Although Cadillac has decided to rethink the engine lineup in its SRX crossover, Saab says that its upcoming 9-4X will not switch to General Motors’ 3.6-liter V6 unit.
Initially, the SRX launched with just a 3.0-liter V6, although a 2.8-liter turbocharged V6 also used in the Saab 9-5 and, for a period, in the Saab 9-3 Aero, later became a range-topping engine. But for 2012, Cadillac is expected to replace the two smaller displacement engines with just one offering, a naturally-aspirated 3.6-liter V6 that will put out somewhere in the neighborhood of 325 horsepower. Neither the 3.0-liter (265 horsepower) or 2.8-liter (300 horsepower) V6s offer as much power as the 3.6-liter unit.
Saab chief Jan Ake Jonsson, who recently announced his intended retirement from the Swedish automaker, says that the 9-4X will not follow the SRX’s path – at least for now.
“GM is going to put a 3.6-liter V6 into the SRX to replace the 2.8-liter turbo V6,” Jonsson told AutomotiveWorld. “We have the option to take that engine too but we haven’t yet decided if we want to do that.”
The 9-4X also won’t be getting a diesel engine, at least in its current configuration, Jonsson said.
“We could probably double our sales volume of the 9-4X in Europe with a diesel. But the 9-4X is really a vehicle for markets like the US, Russia, China and Australia where gasoline is the traditional buyer preference.”
The 9-4X will go on sale in May in North America.
A use for BMW engines
Meanwhile, Jonsson also said that the new 1.6-liter twin-scroll turbocharged four-cylinder it will source from BMW will be used in the next-generation 9-3, but not the 9-5, where Saab is “very happy with our GM powertrains.”
Jonsson didn’t rule out future endeavors with BMW, however.
“We will see how it works out with the BMW engine in the next 9-3 and we will take it from there. BMW is an easy organization to work with. I was last with the executives we are dealing with two weeks ago and we speak to each other all the time.
“For them, it makes sense to sell us engines as it’s a good revenue stream for very little extra investment. And there is also of course the opportunity for engineering exchanges; for example we have expertise in E85 engines which we could offer them.”
References
1.’Tuesday snippets…’ view
No comments:
Post a Comment