It might be easy to assume that there aren’t too many differences between the old 5.4-liter V8 in the 2012 Shelby GT500 and the new 5.8-liter V8 in the 2013 Shelby GT500. After all, the two engines look relatively the same and it’s fairly easy to add more displacement, right? Of course, that’s not the case as both Ford and SVT worked hard over the past year to make the 650 horsepower supercharged 5.8-liter V8 in the 2013 GT500 the most powerful production V8 currently produced in the world. “Anyone who thinks that we just bolted a TVS supercharger on it is just crazy,” Jamal Hameedi, SVT’s chief engineer, told us at the L.A. Auto Show.
As proof that the changes to the GT500′s engine are more than a few bolt-ons, Ford had the new 5.8-liter engine on display at the L.A. Auto Show with cutouts showing the various upgrades that were done compared to the previous 5.4-liter V8. You can see detailed photos of the engine below, as well as a summary of the upgrades that were made to the new 5.8-liter engine.
The most visible change to the updated engine is the new Eaton TVS 2300 (2.3-liter) supercharger that replaces the old Eaton 1.9-liter unit. The new supercharger forces more air into the engine thanks to the increase in displacement as well as the four-lobe rotor design. The supercharger produces 15 psi of boost.
To compensate for the extra air from the larger supercharger, Ford has upgraded both the fuel rail and the fuel injectors.
The camshafts have been gives a more aggressive profile and are now identical to the ones found in the Ford GT supercar.
Ford has added new exhaust valves as well as a new exhaust valve seat. The valvetrain can now withstand a 7,000 rpm redline compared to 6,250 rpm for 2012. The cylinder heads have also been cross-drilled between the valves and have upgraded bolts.
Larger pistons are used thanks to the increase in cylinder bore. Compression ratio has been increased from 8.4:1 to 9.0:1. The pistons have also been upgraded with oil squirters for improved cooling.
Like with previous modern GT500 engines, forged connecting rods are used to withstand the large amount of horsepower and boost.
The increase in bore was attainable due to the use of a plasma spray coating rather than steel liners for the cylinder walls.
The forged crankshaft remains the same, although a new damper provides improved balance.
