It used to be the brightest point in General Motors Co.'s powertrain firmament, but now the company's once-famous Northstar V8 is ending production after a 17-year run, a GM spokesman confirmed to Inside Line. The last Northstar will be made sometime near the end of July.
The 4.6-liter Northstar was huge news when GM launched the overhead-cam, all-aluminum V8 in 1992 for the '93 Cadillac Allante. It was the company's first overhead-cam V8 and brought to market a number of then-innovative features, including 100,000-mile sparkplugs and a "limp home" mode designed to keep the engine from melting itself even if all the coolant was lost.
For a decade, Cadillac and the Northstar were inextricably linked, as GM kept the "Northstar System" a Cadillac exclusive. In later years, however, the Northstar - if not in name, the engine architecture itself - was pressed into service for other brands, mostly Oldsmobile and Buick. There have been three different Northstar displacements over the years, although the 4.6-liter by far was the most widely used. A short-lived 3.5-liter V6 was derived from the Northstar for Oldsmobile before the brand was discontinued.
What's important now is the hole in GM's powertrain lineup the loss of the Northstar leaves. The company, including Cadillac, will have no overhead-cam V8 architecture, leaving it up to the legendary overhead-valve "small-block" V8 - whose basic design dates back to 1955 - to serve wherever a V8 is needed.
It remains to be seen whether the small-block V8 will be perceived as technically advanced enough to allow GM, and particularly Cadillac, to compete against increasingly sophisticated V8s from Europe and Japan. GM had almost finished engineering a Northstar successor, dubbed the "Ultra V8," or UV8, but shut announced it was shutting down the UV8 program in late 2007 when the company began hemorrhaging money prior to its 2009 bankruptcy.
GM's then vice-president of global powertrain engineering Tom Stephens, told us at the time the UV8 was "as refined as anything in the history of internal-combustion engines. It was the quietest engine we've ever tested." He also said development of the engine was complete and could be pulled off the shelf anytime GM wishes.
Stephens and Cadillac have said new fuel-economy standards, as well as changing consumer preferences, point to power-dense V6s as the new-age alternative to V8s. We'll see. In the meantime, the Northstar engine represents yet another noble portion of the "old" GM soon relegated to history. -- Bill Visnic, senior editor, Edmunds AutoObserver.com
cr_driver says:
05:23 PM, 06/ 9/10
Bye Bye!
csubowtie says:
05:37 PM, 06/ 9/10
Sad, but I haven't really heard anything about the Northstar in a longtime. Kinda fell off the map. And now they have the DI V6 which makes good power, and the LS series if you need more. And frankly, about the only downside to the LS series is that it uses an older design, but it still does everything it should, and just as good as anything else on the market. So maybe "high-tech" just for the sake of it doesn't need to be a huge priority.
kevm14 says:
05:50 PM, 06/ 9/10
I think people are coming around to the small block and the Gen V will probably surprise (direct injection will make its debut). Buyers are realizing that technology for technology sake makes no sense, and the extra displacement in a smaller package afforded by GM's 90° pushrod V8 isn't cheating when it's lighter, simpler, cheaper, easier to modify and more powerful. THAT's the superior engineering. Complexity isn't engineering, it's marketing.
bimmerjay says:
06:39 PM, 06/ 9/10
I'm sure Lutz is saying, "Is that there thingy the go-fast pipe?"
This really is too bad. I liked the Northstar better than any of the LS series V8's, and it's really too bad GM doesn't phase-in the UV8 to replace the LS in premium applications.
stovt001 says:
07:58 PM, 06/ 9/10
Well, seeing as how the V8 will be moving back to niche status for the immediate future, I can't blame GM for not wanting to build two different V8 architectures. Maybe the LS small block isn't as refined, but it is still a great engine series.
jkp1187 says:
08:04 PM, 06/ 9/10
"It remains to be seen whether the small-block V8 will be perceived as technically advanced enough to allow GM, and particularly Cadillac, to compete against increasingly sophisticated V8s from Europe and Japan."
I'm no fan of The General, but them's weasel words if I ever heard any. PERCEIVED as technically advanced enough???!? C'mon, Inside Line -- man up! Is the small-block technically advanced enough to compete against European/Japanese V8s (or Ford V8s for that matter) or not? Don't give me this "some may perceive" BS. Make a call.
c5thunder says:
10:41 PM, 06/ 9/10
The Northstar was not the first OHC GM V8. I believe the LT5 in the 1990 Corvette ZR-1 was, and is agruably the father of the Northstar in terms of design/engineering.
wshuff says:
05:54 AM, 06/10/10
It seems an OHV V8 is technologically advanced and refined enough for Bentley.
wrinklebump says:
06:16 AM, 06/10/10
This OHV vs OHC debate is ludicrous. There's no reason an OHV engine can't be as sophisticated as an OHC engine. A pretty good explanation: http://www.autoblog.com/2005/12/08/autoblog-feature-ohc-vs-ohv-the-definitive-rant/
jm1212 says:
08:54 AM, 06/10/10
Sure, the Northstar engines were refined, but they were not at all powerful for their displacement. The units in the DTS and Lucerne don't even make 300 hp despite having 4.6l of displacement. They should be making at least 330 hp with that displacement, and GM has V6's that make more power as well
chirsch3 says:
09:17 AM, 06/10/10
Caption contest please!
csubowtie says:
10:26 AM, 06/10/10
They say "percieved" because some people think that since the LS series still has pushrods that it is the same engine that came in a 1955 Chevy. Of course these people also ignore things like the huge hp, even bigger torque, effiecienccy that is on par with other engines of it's size/output, rock solid reliability, smooth running, cylinder deactivation, reduced weight, ease of maintenance....
redwoodaggie says:
10:45 AM, 06/10/10
Don't let the door hit you on the way out!
phewop118 says:
10:47 AM, 06/10/10
:((((
The northstar was a great engine in its day, maybe even the BEST V8 available for a while. Too bad GM didn't continuously update it to keep it competitive. It is still a very smooth, decently powerful engine (that also happens to sound great when you push it). But, it has been outclassed by most 6 cylinder engines, GM's included. I will surely miss this engine in future Cadillacs. I have 2 versions in my driveway right now that I don't ever plan on giving up (01 Olds Intrigue with the 3.5 V6 'Shortstar', and an 07 DTS)
greenpony says:
11:00 AM, 06/10/10
One shouldn't confuse "old design" with "outdated design".
half_ton says:
12:35 PM, 06/10/10
The Northstar with some modem tech (i.e. DI, twin turbo's) would have made a NICE powerplant. Like others have said it's too bad GM didn't continue to update it but I also agree that the LS series is a worthy competitor to ANYTHING from Europe.
gearhead1977 says:
01:02 PM, 06/10/10
The Northstar was impressive when it debuted. But as was pointed out, not much was done to keep it really competitive in the waning years. Typical GM.
kernals12 says:
01:38 PM, 06/10/10
anybody else worried about HEMI
cz_75 says:
02:37 PM, 06/10/10
Bentley gets by with an OHV V-8 on their top-of-the-line models. Nothing wrong with a GM small-block that a blower or turbo can't fix, if even needed.
oldsmoboi says:
05:46 PM, 06/10/10
The current small block uses 1955 architecture much the same way a modern racing tire uses 1955 architecture.... in so much as it is round, mounted to the rim with a bead, is tubeless, and, much like this author, filled with air.
The small block has 8 cylinders mounted in a 90 degree V format and maybe even a similar firing order..... that's where the similarity to 1955 ends.
stovt001 says:
08:13 PM, 06/10/10
You know, I think c5thunder might just be right.
In any case, here's hoping that some new sustainable, affordable, and environmentally friendly alternative fuel is found that is compatible with ICEs, and GM can dust off those plans for the UV8.
jlcii says:
10:30 PM, 06/10/10
I look at this as bad news. Now, Cadillac will have to figure out a V8 for the XTS, and the CTS if they want it to be formidably against BMW. A push rod from 1955 is not going to work, not against the DOHC, DI competition. Ford did it with Mustang. And they want how much ($70K) for the V6 XTS? Better get to work on that V8, GM!
mustang5507 says:
02:56 AM, 06/11/10
@ jlcii: Ford might not have the old Windsor V8 anymore, but it sure still bolts a live axle under the back of the Mustang. Gets the job done, but it's something for folks to nitpick about.
On to the Northstar...its distinctive exhaust note will surely be missed, but GM simply did not update it. It was competitive with the thirsty German V8's and they seem to be lasting a long time, but in typical Detroit fashion, they tried too little, too late in supercharging them for the V-series, and at the worst possible time. Another death by indifference in Detroit.
So long Northstar, bye bye Ford Panther chassis, toodles G8.
stingray454 says:
06:14 AM, 06/11/10
July? That seems kind of early, but I suppose they have inventories of these engines to finish production of the STS and DTS before the XTS comes online next year. It was a great engine, but it is time to move on and retire it. It had a good run.
I'm looking forward to the next gen LS V-8's coming soon. With direct injection, variable valve timing, and whatever new "revolutionary combustion process" GM is coming up with, these should be very stout engines, pushrods and all.
stingray454 says:
06:28 AM, 06/11/10
@ jlcii says:
" A push rod from 1955 is not going to work, not against the DOHC, DI competition."
If you think today's GM pushrod V-8 is the same design as the original 1955 pushrod V-8, you're out of your mind. They share almost NOTHING in common, save for they both happen to use pushrods to actuate the valves, and they both have 8 cylinders arranged in a V.
BTW, think DOHC is advanced technology? Think again. It was introduced in 1912. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DOHC#Double_overhead_camshaft
Buick (David Buick, founder of the Buick Motor Company) actually invented the OHV design, circa 1903. So basically the two technologies are less than a decade apart, and both designs date back to the early 1900's.
Anyone saying DOHC is more "advanced and modern" than pushrods really doesn't know his history.
kevm14 says:
07:03 AM, 06/11/10
I still remember when my cousin bought his 01 Z06 in 2003 and went to a local 1/8th mile drag strip in Maine. He had a friend who drove a Neon, who was checking out his new Corvette. I remember he was impressed, then I pointed out "yeah, pretty sweet, and it has pushrods, too." He almost passed out. He was like "WHAT???" In his world, nothing with that kind of power, or willingness to rev could possibly have pushrods. Why do people think dumb things?
iskch says:
12:42 PM, 06/11/10
It was one those few memorable GM advance technology marvels (remember the 90's ZR-1?). Unfortunately was left to the side (cheap pushrod option is better). We can argue about OHV vs. OHC design for years but GM will make the final push for the 'old faithful pushrod one more time'. By the way for those comparing performance review your textbooks. Pushrods need more displacement in order to be competitive to their or OHC counter parts. Example: Chevy 6.2 vs. Ford 5.0
kevm14 says:
06:43 PM, 06/11/10
Yeah and they fit that extra displacement in the same or smaller space.
hondacura4 says:
06:59 PM, 06/11/10
The LT5 was engineered by a team headed by Mercury Marine Project Engineer Terry D. Stinson. It featured Lotus-designed 32-valve DOHC heads. It was hand built by specialty engine builder, Mercury Marine in Stillwater, OK.
C5Thunder, the Northstar was the 1st DOHC V8 engineered, developed and built by GM.
Given the news of the RWD Cadillac Flagship GM has currently under development I'm wondering what premium engine will replace the Northstar V8?
lloyd_tx says:
02:49 PM, 08/ 9/10
Good riddance, Northstar. What an oil leaking, coolant leaking, POS. Another GM engineering debacle, like the Quad 4! Glad it's finally gone, just about 15 years too late, LOL!
Keep re-engineering and updating the LS V8. Fantastic engine family. Love the L92 6.2 in my Sierra. Gen V engines will be even better, with the new "combustion design" (whatever that means), and direct injection. Just hoping that they keep a large displacement version for my next GMC PU.
lloyd_tx says:
02:51 PM, 08/ 9/10
hondacura4 says:
06:59 PM, 06/11/10
The LT5 was engineered by a team headed by Mercury Marine Project Engineer Terry D. Stinson. It featured Lotus-designed 32-valve DOHC heads. It was hand built by specialty engine builder, Mercury Marine in Stillwater, OK.
C5Thunder, the Northstar was the 1st DOHC V8 engineered, developed and built by GM.
Given the news of the RWD Cadillac Flagship GM has currently under development I'm wondering what premium engine will replace the Northstar V8?
Why, a 450 - 500 HP Gen V small block, of course. Finest V8 engines in the world, IMO.
v8_power says:
05:00 PM, 06/11/11
They could use V8 from Camaro… Now GM and Ford doesn't have proper flagship like Chrysler does, they should look at them and copy, they have great RWD/AWD platform with choice of V6 or V8 - which has economy of Ford's "eco" V6.
simpletony says:
07:41 PM, 06/11/11
I have a 93 ElDorado coupe with the 4.6-9 engine that the mechanic I had on it just threw a rod trying to blow carbon out to solve the knocking. I'm looking for a good replacement (for both). I've heard many things about it including that the "Y" engine can be used with some difficulty; there seem to be more of these. There are remarks about some rebuilders taking quality shortcuts so it's best to get a used engine. Then they say about 100K miles is about the most one can hope for, yet there are numerous 100K mile engines available. My email's antonioruiz@ca.rr.com, phone's 951-237-1275. Help!