Ferrari Modena

THE TIPO F131 3.6 LITRE ENGINE

 

The Ferrari Dino engine is a line of mechanically similar V6 and V8 engines produced by Ferrari for about 40 years from the late 1950s into the early 2000s.

The idea for the engine came from Alfredo "Dino" Ferrari, who was the son of Enzo Ferrari. Dino suggested to Enzo Ferrari the development of a V6 engine for F2 at the end of 1955. Soon afterwards, Alfredo fell gravely ill, and he was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy. While hospitalized, he discussed technical details about the engine with a recently hired engineer named Vittorio Jano. Dino would never live to see the engine; he died on June 30, 1956, at the age of 24.

The Dino V6 was Ferrari's first V6 engine. The Dino V8 engine was introduced later; the latter used a flat-plane crankshaft configuration.

The Dino V8, was bored to 81 mm (3.19 in), replaced the V6 in the next line of street Dinos to be produced by Ferrari, the 1973 GT4 and 1975 GTB "308" cars. Although the model name suggests 3.0 L, the V8 displaced only 2,927 cc (2.9 L) which rounds down to 2.9 L and was another DOHC 2-valve design. The engine was further bored to 3.2 litres for the 328 GTB, 3.4 litres for the Ferrari 348, 3.5 litres for the Ferrari 355 and lastly 3.6 litres for the 360.

 

The 1999 360 Modena retained the 85 mm (3.35 in) bore of the F355 engine and the 5-valve per cylinder layout, but increased the stroke to 79 mm (3.11 in), to raise the displacement to 3.6 L (3,586 cc) and 400 PS (395 bhp; 294 kW). Modifications to the intake/exhaust and an increased 11.2:1 compression ratio produced 425 PS (419 bhp; 313 kW) for the 360 Challenge Stradale. This Tipo F131 was produced from 1999 through 2004.