Camtronic: a new innovation in petrol engines

Apologies for this being a day late. I went to Stuttgart and back yesterday, and had no access to wifi. The reason for the trip was to find out about Mercedes’ new Camtronic petrol engine technology, debuting in the all-new A-Class which goes on sale in the summer. It’s a deceptively simple idea; the world’s first split camshaft, which moves horizontally in two sections a few millimetres to the left or right. The shape of the cam then allows the four valves at the top of each of the four cylinder heads to other open fully or partially. The latter is the interesting element, because if the car is being driven at lower revs – say under 2,000rpm – a full opening isn’t required. It’s a waste of fuel. Partial opening means fuel savings of up to 10 per cent depending on how the car is being driven. Clever stuff.