Originally Posted by Shawn
Please show me where a motor in a current domestic performance car has been around for 30 years. The LS1 was introduced BRAND NEW, as in sharing ZERO similarities with the smallblock chevy, in 1997. The Ford Mod motor 4.6/5.4 was created in 1996. The Dodge Hemi's are all new designs as well. How is a basic inline 4 or 6 cylinder, with the same 60 year old overhead cam technology, any better than a 8 year old v8 motor that was redesigned for the ground up?
There's a reason why American manufacturers can put a 500hp motor in their cars, its simply easier to achieve the HP numbers with the bigger motor. Hence, we get the old tried and true saying:
there's no replacement for displacement
2001 e46 M3 3.2l I6 = 333 hp
1999 Cobra 4.6l V8 = 320 hp
While I do agree that greater displacement allows for a larger potential, Americans do not have the playing filed locked by any means. I4's and I6's developed by international companies are not using all of the same ideas as they had previously, they're merely expanding upon and improving upon existing technology.