AHC: Save Packard

A bit bumpish, but I can't resist.
I think one option that should also be considered is diesel power, which has the advantage of big torque production. As modern makers have shown, turbodiesel engines can make major power and still get excellent mileage. (One Mercedes AMG diesel makes 310 horsepower and gets 40 mpg. Try THAT in a gasoline powered engine.....) overhead cams aren't a prerequisite for efficient engines - GM's LS-series V8s are amazingly efficient for engines as big as they are - and I can see two cams in the center of the block instead of one to drive a four valve per cylinder engine, or even a system where one pushrod operates two valves. If we are on this road, we could also start thinking about hydraulically or pneumatically operated valvetrains, too, and Miller-cycle engines.

Turbodiesel engines I think are the future of seriously-powerful cars, because modern technology can get them to rev higher, and well-designed turbodiesel engines can take ridiculous levels of boost and make jaw-dropping power. If people are serious about efficiency, they'll also make an effort to make better fuel, in both gasoline, diesel and anything else. It has never made sense to me why people only offer 87 octane for regular gasoline, if they made 91 octane the standard, automakers could retune engines for a bunch of extra power for those who want it, and you could use smaller engines in cases where efficiency is the primary concern.
I wouldn't expect diesels in hot rods, but why not make the oddballs at AMC do something really weird & cool?:cool::p A Packard *Clipper with a 400hp EFI pneumatic-valve turbodiesel?:cool::cool:
 
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