "free enterprise" thing. If people are willing to pay for ludicrous amounts of horsepower, then automakers will keep making cars with ludicrous amounts of horsepower. I've said this before - the government doesn't care whether you live or die, as long as they get paid.

Also, anyone who has the means to afford a 475+ HP factory hot rod isn't going to be worried about insurance payments.

 

Right, and if you die, they don't get paid.

Am I the only one that remembers what the Terminator did to the streets. Wait until these S/C 6.2s hit the street...

 

They still get paid. There's still taxes and fees that have to be paid when you die.

And for everybody that dies, a baby is born to replace them. The cycle begins anew.

 

The problem is limitting horsepower will eventually hurt performance. Cars will continue to become heavier as we add safety features and gadgets to them. This will continue until we can lower the cost of high strength-lightweight materials. Then we will be able to lower the horsepower requirement. Look at the performance Lotus gets in their Elise and Exige. They achieve it with a smaller more effiencient motor because they weigh less. However they are quite expensive. Now lower the cost of lightweight materials making them less exotic, and then you can lower the horsepower required to make them perform so well.

When that day comes, things will seem a lot more inline and less rediculous.

 

Overheard five years from now...
"Damn my Malibu is slow, it only has 500HP."

 

Yeah but it will weigh 12,000lbs

 

Exactly. So what makes you think it's a Gen V?

Anyone see anything here which would indicate something like GDI or heads designed for GDI?

 

I said that a supercharged Gen V should be capable of more than 475-500 HP. The LS9 would be proof of that (600+ HP). The "lesser" engines, the LSA and LS8, would obviously have less power. 500 HP isn't unreasonable for these engines, and they would certainly have the capability to put out a lot more with a few simple modifications.

Also, I didn't see where they said EVERY Gen V would have GDI. It might just be the N/A versions.

 

OK a bit off topic, so if the top Camaro is a Z/28 and it has a LS8 S/C engine with 500+ hp but weighs out like the GT500 wouldn't that be untrue to the Z/28 roots of low weight great handling corner caver, 302ci N/A.... Wouldn't a big engine with big power and heavier weight be dare I say an SS???

 

The 1st gen Z/28 was created and designed for homologation purposes. When Chevy left the Trans Am series, the Z/28 was no longer bound by those rules.

And who says it's going to be a 3900 lb. pig like the GT500?

 

I see your point. IF a Z/28 came in at GT500 weight, it wouldn't be a Z/28 to me. I would say kill it. Call it whatever you want - just not a Z/28.

But, like I said in another thread. If it came in that heavy, expect heads to roll.

 

Personally, if I'm getting the same horsepower, I'd rather get it normally aspirated. And if I were in the business of making money on cars and meeting emissions and CAFE standards, I'd take the simpler, cheaper, more compact, cleaner, thriftier engine.

 

Direct Injection means cleaner and thriftier, but not simple or cheap.

Simple and cheap means its not as good to the environment and uses more fuel.

I agree with you 100% - but the middle ground is where the results will lie, and thats the hardest part.

Oh and you didnt add in engine output - which is a very important variable - does the car have poor performance or good performance? What is the trade off of performance to other catagories (even in the 4 cylinder market).

 

Well nobody yet but just thinking that a LS8 with all the S/C hardware and suspension mods with big rims and tires could add some weight like the GT500 has done. Again all speculation.

 

I don't know if GDI would be cheaper or simpler to do than a supercharger.

I think the biggest issue would be drivability, day-to-day mundane commuting. A forced-induction engine would hold the advantage there over a high-strung N/A engine.

Don't get me wrong - I have no problem with a high-winding N/A V8. I'm planning on building one sometime in the near future. I'm just trying to think and explain what GM's motives are for going with FI motors over N/A versions.