AV10 engine is a ten-cylinderpiston engine where two banks of five cylinders are arranged in aV configuration around a commoncrankshaft. V10 engines are much less common thanV8 andV12 engines. Several V10 diesel engines have been produced since 1965, and V10 petrol engines for road cars were first produced in 1991 with the release of theDodge Viper.
The V10 configuration does not have perfectengine balance, since an unbalancedrocking couple is caused by eachcylinder bank functioning as astraight-five engine. Therefore,balance shafts are sometimes used to reduce the vibrations in a V10 engine.[1]
One of the first known V10 engines was used in the 1936Busch-Sulzer ICRR 9201 prototype locomotive, of which three examples were produced in theUnited States.[2]
The 1965–1984Leopard 1 armored tank was powered by theMTU MB 838 CaM 500 37.4 L (2,282 cu in) V10 diesel engine.[3][4]
Daimler-Benz produced three V10 diesel engine models (OM403, OM423 and OM443) forMercedes-Benz NG andNeoplan buses in 1970s–1980s.
Four Japanese commercial vehicle manufacturers (Isuzu,Hino,Mitsubishi Fuso andNissan Diesel) produced V10 diesel engines for their heavy duty trucks and coaches in 1970s–2000s.
The 1983–2023Tatra 815 truck was available with a 15.8 L (964 cu in) V10 engine.[5]
TheVolkswagen V10 TDI is a turbocharged V10 engine which was produced from 2002 to 2010 for use in theVolkswagen Phaeton luxury sedan andVolkswagen Touareg SUV.
V10 engines are less common than V8 and V12 engines, a V12 is only slightly more complicated and runs more smoothly, while a V8 is less complex and more economical. Nevertheless, modern engineering has made it possible to use V10 engines for applications where a V8 would produce insufficient power and a V12 would be too complicated or bulky. V10s have been used in select luxury cars, sports cars and commercial vehicles.[1]
An early V10 petrol engine was used in the 1987Lamborghini P140, however this prototype sports car did not reach production.[6]
Dodge developed an early V10, originally designing a version of itsLA series small block for use in trucks. The Dodge engine saw its first production use in substantially revised form in theDodge Viper while the truck version of the engine was used starting in 1994 in theDodge Ram. It discontinued in that application after 2003. However, 2003 also saw the introduction of theDodge Ram SRT-10, a performance model meant to rival Ford's successful V8 poweredF-150 SVT Lightning. TheViper engine (a 90-degree engine with odd firing order to obviate the need for a balance shaft) was improved during its production run, and produced as much as 477 kW (640 hp; 649 PS) in a standard state of tune from an 8.4 L version. The Viper engine was also used byBristol in the two-seatFightercoupe, and in other low-volume vehicles.
Ford also developed a heavy-duty V10 version of theirTriton engine to replace the460 big block in truck applications. It was introduced in theE-Series/Econoline full-sizevan, and also saw duty in theF-Series Super Duty line and theFord Excursion SUV, and was offered by Ford through the 2019 model year.
For theLexus LFA, the engineers selected a V10 engine over an equivalent displacement V8 because they could not get the V8 to rev as high as a V10,[7] and over a V12 for its lower reciprocating mass,[8][7] allowing for more rapid engine response.[9]
High-revving V10 power-plants were incorporated into supercars fromLamborghini andPorsche.BMW andAudi developed V10s for high performance cars such asBMW M5,BMW M6,Audi S6,Audi RS6,Audi S8 andAudi R8, mostly based upon theirexecutive cars.Volkswagen also developed a V10, but as aturbo-diesel. A variant of theVolkswagen Phaeton was the first production sedan to contain a V10 of any kind.
Examples of petrol V10 production engines include:
One of the first known V10 engines designed for motor racing was a 3.5 L (214 cu in) prototypeFormula One engine built byAlfa Romeo in 1986.[14] Originally intended for theLigier Formula One team, this partnership collapsed without the engine being used in any races. Alfa Romeo fitted the engine to twoAlfa Romeo 164 Pro Car prototypes in 1988, however these cars also did not compete in any races.[14]
The most widespread use of V10 racing engines has been in Formula One. Following a ban on turbocharged engines after 1988, the first V10 Formula One cars were the 1989McLaren MP4/5 andWilliams FW12. V10 engines were used by the majority of teams by the1996 season following reduction in displacement from 3.5 to 3.0 L (214 to 183 cu in). By the1998 Formula One season all Formula One teams used V10 engines which would remain the case until the end of the2005 season. The V10 seemed the best compromise between the lower weight of a V8 and the higher power of a V12.Renault F1 used a flatter 110° angle in2002 and2003, but reverted to a more conventional 72° following the change in rules which dictated that an engine must last two race weekends. In a further change to the rules, V10s were banned for the2006 season onwards in favor of 2.4 L V8s.
In sports car racing, the first V10 engine was used by thePeugeot 905 in the two final races of the1990 season. This was followed by theJudd GV10 engine being used by several teams during the1991 season and theToyota TS010 that debuted in the last race of the season. TheAudi R15 TDI was aLe Mans Prototype (LMP) racing car that used a turbocharged diesel V10 engine and competed in various endurance races in 2009 and 2010. TheAudi R15 TDI set the current distance record for the2010 24 Hours of Le Mans.[15]
Until early 2021,Blue Bird Corporation offered itsVision school bus with two V10 engine options, bothFord Triton units.[16]