Mazda to double annual production capacity of SKYACTIV Engines to 800,000 units; increasing capacity for CX-5

Mazda Motor Corporation will double production capacity at its engine plant in Hiroshima from 400,000 units to 800,000 units per year in October 2012. The plant produces SKYACTIV-D diesel engines and SKYACTIV-G gasoline engines. The capacity increase is made in response to increasing demand for cars incorporating the company’s SKYACTIV Technology.
SKYACTIV-G is a highly efficient, new-generation direct-injection gasoline engine. Mazda engineers overcame the problem of abnormal combustion (knocking) to achieve the highest compression ratio for a mass production gasoline engine for vehicles. It is presently available in the Mazda Demio for the Japanese market, the Mazda Axela (known overseas as the Mazda3) for the North American and Australian market, and the Mazda CX-5, currently being launched in markets around the world. It will also be available in the next generation Mazda Atenza (known overseas as Mazda6) to be released later this year.
The SKYACTIV-D is a new-generation diesel engine that complies with global exhaust gas regulations without the need for a costly NO_x aftertreatment system. It achieves the lowest compression ratio for a mass production diesel engine for vehicles. The first model to be equipped with the SKYACTIV-D is the Mazda CX-5 for the Japanese, European and Australian markets. It will also be available in the next generation Mazda Atenza/Mazda6 to be released later this year.
Mazda intends to sell 1,700,000 units globally in the fiscal year ending March 2016. Models employing SKYACTIV TECHNOLOGY are expected to account for 80% of total sales.
Mazda also will increase production capacity of its new crossover SUV, Mazda CX-5, from 200,000 units to 240,000 units per year. This will be achieved by expanding production from Ujina Plant No.2 to also include Ujina Plant No.1. Upgrades to the assembly line are based on Mazda’s manufacturing system innovation called Monotsukuri Innovation and will enable production of new generation SKYACTIV products at Ujina Plant No.1 earlier than anticipated. The move is made in response to increasing demand for the CX-5 in countries all over the world.


Source: Green Car Congress

Honda Fit EV uses Clarity fuel-cell components to boost range

The Honda Fit EV, which starts leasing on the West Coast later this month, uses components from Honda's four-year-old Clarity hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicle to boost the EV's single-charge range, Bloomberg reports.

Electric-motor controllers and air-conditioning are among the Clarity parts used in the Fit EV, Bloomberg said, citing Honda senior chief engineer Sachito Fujimoto. The Clarity's braking system, which recaptures some of the energy from braking at applies it to available electric power, is also used in the Fit EV. Such components allow for the Fit to have a smaller lithium-ion battery pack than the ones used in the Ford Focus Electric and Nissan Leaf.

Last month, the Fit EV was given an EPA-rated 118 miles-per-gallon equivalent rating – the second-highest ever to the now-discontinued-in-the-U.S. Tesla Roadster's 119 MPGe. The Fit EV's single-charge range was estimated at 82 miles, the largest of any non-Tesla U.S. production vehicle.

Honda said last week that the Fit EV will be available for lease in California and Oregon for $389 a month, which is $60 a month more than the Leaf leases for, and $140 a month more than the Mitsubishi i's lease terms.



Source: Autoblog Green

Ford to exceed EcoBoost target by 100,000 units

Ford is having a tough time in Europe right now and its per-share stock price is lagging, but that isn't stopping the automaker from exceeding other goals. The Detroit Free Press reports that sales of the Blue Oval's EcoBoost turbocharged engines are beyond expectations. In fact, Ford is reportedly on track to sell 1.6 million of these forced-induction vehicles in 2013, or 100,000 more units than it had previously estimated.

The smaller, more efficient EcoBoost powerplants will make the Ford lineup more efficient, and a program to cut down the amount of platforms the automaker uses globally will trim costs. Ford product development chief Raj Nair claims that the automaker is on track to trim down its platforms from 22 in 2011 to 10 by 2017. The move will likely save Ford many millions of dollars as platform costs drop as scale increases. Perhaps more importantly for consumers, the added efficiency of the powertrains will have a positive impact at the pump.



Source: Autoblog Green