Mazda zooms in on fuel efficiency
Automaker has adopted new engine technology, will see improvement as high as 30%
As automakers ramp up their offerings of alternative powertrains, the pipe dream of pure electric vehicles (PEV) is no longer a myth but a reality.
However, there remains one big problem: Pure electrics account for less than 1 per cent of total vehicle sales.
On the flip side, advancements toward improving fuel efficiency within internal combustion engines are at an all-time high yet seem to get lost in the shuffle. One has to look no further than fuel gains made by the latest Ram 1500, Chevrolet Silverado or Mercedes-Benz G-Class — all of them showing remarkable fuel-efficiency turnarounds.
For a while, all automotive brands have been focused on fuel savings, but that progress drastically sped up under the Obama administration in the U.S. The Obama government mandate to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions below 2005 levels by 2020 set the tone for all automakers to find ways to come close to those goals across the product line. (Some automakers attempted short cuts with a whatever-means-necessary approach, but that’s not for this discussion.)
Countries in Europe and Asia have set the bar even higher. China has been the biggest influencer in this space as it plans to kill off the internal combustion engine as soon as 2030. But 2030 is a long time from now, and plans can always extend or change course. With gas vehicles still the dominant version on the road today, those vehicles are the ones still making the biggest impact on the environment; not so much pure electrics and hybrids.
“While PEV technology is advancing rapidly, there is still a lot of life left in the internal combustion engine,” explains Brett Smith, co-director of conference strategy at the Center for Automotive Research at the University of Michigan. “The recent shift from port fuel injection to direct injection, and increased use of turbo chargers, along with near-term technology such as variable compression ratios and homogeneous charge compression ignition indicate that the gasoline engine is clearly a moving target.”
Alternative powertrains send out a direct message about preserving the environment and that’s a preferred dialogue that works best for most automakers and politicians. It’s rare to see an automaker touting fuel-efficient gas vehicles as its No. 1 plan of action, but as Smith put it, there’s still a lot of life left — and that’s where Mazda comes in.
“The goal should be to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, not to try to determine what technology will be embraced,” explains Massey Kondo, president and CEO of Mazda Canada. “The industry has never dictated what consumers will buy — the consumer does.”
In accordance with Kondo’s statement, Mazda has adopted a new engine technology that will see a fuel efficiency improvement as high as 30 per cent from its current gas-engine crop starting in 2019. On top of lightweight material savings, Mazda will utilize a process called spark controlled compression ignition that almost eliminates the need for spark plugs in its gas engine. Instead, the engine will be ignited through compression. Spark plugs will still be used, but in a different capacity to control the fuel mixture that’s swirled, creating a vortex and eventual spark for engine combustion.
“Our philosophy is that if we make existing engines more efficient, we will be able to make a bigger impact globally on carbon dioxide emission reductions,” Kondo adds. “Especially when you look at adding electric devices, such as idling stop, regenerative braking and hybrid technologies, to those ultra-efficient engines; when the base technology is efficient, it makes everything more efficient.”
That new-found efficiency should also place its diesel work far in the background as, according to Mazda, this new engine technology potentially matches the performance level of diesels including an increase in torque, without any stigma attached. In addition, it provides better fuel economy ratings, as well as reliability in cold climates.
“Gasoline engines perform remarkably well in a wide range of environments — for example, in cold weather, where advanced batteries tend to have challenges-and have an established and reliable fuelling infrastructure,” Smith adds.
“The ability to fuel up and get close to 600 kilometres of range in four minutes in any weather is a pretty tough bogie to meet.”
This doesn’t mean Mazda is going “all in” just on gas, despite a bold statement, plan and philosophy surrounding its new and improved gas engines. It’s hedging its bets through a current arrangement with fellow Japanese brand Toyota on developing electrified cars. The first of those introductions are expected to roll out in 2019 for certain markets with more stringent electrification policies.
“For Mazda, our goal is to reduce emissions on a well-to-wheel basis — from the point of fuel extraction to driving the vehicle — as we feel that will have the greatest impact,” Kondo explains.
“To do that on a global level requires a multi-technology approach. We need to be able to deploy the right technology for each market depending on their fuel source and consumer demands.”
For the past five years, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has ranked Mazda as having the best corporate average fuel economy of any automaker. That feat is more impressive when you factor in no hybrid or electric vehicle on its active vehicle roster. But the pedal is still on full throttle with a new goal of reducing its corporate average well-to-wheel CO2 emissions by 50 per cent come 2030.
Whichever way you slice it, the industry will be shifting in the way of electric cars. The questions of “how many” and “in what capacity” still remain. Smith believes a shift will eventually occur, but “gasoline engines, whether alone, or supplemented with electric motors and advanced batteries, will likely be an important part of the automotive sector for years to come.”
Until that time, Mazda hopes its plan starting in 2019 can take advantage of an industry too focused on the future, allowing them to maintain its leading EPA status for vehicles actually on the road.
“If we make existing engines more efficient, we will be able to make a bigger impact globally.” MASSEY KONDO MAZDA CANADA CEO