Hybrid News

In Flint, MI on Thursday, General Motors started to reveal some details of the 1.4L four cylinder that will serve duty in two of GM’s most important new cars come 2010. This engine may be new to the U.S. market but it isn’t an entirely new engine. It’s actually the latest evolution of GM’s Family 0 engine lineup that originally debuted in 1997. Currently GM has three different four cylinder engine designs that are used in a variety of vehicles around the world.

The smallest is the Family 0 which includes four-cylinder models of 1.2L and 1.4L capacities as well as a 1.0L three cylinder. Currently the Family 0 engines are used in overseas models like the Opel Corsa and Astra. The mid-sized Family 1 includes 1.6 and 1.8L models that are used in cars such as the Chevy Aveo and Saturn/Opel Astra. The largest Family 2 engines range from 2.0 to 2.4L and include the EcoTec engines used in a variety of North American and European models like the Cobalt, HHR and others.

Come 2010, an updated version of the Family 0 1.4L will make its North American debut in the Chevy Cruze and Volt and you can read about it after the jump.

[Source: General Motors]