Ford Motor Company’s recent introduction of their twin-turbo 3.5L V6 has brought the industry limelight to high tech, forced induction V6 powertrains. Rumors of General Motors joining in on the turbocharged V6 arena have been around for several years now, however GMI has confirmed that The General really will be joining Ford in the high tech turbo bandwagon.

According to GM engineering sources, GM is currently working on a twin-turbo 3.0L V6. Development on the new engine is so far along that it has a RPO code of “LF3.” The naturally aspirated 3.0L debuted in several 2010 products with direct injection and has the code “LF1.”

GMI was not able to obtain projected power ratings on the new engine, however output is very application specific under new SAE testing rules. Sources did say to expect the engine to rival Ford’s EcoBoost 3.5L.

PRESS RELEASE

Chevrolet to auction first retail Corvette Z06 Carbon at Barrett-Jackson, Palm Beach

DETROIT – The first of 500 retail 2011 Corvette Z06 Carbon Limited Edition coupes will go to the highest bidder at Barrett-Jackson in Palm Beach, Fla., on April 3.

The winning bidder will also be given the unique opportunity to tour GM’s Performance Build Center in Wixom, Mich., home of the hand-built LS7 and LS9 engines found in the Z06 and ZR1 respectively. The winner will also have the opportunity to watch the car going down the line at the famed Corvette Assembly Plant in Bowling Green, Ky.

“The Corvette Z06 Carbon will surely be an instant collectible,” said Jim Campbell, U.S. Vice President, Chevrolet Marketing. “For that reason, we see Barrett-Jackson as the premiere venue to sell the first retail Z06 Carbon.”

The Corvette Z06 Carbon was designed as a tribute to the 50th anniversary of Corvette’s first race in the 24 Hours of LeMans. As such, it continues the technology transfer between the production Corvette and racing.

The new 2011 Ford Mustang V6 will serve as the pace car for NASCAR’s Food Land 500 at Bristol International Speedway. What’s special for this model – this will be the second time a Mustang has paced a NASCAR race this year after the new 5.0-liter Mustang GT led the pack at the Daytona 500 in February.

Mustang is not the most powerful muscle car, serving as pace car, but specialists think that the V6 model will be capable of carrying out its duties thank to its new 3.7-liter engine – the ‘Stang has 305 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque. You can see the new 2011 Mustang V6 pace car in action by tuning into Fox this Sunday at 1:00 pm EST.

At first, there were only two pictures of the new limited edition Corvette Z06 Carbon that Chevrolet plans to offer this fall. But after that, in the run-up to this weekend’s 12 Hours of Sebring, the muscle car Z06 Carbon was shown in public. And now we have more photos to show you after the jump.

This 540hp 2010 ROUSH® Barrett-Jackson® Edition Mustang is the concept vehicle for 25 serialized builds to be done on 2010 model year pony cars, and brings together the racing and performance heritage of ROUSH Performance Products® with the sleek new Planet Color® Barrett-Jackson Collector Color Series paints and finishes with 25 custom colors, mid-coats and topcoats, including ‘Back in Black’ and ‘Red Hot Chili Pepper’ which are prominently displayed on this concept vehicle as the base color and graphics respectively.

In addition to the custom paint scheme, this concept vehicle comes fully-loaded with the ROUSH R2300 ROUSHcharged 4.6L Powertrain System. Components include TVS Technology ROUSHcharger®, intake manifolds, intercooler & radiator, cold air induction system, secondary sheave FEAD, forged aluminum pistons, forged steel H-beam connecting rods, forged steel crankshaft, unique high flow fuel injectors (52lb/hr), unique fuel rail, dual 60mm electronic throttle body, upgraded fuel system, aluminum flywheel, upgraded clutch and ROUSH® calibrated engine control module. Additional ROUSH content includes aero body styling to add to the vehicle’s appearance, exhaust for that deep V-8 rumble, 4-piston front brakes with 14″ rotors and painted rear calipers with slotted rotors and upper and lower billet grille which streamlines the appearance while improving cooling performance.

Maybe a 4-door Corvette is going to be designed. According to a report by Wards Automotive, it is possible.

If we take a look at another great car – The Porsche Panamera, we can see a 4-door successful selling automobile. With creating a 4-door Corvette, Chevrolet could introduce a higher-volume V6-powered version. This idea is not new – it has been debated in the past with the 2-door Corvette as a way to attract female buyers and those less interested in the car’s V8 performance and more its stylish good looks.

The guys from Autoguide think that it may help GM reduce costs, increase profitability and offer a unique product. Would it devalue the Corvette name? Probably not, considering the Panamera doesn’t seem to have hurt the Porsche 911. Would it be hideous? Quite possibly. But again, that hasn’t seem to hamper sales of Porsche’s new 4-door.

Actually this is a Roush 427R, but the special edition, announced today by Paul Miller Ford, boasts only visual enhancements. However this Stang looks awesome with its new front fascia and front splitter, a rear fascia, side splitters and custom blue and black suede seating accents. The paintjob is great, too – jet black with University of Kentucky True Blue stripes. The power unit is the well-known 4.6l engine boosted with the help of the Roushcharger supercharger system.

“The inspiration for the outer appearance and the color scheme came from a Bill Keightley jersey that was given to me last year,” J.P Miller, General manager for Paul Miller Ford says. “It just seemed to be the perfect fit for this project.”

Only five copies of the Coach Cal Edition will be made and the sixth one is goingo to be owned by John Calipari (Coach Cal). According to kentucky.com, the car will be priced at a bit over $71,000, with a Mustang GT based version to retail for less than $40,000.