What year did GM have cylinder deactivation?
General Motors (GM) first introduced cylinder deactivation technology in its vehicles in the late 1970s. This innovative feature allowed engines to temporarily shut off some of their cylinders when full power was not needed, improving fuel efficiency and reducing emissions.
The Origins of Cylinder Deactivation at GM
Cylinder deactivation, also known as displacement on demand (DOD) or variable displacement, is a technology that has been used in GM vehicles for decades. The concept behind it is to improve fuel economy by reducing the number of active cylinders in an engine when full power is not required, such as during highway cruising or light-load conditions.
GM first introduced cylinder deactivation in 1981 on its 350 cubic inch V8 engines used in Cadillac models. This early system could shut off four of the eight cylinders when the engine was operating at light loads, helping to improve fuel efficiency. However, the technology was not widely adopted at the time due to reliability and performance concerns.
The Resurgence of Cylinder Deactivation
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, GM revisited cylinder deactivation as a way to meet increasingly stringent fuel economy and emissions regulations. The company reintroduced the technology in 2005 on its 5.3-liter V8 engines used in full-size trucks and SUVs. This new system, called Active Fuel Management (AFM), could seamlessly transition between 4-cylinder and 8-cylinder operation depending on driving conditions.
The widespread adoption of cylinder deactivation by GM and other automakers in the 2000s was driven by several factors:
- Improved engine control systems and sensors that could more precisely manage cylinder activation and deactivation
- Stricter fuel economy and emissions regulations, making cylinder deactivation a valuable technology
- Increased consumer demand for improved fuel efficiency, especially as gas prices rose in the 2000s
Today, cylinder deactivation is a common feature found in many GM engines, from small V6s to large V8s, helping to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions across the automaker's lineup.
