Trick question ~

When did Chevrolet build the first DOHC, 4-valve engine?

the first or their first?

Hmmm...probably some kind of one off prototype in ancient times. Not the ZR-1 engine, because that was built by Mercury Marine IIRC.

Hmm, Duntov did some messing around with heads way back when...

Wasn't it in the 1940s with the Chevy coupe?

Oldsmoboi ~ >>"the first or their first?"<<

The question was quite purposefully stated...

Oldsmoboi ~ >>"the first or their first?"<<

The question was quite purposefully stated...

In that case, the answer is that Chevrolet didn't.

No; you're going to have to gloss over the 'the' and the interpretation you are giving it, Camino... tho you are 'warm' WRT the 'trick' aspect...

In other words, I was forced to word it as such....

Edited December 8, 201113 yr by balthazar

Cosworth Vega

OK, I know that they "built" such an engine as a prototype based on the smallblock that never made production.

Somewhere around 1970 or so.

I remember it being on the cover of Hot Rod or some other such magazine.

OK, I know that they "built" such an engine as a prototype based on the smallblock that never made production.

Somewhere around 1970 or so.

I remember it being on the cover of Hot Rod or some other such magazine.

Maybe some kind of Corvette experimental engine? Besides the rotaries, didn't they have other experimental Corvette engines in the '60s-70s?

GM did the tease thing back then too, I remember some Pontiac engines as well.

But all of the specifics escape me.

The '60s Division projects were amazing- well worthy of a in-depth thread. Olds had some sort of wack-a-do reciprocating/rotating engine, IIRC.

If you mean Chevrolet the man, he was building DOHC conversions for Model T engines. The earlier date I've seen for one is 1924

Oh, I forgot about the DOHC Frontenac racer he built that won the 1920 Indy 500

^ DINGDINGDING! - that's the answer I was looking for.

Hence the wording "the first"; the trick being I was referring to Chevrolet the man, not Chevy the car division; I could not use "their first".

Louis Chevrolet did indeed build a DOHC, 4-valve/cyl engine for the '20 Indy 500.

Frontenac was his second auto company after he left Chevrolet, tho he & his brother also ran the Chevrolet Brothers Manufacturing Co, making numerous parts, ironically perhaps, primarily for the Model T, all as mentioned above. Nice work, rjbartop!

Thanks. The wording had me wondering if you meant the first DOHC 4-valve/cylinder engine ever, but that honour, as far as I know, goes to Ernest Henry and Peugeot in 1912, and the Chevrolets had nothing to do with that.