Video - OLDSMOBILE 455 W-43 EXPERIMENTAL HEMI AND OTHER EXOTIC ENGINES - THE JOHN BELTZ YEARS PHOTO TRIBUTE

OLDSMOBILE 455 W-43 EXPERIMENTAL HEMI AND OTHER EXOTIC ENGINES - THE JOHN BELTZ YEARS PHOTO TRIBUTE

John Beltz was Oldsmobile's chief engineer in 1964 and one of the prime movers of the Toronado and 442 project. Beltz was promoted to Oldsmobile general manager at age 43 in 1969 when Harold N. Metzel retired. Beltz passed away in May of 1972 from cancer at the age of 46. John Beltz is leaning on a dual fan 455 Olds and posing with other experimental Olds engines that never saw production. Here are descriptions of these engines: 1. The 0W-43 all aluminum 455 with 4 valve per cylinders, four overhead cam Weber engine. With a redline of just under 8500rpm it was originally conceived for CAN AM racing. At 3000rpm it put out 300hp and at 6000rpm registered over 600hp. The top output recorded for this engine in the Lansing dyno facility was 700 real hp at 6800rpm. Tests were run with both carbueration and fuel injection. The block was cast from Reynolds 356 alloy and fitted with pressed-in dry steel cylinder liners for the Forged-True 12.20to 1 pistons. Billet steel connecting rods by Carillo was used along with a forged steel crank. The engine weighed in at 50 pounds lighter than the production 455 motor! It was developed at the same time as the ZL-1 Chevy 427 motor. 2. The W-43 4 valve per cylinder 455 developed by JOHN BELTZ , LLOYD GILL , JOE JONES AND FRANK BALL. Rated at 500-550hp with a single Rochester Quadrajet on an aluminum manifold. Constructed with both cast iron heads and block and with aluminum-alloy block and heads 75 pounds lighter than the conventional 455 ...