What is Variable Cylinder Management in My Acura?

Posted on February 3, 2017

You don’t want to spend more money on fuel than you have to, and Acura understands. So picture this: you accelerate from a stop with a little extra spirit than necessary and your Acura’s engine happily obliges with a hearty effort. But once you get to your cruising speed, you don’t need as much power as during acceleration, but you’re still burning fuel in all your cylinders. That’s what Variable Cylinder Management is for.

What is Variable Cylinder Management?

If you could turn off a few cylinders to save on fuel, that would come in handy at times. That’s what Acura’s Variable Cylinder Management (VCM) does for you, and much faster than you could do it on your own. VCM uses your engine’s oil pressure to activate and deactivate cylinders in select Acura engine designs. It happens faster than you can imagine and the transition is seamless. In most cases, you won’t even notice cylinders have been deactivated. Depending on the situation, either two or three cylinders are deactivated. The moment you need all your engine’s power, the cylinders are activated without a moment’s hesitation.   In a V6 engine, however, achieving balance with deactivated cylinders is tricky. The result is a vibration through the powertrain, which can be felt inside the cabin. Acura has taken this into consideration and worked to minimize the vibration. Electronically controlled, fluid-filled engine mounts are employed and activated along with VCM. You might still feel a very minor vibration when you’re driving at a constant speed or idling. That’s the VCM activated, and it’s not a concern. You’ll know that’s all it is because when you press the gas, the vibration disappears as all the cylinders become active.   If you’re concerned about a vibration that you don’t think is normal, or if you have a Check Engine light illuminated along with the vibration, give us a call or a visit at Jay Wolfe Acura in Kansas City. We’d be happy to ensure your Acura is running the way it should.