Volvo’s new S80 – luxury, V8 Power, AWD Poise

The valvetrain features VCT (Variable Cam Timing) and CPS (Cam Profile Switching) on the inlet side – two key elements in providing the engine with excellent driveability and flexibility.

CPS (Cam Profile Switching) is a means by which the inlet valves can follow one of two different inlet camshaft lobe profiles depending on engine speed and load.

In normal driving, with normal throttle opening and low engine revs, fuel consumption is modest at the same time as torque is sufficient to provide good driveability.

In more enthusiastic driving involving wide open throttle and high engine revs, the engine responds instantly to the accelerator and provides a massive thrust of power, both at low and at high speeds.

“In principle, Cam Profile Switching creates two engines in one,” explains Volvo’s Vice President Powertrain Derek Crabb. “We can unite widely differing demands on the engine and easily meet the requirements of customers with entirely different wishes. For instance, we can equally easily satisfy customers who prioritise performance as well as those who are more interested in driving comfort and fuel economy.”

VIS (Variable Intake System) has been equipped with two throttle flap valves which adjust the intake manifold volume to suit the current driving situation. This results in a uniformly high and broad torque curve.

“Through precise interplay with the flap valves, we actually get three different torque curves that are integrated with one another,” says Crabb. “Consequently, we can exploit the engine’s capacity to the maximum and extract the highest possible power throughout the rev range. The result is alert response to the accelerator pedal at both low and high speeds, with both generous power and good driveability.”

Although the engine offers quite large displacement of 3.2 litres, it has extremely compact exterior dimensions. The complete engine package is only 3 millimetres longer than Volvo’s current five-cylinder engine. The total engine length is 625mm.

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