USA-based company Tenneco is to provide a complete cold-end exhaust system for the 2020 Chevrolet Corvette along with multiple other components for the vehicle’s small block V8 engine.
The Corvette’s four current electronic valves within the car’s emissions system will be teamed with a further two specially developed valves, which feature increased heat resistance to work in unity with the vehicle’s active fuel management system. This will help to support the powertrain’s cylinder deactivation technology, allowing for increased efficiency and lower emissions.
Valves can be opened and closed to control exhaust sound as it switches between two engine modes. Tenneco will also offer a performance exhaust option which incorporates two further electronic valves to create a greater acoustic differentiation between vehicles.
Patrick Guo, executive vice president at Tenneco, said, “Corvette’s mid-engine architecture required creative technical solutions to accommodate the packaging and thermal requirements of the emissions system. We partnered with GM, combining our experience in system integration with Corvette’s engineering team to deliver technologies that help to enable a more efficient, high-performance vehicle with reduced emissions.”
Tenneco has also developed a range of thermal solutions to effectively manage high temperatures that result from a mid-engine design, including multi-layer heat shields alongside a new decoupled valve design to reduce heat impact on the systems electronics.
“This innovative valve arrangement, with the actuator decoupled from the valve body, is a significant step forward in actuated valve design and – when combined with our latest developments in valve materials – enables use on mid-engine and other architectures with extremely high exhaust temperatures,” explained Dmitri Konson, vice president of global engineering, at Tenneco.
The company also supplies a range of engine components for the V-8 LT2 powertrain including pistons, piston rings, bearings, valve seats and valve guides.
