Willem Weertman is an American engineer known for his work as an engineer at

Chrysler Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automoti ...

Corporation, where he was actively involved in the creation of many of the company's most famous engines, including the Slant Six, 2.2 four, and LA V8 (318, 360). He graduated from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

with a bachelor of engineering degree in 1947 before joining the Chrysler Institute of Engineering; in 1949 he started work at the Plymouth Assembly Plant before spending 1950–1952 with the Navy in the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. In 1954 Weertman became the first resident engineer for the Plymouth Mound Road V8 engine plant, which started producing A-engines in 1955. In December 1955, Weertman was promoted up to the Engine Design Department of Chrysler's Central Engineering department and assigned a title of Manager - Engine Design. In this capacity he worked on the

Chrysler B engine The Chrysler B and RB engines are a series of V8 engine#American, big-block V8 gasoline engines introduced in 1958 to replace the Chrysler Hemi engine#First_Generation: FirePower, Chrysler FirePower (first generation Hemi) engines. The B and RB ...

and Slant Six, which would become known for its durability and at the time was considered to have high performance for its size. Valiants powered by this engine took first through seventh place in the first and only NASCAR sanctioned compact-car race. After the success of these engines, Weertman was promoted to Assistant Chief Engineer-Engine Design. He worked on the successful adaptation of the

Chrysler A engine The Chrysler A engine is a small-block V8 gasoline engine built by Chrysler with polyspherical combustion chambers. It was produced from 1956 until 1967, when it was replaced by the wedge-head LA engine, although the LA was in production alon ...

to a new lightweight casting design, which incorporated other improvements as well, and was designated the

Chrysler LA engine The LA engines are a family of pushrod OHV small block 90° V-configured gasoline engines built by Chrysler Corporation. It was factory-installed in passenger vehicles, trucks and vans, commercial vehicles, marine and industrial applications from ...

; this series was made from 1964 through 1993, with a major redesign during those years resulting in SMPI "Magnum" engines which continued until 2002, while a racing engine based on the design is still made, as is the derivative V-10 all-alloy engine which is in every

Dodge Viper The Dodge Viper is a sports car that was manufactured by Dodge (by SRT for 2013 and 2014), a division of American car manufacturer FCA US LLC from 1992 until 2017, having taken a brief hiatus in 2007 and from 2010 to 2012. Production of the two ...

to this day. An iron V-10 was available for HD pickup trucks, filling in for the B and RB engines which were discontinued after 1978. Weertman also had a major influence on the overhead valve straight-six engines made and sold in Australia known as the Hemi Six. Originally destined for US light truck duty (which never happened), these engines were designed primarily for performance and light weight; a Valiant Charger equipped with the largest of the Hemi Sixes was actually faster than the same car powered by a larger V8 engine, and set a local-production acceleration record that endured until 1988. Following this, Weertman was promoted to Chief Engineer - Engine Design and Development, a position which he held until retirement. From this point he worked mainly on four cylinder engines, as well as a V6 adaptation of the successful LA design for the

Dodge Dakota The Dodge Dakota, known as the Ram Dakota for the final two years of production, is a mid-size pickup truck from Chrysler's Ram (formerly Dodge Truck) division. The first Dakota was introduced in late 1986 as a 1987 model. From its introduction th ...

. Weertman retired from Chrysler Corporation after forty years but remained active, producing a 400-page book covering every engine made by Chrysler from 1922 until the company was taken over in 1998, "Chrysler Engines 1922-1998," published by the Society of Automotive Engineers.

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* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Weertman, Willem Chrysler executives 21st-century American engineers People in the automobile industry American people of Dutch descent Living people Year of birth missing (living people)