Editing Vauxhall Slant-4 engine (section)

==History==
===Design===
The Slant-4 gets its name from the fact that its [[cylinder (engine)|cylinder]]s are inclined at an angle of approximately 45° from vertical.<ref name="vauxhall"/> This layout came about because Vauxhall had originally planned to develop a whole family of engines all built on the same production line. There were to be slant-4s and V8s in both petrol and diesel versions, designed under the guidance of Vauxhall's then chief engineer, John Alden. Although a V8 petrol prototype and several 4-cylinder diesel prototypes were built only the 4-cylinder petrol engine made it to series production.

The engine has a [[Overhead camshaft#Single overhead camshaft|single overhead camshaft]] driven by a timing belt. The Slant-4 was one of three engines using this method of driving the camshaft released the same year, the others being the [[Fiat Twin Cam engine]] and the [[Pontiac straight-6 engine#Overhead cam|Pontiac straight-6 OHC]]. Prior to 1966, belt-driven camshafts had only appeared in the [[Glas 1004]] series starting in 1962 and in the few [[Devin Enterprises#The Devin Panhard|Devin-Panhard]] cars built starting in 1956. The camshaft operated two [[Poppet valve|valve]]s per cylinder. An ingenious valve train design incorporating an inclined [[screw|socket head cap screw]] allowed valve clearances to be adjusted with a [[feeler gauge]] and an [[Allen key]]. The block and [[crossflow cylinder head|crossflow]] head are both of [[cast iron]]. The layout lowers the overall height of the engine, which allowed for more [[aerodynamic]] vehicle bodies to be achieved by lowering the [[hood (vehicle)|bonnet]] line. It also means most of the engine is very easy to access for maintenance, with the exception of the [[exhaust manifold]] and [[spark plug]]s, which are "underneath" the slanted cylinders.

===Applications===
Prototype engines were fitted to the [[Vauxhall Victor#FC Series Victor and VX4/90|FC Victor]], and the engine also appeared in the [[Vauxhall XVR]] [[concept car]].<ref name="xvr1"/> The first production car to use the engine was the 1967 [[Vauxhall Victor#FD Series Victor, VX4/90 and Ventora|FD Victor]]. The original engine capacities were {{cvt|1599|cc|cuin|1}} and {{cvt|1975|cc|cuin|1}}. For the 1972 launch of the [[Vauxhall Victor#FE Series Victor, VX4/90, Ventora, VX1800 and VX2300|FE Victor]], the smaller engine was increased to {{cvt|1759|cc|cuin|1}}, and the larger to {{cvt|2279|cc|cuin|1}}. Blydenstein Racing developed a [[long stroke]] version with a capacity of {{cvt|2600|cc|cuin|1}} capable of producing almost {{cvt|250|hp|kW|0}}. Having been designed to withstand the stresses of diesel compression ignition, the block is immensely strong and able to handle large increases in power without modification. The crank was also designed to be shared with the diesel version, which meant its strength was assured for the petrol version. The larger displacement versions are known for their immense [[torque]], but also as not very smooth running or high-revving. A fuel-injected version of the 2.3-litre engine was planned for both the [[Vauxhall HP Firenza|HP Firenza]] and [[Vauxhall VX4/90|VX4/90]]. Running prototypes were tested before the project was abandoned due to cost and the impending merger of Vauxhall's design and engineering pool with that of Opel in Germany.

Apart from its use in passenger cars, the engine was also developed for [[marine propulsion|marine applications]]. It grew popular with tuners due to its great strength, tunability and simplicity. A 2-litre version of the Slant-4 powered the eight [[Costin Amigo]]s that were built between 1970 and 1972.<ref name="coomberbook"/>{{rp|165}} The engine remained in production well into the 1980s for the [[Bedford CF]] van.

Although arguably more technically advanced, the Slant-4 was considered less reliable than its continental GM counterpart, the [[Opel cam-in-head engine|Opel CIH]] (Cam In Head) engine. The Slant-4 was replaced by the CIH in the [[badge engineering|badge-engineered]] Vauxhall [[Vauxhall Cavalier|Cavalier Mk.1]]s from the mid 1970s onward, whilst the Bedford CF van lost the Slant-4 in favour of the CIH when revised in 1983.