In Our Lives Getting More Power For Less Gas (NAPSA)—As fuel costs rise, more and more American drivers are looking for more energy efficient vehicles. For many, the power of a V-8 engine is useful for hauling cargo, —_— ™ carrying passengers, towing a trailer or climbing mountains and hills—and for giving your car truly impressive acceleration. With a smaller engine, those are difficult tasks at best, especially in combination. More mundaneactivities need far less power. If you have a V-8 in your vehicle, it’s drawing power— and burning expensive fuel—even under driving conditions for which a four-cylinder engine is more than adequate, and more efficient. Unfortunately, it’s impossible to have two enginesin onecar. However, one carmaker has done the next best thing. The Chrysler Group found a way to make a HEmI V-8 run as a fourcylinder engine underlight-load conditions, such as highway cruising at moderate speeds. The exclusive Multi-Displacement System (MDS) seamlessly turnsoff the fuel consumption in four cylinders of the 5.7-liter HEMI engine when V-8 power is not needed. This provides a world-class combination of performance andfuel economy. The system calculates the power needed based on information such as engine load, throttle opening, engine speed and vehicle speed. The system deactivates half the engine’s cylindersin 1/40 of a second, shutting the valves and cut- The Multi-Displacement System is a stroke of genius. ting off the fuel supply. Electronic adjustments to the throttle mean you don’t notice a thing. This could cut gas consumption as much as 20 percent. In tests, reporters and other drivers said they couldn’t tell when the vehicle switched from one mode to another. Reviewers found no adverseeffects to vehicle performanceatall. Allowing V-8 performance without V-8 fuel consumption, Chrysler’s cylinder deactivation may be a technology whose time has come. The 2005 Chrysler 300C is the first modern production vehi- cle in North America to feature cylinder deactivation. The technology is standard on the Chrysler 300C, as well as on the Dodge Magnum RT and the new HEMI- powered Jeeps Grand Cherokee. Later this year, MDS will be available on the Dodge Charger and Jeep Commander. For more information, see your Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep dealer or go to the Web sites at www.chrysler.com, www.dodge.com and www.jeep.com.
