Honda has made a name for itself with cleaner emission cars. It was the first to meet the stricter U.S. emissions standards of the 1970s, without using a catalytic converter. But this was on gasoline engines. It needed a diesel for Europe, so it reinvented the engine again with the i-DTEC clean diesel engine for the European Accord.
It’s a great history lesson, but the real point of telling that was to get up to speed with the last New York Auto Show. There Honda CEO Takeo Fukui announced that 2009 would see Honda’s first clean diesel engine to be sold in the U.S. The car of choice would be the 2009 Acura TSX - not surprising considering that the TSX is basically the European Accord.
Less than a year later it seems the guys over at Temple of VTEC got the scoop from a tipster that the U.S. diesel has been "delayed indefinitely". The reason: emissions certification failure (really, Honda?)
It’s reported that the manual transmission version of the i-DTEC TSX cleared emissions certification, but the automatic-equipped version has been unable to pass certification. Acura believes that the lazy americans will likely not go for a diesel if they have to go the row-your-own route. In its place Acura will likely drop a V6 into the TSX.
Toyota has worked hard to create a green image with their cars. Now they are taking it one step further by adding solar panels to cargo ships that transport their cars to the United States. Two Japanese firms are building a solar power system to augment the diesel engines aboard the vessels. Fuel consumption on the 60,000-ton boat will be cut by 6.5 percent. Doesn’t sound like much? Well when you take into account that each ship burns approximately 120 gallons per mile, 6.5 percent can be a huge savings. The trip from Japan to California is around 6,000 miles, so the solar paneled cargo ship will save 46,800 gallons of fuel. In other words, on a solar ship carrying 5,000 Toyota’s, each car purchased would have saved nine gallons of fuel before customers ever even saw it.
The solar ships not only save fuel, but they also clear the air. Cargo ships burn "bunker fuel," the truly nasty stuff that literally comes from the bottom of the barrel. A study published in Environmental Science and Technology found emissions from the bunker fuel cargo ships burn may cause 60,000 deaths worldwide. Also contributing a whopping 44 percent of the sulphate found in fine particulate matter in the atmosphere of coastal California. So even the smallest cut in usage of "bunker fuels" is a huge step for Toyota and its cargo carriers.
And you thought the solar panel in the new Prius was a big deal.
Good Morning America gets a closer look at the new Chevrolet Volt, including a preview of the production car’s looks and the interior design. A lot of rumors have been going around about the Volt and its ambitious timetable, and this report shows that GM’s own people are really feeling the crunch.
We take an exclusive look at Mercedes new BlueTEC Diesel.
Diesel has been a dirty word in the U.S. for numerous years. Unfortunately for many people, the fuel brings to mind images of black smoke oozing from tailpipes or large trucks with a thirst for power. But times are changing. For decades diesel has been the building block for fuel economy technology, and now it has also shifted into leading the way to cleaner emissions. One prime example of this is the new Mercedes BlueTEC engine, and it has given the TopSpeed Team access to preview the new diesel.
Most diesel fans know that Mercedes has been offering a
low-sulfur enging called BlueTEC since 2006 in the E-Class, but Mercedes has a new innovation for the engine called AdBlue. This additive to the exhaust reduces part of the harmful gasses into harmless nitrogen and water vapor. For more information on the science behind AdBlue, watch the official video below.
The engine will be available in U.S. this fall on ML, GL, and R-Class SUVs. Each car will receive similar V-6 engines, each making 210 bhp and 398 lb.ft. of torque. An example of performance is the GL 320 BlueTEC achieves an estimated 23 mpg (highway), which Mercedes claims is a benefit of approximately 20 to 40 percent over a comparable gasoline engine.
Cars are becoming more efficient inside and out. Engines discharge lower pollutants, transmissions use longer gearing to better fuel economy, and even interiors are being manufactured out of more recyclable materials. The next frontier is utilizing state of the art manufacturing operations that use less energy.
Japanese carmaker Toyota has turned its engineering eye to the paint shop at its Tsutsumi plant in Japan. According to Toyota, because of multiple coats and “drying ovens”, almost a quarter of all energy needed to build a car goes into the painting process. So now it is using a new approach called "3-Wet", which eliminates a “drying oven” and decreases energy usage by 15 percent.
The purpose behind a greener painting process is not difficult to understand. Hybrids and electric vehicles that Toyota is going to mass-manufacture in the future are mild on the environment, and the manufacturing procedures that go into making such vehicles should be eco-friendly as well. Luxury models like the Lexus sedans won’t use the technology since multiple finishes are needed for them, but eco-conscious models like the Prius will utilize the new paint technology.
Toyota feels this new energy-saver technology is necessary because of the nature of manufacturing. "Our production has grown over the last decade so much the energy required to manufacture each and every vehicle has also grown considerable overall," said Takeshi Uchiyamada, the executive overseeing production.
When it comes to air quality, Beijing tops the list of the worst. Now that the city will be on worldwide display at this summer’s Olympics, images of hazy skies and athletes wearing facemasks to stay healthy will not look well for the city. So today, in an effort to lift the fog, Chinese authorities started a program that uses license plates to prohibit some passenger cars from the city. During alternate days, only even or odd numbered plates will be allowed on the roads of China’s capital city. Beijing is reported to be home to about 3.5 million total vehicles, and this ban should take about one million passenger vehicles off the road.
Beijing is doing its best to keep its citizens happy while it tries to impress the world. So until the ban is lifted in September, no one will have to pay road and vehicle taxes. This is part of a larger comprehensive plan that has included stopping large construction projects, closing high-polluting factories, and even firing large projectiles into the clouds to encourage rain.
The Fiji Islands bring to mind images gorgeous beaches and fine weather. Utilizing the quiet and humble nature of electric cars is the newest idea to help to ensure this harmony and peace. Korean electric car manufacturer CT and T, is interested in setting up a production plant to serve the island’s personal transportation needs, as well as exporting to nearby New Zealand and Australia.
The CT and T e-zone should fit this plan well. It uses a four wheel independent suspension, a rigid aluminium frame, and meets a few European and American safety standards. It additionally has a few appealing options, including lithium ion power units, an airbag for safety, and even in-wheel motors. Its 60 mile+ radius with the lithium option makes it a competent and clean choice for the citizens and visitors of Fiji.
Sometime in the future, gas stations would switch to selling gas. Gas in the sense, air, which when compressed to an extent, has enough energy to help a specially designed engine, generate power. Big companies like BMW and Mercedes-Benz, are interested in looking for other ways to run their cars, and might want to take a close look at these air powered engines.
Sure, these things make a lot of noise and don’t coax out enough horsepower, but with time and research, things could change drastically. Just like how electric cars or hybrid cars have evolved and reached a certain stage where the trade-offs are not considerable and offer a number of advantages over the normal cars, soon air powered engines might catch on and small-car manufacturers could use them on a large scale.
Poland is emerging as one of the world’s leading places from where green and fuel efficient engines are born. Toyota’s 1-liter engine which is presently performing duties on the Aygo small car, won the International engine of the year award a while back. That engine was also developed in Poland giving us strong hints that Poland should be one of the best countries for developing and manufacturing small engines.
Italian manufacturer Fiat has put its hand up and decided to manufacture a low emission 900cc gasoline engine in Poland. Unlike any of the engines present in European cars today, this one would be the smallest of the lot with only 2 cylinders. The new engine will give life to Fiat’s new microcar, the Topolino, when launched late next year for European markets.
Sufficient engine options will be on offer for the Topolino, ranging from a 65hp normally aspirated version to a turbcharged 110hp version equipped with Fiat’s Multiair adjustable valve timing (110hp from a 900 c.c engine?!) which promises to be powerful yet frugal. I guess there are more reasons for Mercedes and Toyota to worry about as the Topolino is likely to be another massive hit.
One can expect to see this engine in cars like the 500, Grande Punto and Panda a few years from now on, especially with the emission norms getting tougher, the idea of a 2-cylinder and sub-100 gram per kilometer of CO2 emission engine is definitely a bright one.
The Tata Nano continues to make headlines both for the right and wrong reasons since its unveiling at the Delhi AutoExpo in January this year. Land acquisition trouble and rising inflation which has past well over 11% in the country has created a new set of problems for Tata, although the manufacturer is hell-bent on retailing the base model at $2,500 and more importantly on the previously decided dead line of anytime between September and October.
The good news is that Tata is working on multiple variants of the Nano. No, not bumper colors or alloy wheels, by variants, we mean powertrain options. Sources say a battery powered Nano might roll out of the Singur plant in West Bengal very shortly along with air-powered and micro-hybrid (start-stop technology) models.
The compressed air technology would be borrowed from French company MDI, which uses compressed air to push the piston. An onboard compressor pressurizes air which is stored in a tank for use, a technology which works pretty well, and is one of the best alternatives to an electric car.
Otherwise, the Tata Nano uses a 2-cylinder 624 cc engine that produces a little over 30 hp. The tailpipe emissions are minimal and is less than what an average motorcycle in India would emit.
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