1989 Ford Taurus SHO Yamaha V6 Engine Article - Hot Rod Dec 1988, Page 70

This is page 70 of the December 1988 issue of Hot Rod magazine, part of an article titled "SHO of Force" covering the Ford Taurus SHO's Yamaha-built V6 engine. The page features cutaway engine illustrations and photographs with detailed captions. It explains the dual-port inlet system, which draws air from a pair of common plenum chambers with long primary runners for low-speed efficiency and short "throttled" secondary runners for high-speed power, with the secondary throttle valves controlled by the ECM. The illustrations also depict the die-cast aluminum oil pan, windage baffles, forged crankshaft, four-valve-per-cylinder layout, and tuned inlet system. The body text describes how the transition to the secondary runners is seamless because it occurs where torque from single- and dual-valve operation is equal. The intake cams are belt-driven off the crank at the front of the engine, while exhaust cams are chain-driven off the intake cams at the rear, keeping the engine compact for transverse mounting. The valvetrain uses direct-acting bucket tappets with shimmed lash adjusters requiring adjustment at 60,000 miles; hydraulic lifters were rejected due to packaging and high-rpm oil foaming. Yamaha handled engine mechanicals while Ford developed the electronics, based on the EEC-IV ECM and distributorless ignition (DIS) with crank, camshaft, and throttle position sensors.