Technical

  • New Audi valve-lift system boosts power & efficiency

    Audi will implement a new valve-lift system for its direct-injection 2.8L and 3.2L V6 engines in the A4, A5, A6 and A8 models that’s claimed to boost power and torque while also reducing fuel-consumption. The new valve-lift system works by opening and closing the valves in such a way that the correct charge of air is always drawn into the cylinders. Based on the existing variable valve timing system which permits the valve opening and closing times to be varied, the Audi valve-lift system goes a step further by varying control of the valve lift and thus influencing the cross-section of...

  • New induction system claims 25% fuel economy gains
    New induction system claims 25% fuel economy gains

    Colorado-based company PRV Performance is claiming to have invented a device that can improve fuel economy figures by around 25%. The device, called a pintle-regulated venturi, or PRV, replaces the traditional intake manifold with a venturi for each cylinder. This allows greater control for the...

  • Porsche buyers won't go for stop-start tech
    Porsche buyers won't go for stop-start tech

    The unveiling of the facelifted 911 Carrera and Carrera S is just complete, with the 911 Turbo and its Cabrio variant expected later this year. Porsche has focused on technological updates that add power and improve efficiency, including direct injection and a dual-clutch gearbox. Stop-start...

  • GM building driverless car with Carnegie Mellon
    GM building driverless car with Carnegie Mellon

    Cars that navigate complex terrain or urban environments have already been built for competitions like the DARPA's (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) various challenges. In fact, GM and Carnegie Mellon won the Urban challenge in 2007. Now the two are teaming to bring that technology to the...

  • Toyota struggling to meet hybrid demand
    Toyota struggling to meet hybrid demand

    The news of several new Toyota battery plants under construction was thought to presage the push for a 100% hybrid lineup, but the latest comments by a senior executive indicate the new plants are necessary just to keep up with current demand levels. Adding even more capacity and moving toward...

  • Mazda starts research project to develop advanced eco-plastics
    Mazda starts research project to develop advanced eco-plastics

    Mazda has signed a collaborative research agreement with Hiroshima University to launch a new ‘bioplastic’ research project with the aim to develop plastics formed from non-food-based cellulosic biomass for production vehicles by 2013. The bioplastic being developed will not consume...

  • Hydraulic hybrid system claims to double fuel efficiency

    A Scottish company has developed a new transmission technology that it claims doubles in-town fuel efficiency. Artemis Intelligent Power's hydraulic hybrid powertrain replaces the traditional port and swash plates in its hydraulic system with computer-controlled solenoid valves. The transmission, called the HEDDAT (High Efficiency Digital Displacement Automotive Transmission), yielded twice the fuel efficiency of a standard manual transmission-equipped BMW 530i in a start-stop traffic environment, reports CleanTech. The technology stores energy in hydraulic, rather than electric, form, but...

  • Production cars likely to benefit from new F1 hybrid system
    Production cars likely to benefit from new F1 hybrid system

    The company behind the new kinetic energy recovery systems (KERS) currently being developed for F1 sees its new technology eventually being used in production cars and envisages a number of different applications for motorists. The hybrid flywheel system stores energy recovered when the car slows...

  • High-tech system braces car for impact
    High-tech system braces car for impact

    Scientists working at Continental, funded by the EU's Advanced Protection Systems project (or APROSYS) have developed a computerized system that can detect when a crash is unavoidable and brace the car for the impact. The system involves a side beam that moves into place at the last second before...

  • Cyclone waste heat engine scavenges power from any heat source
    Cyclone waste heat engine scavenges power from any heat source

    Novel technologies to improve the efficiency of existing vehicles and combustion processes are the quickest route to improved fuel mileage. Hybrid cars are great examples of the approach. Another way to recover some of the energy converted into heat in the average engine is the Waste Heat Engine...

  • BMW presents next-generation hydrogen storage tank
    BMW presents next-generation hydrogen storage tank

    BMW’s research division, Forschung und Technik, has developed a next-generation hydrogen fuel storage system for cars and in the process has allowed the carmaker to edge closer to the volume production of hydrogen powered vehicles. Teaming up with partners, including Air Liquide, Daimler AG...

  • Super lattice battery technology to boost EV range
    Super lattice battery technology to boost EV range

    Superlattice Power, a North Carolina based company, has announced a new development in automotive electric battery technology that, according to its creators, will "significantly increase operating voltage range and energy density." With the new tech, electric powered vehicles will be able to...

  • Volkswagen to downsize Golf engines

    Click here for all the official information and pictures for the 2009 Volkswagen Golf Mark VI Expect to see smaller engines for Volkswagen’s brand new Golf MK 6 when it's unveiled to the public at the Paris Motor Show in October. High fuel prices are pushing buyers towards engines with less cylinders and lower displacements and VW is keen to pick up on the trend. The company recently released a 1.4L TSI ‘TwinCharger’ engine that features both a turbocharger and supercharger, but the new model may get a 1.2L or even a 1.0L mill developing 75hp. According to Wolfgang Steiger...

  • Tesla reveals details of 'powertrain 1.5' update
    Tesla reveals details of 'powertrain 1.5' update

    Tesla's problems with the gearbox and drivetrain of its early models is well-known, and early buyers of the car were assured they would get updated internals installed free of charge as soon as they were ready. That update is known internally at Tesla as 'powertrain 1.5', and the company announced...

  • Future vehicle tech to be subsidized by advertisers
    Future vehicle tech to be subsidized by advertisers

    As the automobile continues to catch up with the digital age, we’re starting to see more and more partnerships develop between car and technology companies and a new range of co-branded features come onto the market. We’ve already seen Microsoft team up with a number of carmakers to...

  • Volvo announces new 2.5L flex-fuel engine for V70, S80
    Volvo announces new 2.5L flex-fuel engine for V70, S80

    As Europe's emissions restrictions tighten and pollution awareness climbs even higher, many customers are eager to adopt alternative fuel platforms. Ethanol - or at least E85 - is one such fuel, and Volvo has been among the leaders in offering a full line of flex-fuel engines. The new engine for...

  • Japanese helping bring down the price of carbon fiber
    Japanese helping bring down the price of carbon fiber

    Lightweight body panels, engine under covers and other parts can be made from carbon fiber composites to save weight, which saves fuel by decreasing the mass to be accelerated by the engine. The implications for the future of fuel consumption and regulations are obvious. The only major problem...

  • Volkwagen adds AWD to its small-car platform
    Volkwagen adds AWD to its small-car platform

    The Volkswagen Group's small car platform forms the base for the VW Polo, Skoda Fabia and Seat Ibiza, all of which are currently only available in front-wheel drive. The next generation of the platform will get an AWD option, although not all VW Group cars will employ AWD in their cars. Seat's...

  • Hyundai says engine tech can get it halfway to CAFE

    The pinch of significantly higher U.S. fuel economy standards is beginning to get automakers talking about how they plan to meet the challenge, and Hyundai has announced a two-pronged approach. Better engine and drivetrain technology will get the company half way to its goal, and the rest will be handled by lighter materials and more efficient accessories. Because the new CAFE rules base the fuel economy requirements on the footprint of the vehicle - the area enclosed by the car's wheels - Hyundai has a target of 37.5mpg average by 2015 for its cars and trucks combined. Making the engine more...

  • BorgWarner expects huge upswing in turbo demand
    BorgWarner expects huge upswing in turbo demand

    As fuel economy standards tighten and prices rise, more car makers are turning to forced-induction solutions to improve the efficiency of existing engines. Turbochargers are the most efficient way to do so, and Detroit firm BorgWarner sees rising demand in North America, Europe and China as its...

  • ZF modifies 8-speed auto for stop-start capability
    ZF modifies 8-speed auto for stop-start capability

    ZF's latest entry into the ever-escalating automatic transmission wars, an eight-speed unit, has just been updated to include compatibility with stop-start technology. This will allow the close-geared system to shut the engine down when the vehicle comes to a stop, yet fire the engine back up and...

  • Nissan Murano concept with X-by-wire technology
    Nissan Murano concept with X-by-wire technology

    X-by-wire technology, a feature that uses wires and electrical impulses to replace mechanical linkages for the control of major systems such as steering, braking and gear changes, has been used in the past by Mercedes-Benz and Toyota but has never really taken off because of safety concerns and the...

  • Volkswagen reveals production BlueTDI for U.S. market
    Volkswagen reveals production BlueTDI for U.S. market

    Today marks the unveiling of the production version of Volkswagen's U.S.-targeted diesel powertrain. First debuted in Volkswagen's Tiguan BlueTDI early in March at the Geneva Motor Show, the BlueTDI technology has been developed specifically for the North American market. With its clean emissions...

  • F1 KERS to phase-in until 2013, power boost buttons on the way
    F1 KERS to phase-in until 2013, power boost buttons on the way

    Starting in 2009, the introduction of the energy recovery system KERS in formula one will be gradual, the governing body has confirmed. In a letter to teams that was seen by the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport, Max Mosley said the implementation of the ground breaking Kinetic Energy Recover...

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