Mazda Says Fuel-Saving Rotary and 4-Cylinder Engines Will Arrive in 2011
By Scott Doggett August 21, 2009
Mazda will introduce a more fuel-efficient powertrain by 2011, kick-starting its pledge to increase fuel economy across its model line 30 percent by 2015, Automotive News (subscription required) reported today.
Mazda is developing a range of four-cylinder and rotary engines that are expected to result in higher fuel economy ratings.
For example, Seita Kanai, head of Mazda's R&D department, said a redesign of Mazda's best-selling 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine with a new six-speed automatic transmission will see city fuel economy increase to 32 miles per gallon from 22. Highway fuel economy would increase to 42 mpg from 32.
"We want to provide this technology to all owners, not just through a few eco-friendly vehicles," Kanai said in a media briefing in Monterey, California.
Mazda did not say which engine or vehicle would be the first to market with the increased efficiency. But Robert Davis, senior vice president of Mazda North American Operations R&D, said the new powertrains cannot be retrofitted to an existing product line.
Given Mazda's product cadence, the redesigned MX-5 convertible or Mazda5 small minivan likely would get the new engines first. The entire model lineup will be equipped with the new engines by 2015, Kanai said.
The 30 percent improvement in fleet fuel economy does not include improvements from idle-stop, regenerative braking or hybrid powertrain development, he said. And although hybrids are a part of Mazda's future, such technology is minor compared to the company's concentration on improving internal combustion engines.
Mazda also is concentrating its R&D resources on rotary engines. The next-generation 1.6-liter rotary is expected to have a "greater than 30 percent" fuel economy improvement while saving weight.
Mazda will not seek in-house improvements in V-6 engines, which are supplied by Ford Motor Co. Those powerplants represent such a small percentage of total Mazda volume that the automaker would prefer to continue sourcing the V-6s from Ford rather than wring improvements from the engines in-house, Kanai said.
In four-cylinder and rotary engines, Mazda said new gasoline direct-injection technology, combined with a high-pressure fuel pump and variable intake and exhaust valve timing, will bring combustion closer to an ideal level in a wider rev range.
Another part of the powertrain efficiency gains come from improved automatic transmissions that are smaller and lighter, yet have more gear ratios and can handle more torque, said Akiro Iwamoto, Mazda staff manager of powertrain technology development.
Mazda also is studying bringing its next-generation diesel engines to the United States. Currently, none of Mazda's diesels are mated to automatic transmissions, a feature generally regarded as necessary in the United States. Mazda also sees significant marketing hurdles in selling diesels to U.S. customers.
Mazda is still studying bringing its idle-stop technology to the United States, Davis said. But the automaker is having a difficult time marketing the fuel-efficiency benefit, mainly because EPA testing does not take idle-stop's efficiencies into account.
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Dang, from 22/32 to 32/42? That's a pretty awesome improvement.
That awesome improvement has got to involve more than just a new engine and tranny. Figure some kind of hybrid.
If they can get these numbers out of a regular engine, imagine what kind of mpg they can get out of a hybrid version?
I think 32/42 is doable with a conventional gasoline powertrain.
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