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Automotive slide 1

New Class The New Class (German: Neue Klasse) was a line of compact sedans and coupes starting with the 1962 1500 and continuing through the last 2002s in 1977.

Automotive slide 2

Finally, Speed Matches Style By Nate Martinez In the decade or so it's been on the market, the Audi TT has become world renowned for its avant garde style, but it's never ranked high as a true sports car.

Automotive slide 3

Silverline Chevrolet Cruze will be factory backed in the 2010 BTCC. This year, the BTCC is going to be hotting up, with the Chevrolet Cruze coming in as a manufacturer backed team!

Automotive slide 4

Mazda Engine SpecificationsE5 TURBO Type 1490cc EFI OHC 8-valve 4-cyl Power 86kW @ 5800rpm Torque 162Nm @ 3500rpm Gearboxes FWD 5sp Source 83-84 Familia XGR turbo (fits earlier Laser and 323) B6 Type 1597cc EFI DOHC 16-valve 4-cycle

Automotive slide 5

The ‘Ice Speed Record’ model doesn’t fail to impress with its interior features as well: a carbon fiber with red weave high-gloss finishing and the most exquisite leather and Alcantara cabin components. The Supersports Continental Convertible ISR, which comes in three colors, has an estimated priced of £189,300 ($ 309,022 USD) and available at authorized Bentley automobile dealerships.

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Minggu, 04 Desember 2011

Selasa, 06 April 2010

Hybrid Car Brands

Just who is making hybrid cars these days and what brands are considering making hybrid cars in the future?

Major Hybrid Car Brands
Hybrid cars are currently being built and sold by General Motors, Ford, Honda, Toyota and Nissan. General Motors builds hybrid cars under several divisions including Saturn, Chevrolet, and GMC.  Ford has the Mercury and Ford divisions.  Toyota sells hybrids under the brand name of Lexus .  While Honda and Nissan just sell hybrids under their own name plates.

Toyota
Under the Toyota brand name, there are three models currently on sale. The iconic Prius is almost synonymous with hybrid and is the first car most people think of when they think of hybrids. Toyota also sells the Camry Hybrid and Highlander Hybrid under the moniker of Toyota.

Toyota also has their luxury division, the Lexus hybrids. Under the Lexus brand name, Toyota sells the HS, LS, RX, and GS Hybrids. They keep adding models under the Lexus nameplate, so expect and IS hybrid to arrive soon. The HS hybrid is a dedicated model like the Prius. The others are subtypes under the model. In other words, you can buy gas-only models, or you can opt for the hybrid engine.

Honda
Honda sells the Civic Hybrid under their brand name. They also currently sell the only other dedicated hybrid on the road, the Insight. They used to sell a Hybrid Accord, and the two-seater hybrid Insight, but have retired both models.

Expect to see Acura Hybrids in the future.

Nissan
Nissan has only one hybrid model for sale, the Nissan Altima Hybrid. It is built using hybrid technology from Toyota and is sold in only eight US states. Nissan has plans to bring an Infiniti M35 Hybrid to market in the coming year.

General Motors (Cadillac, Chevy, Saturn, GMC)
They build several models (currently) using the Chevrolet brand. There is the Chevy Malibu and Chevy Silverado. The Chevy Volt, the Extended Range Electric Vehicle (E-REV), will be out soon and while GM considers the Volt to be a subtype of electric vehicle, it still falls under the hybrid type.

GM also builds the GMC Yukon and Sierra. And the Cadillac Escalade Hybrid also falls under the GM brand.

The Saturn brand was at one point, the cornerstone for hybrids under the GM umbrella. But Saturn is no more. You can still see the hybrid Vue and Aura on the road today.

Ford
Ford sells four different models under two different brand names. The Mercury Division sells the Milan and Mariner Hybrid. While Ford retains the Fusion and Escape Hybrid. The Lincoln division will have its own hybrid soon, but it's not here yet. The Mercury hybrids are the upgraded version of the Ford Hybrids, so expect them to be very similar if you take a look at both of them.

Chrysler
Chrysler sold the Aspen and Durango Hybrids for a total of two months before pulling the plug on both models. The Dodge Durango is very similar to the Chrysler Aspen, and both were built using the dual hybrid technology developed in partnership with BMW and GM.

Chrysler at one point had plans to bring a Dodge Ram Hybrid to market, but that seems to be on hold.

Hyundai
Hyundai is jumping in with both feet in the next year, with the Sonata Hybrid. Distinguishing itself from the other hybrids listed above, it's going to be one of the first hybrids to use lithium polymer battery packs, giving it an advantage over some of the more established hybrid models and brands listed above.

Mazda
Mazda has sold the Tribute hybrid in very limited numbers.  The Tribute was built using Ford Hybrid technology, when Mazda and Ford were a lot tighter than they are today.  Now Mazda is looking to partner with Toyota for the technology used in the Prius for their future hybrid model in 2013.

Fisker and Tesla
Fisker and Tesla are both bringing hybrid cars to market (they probably don't appreciate being lumped together given the lawsuits over the past few years). These startups are working hard to go straight to electric or hybrid and are emphasizing performance, rather than fuel efficiency right from the get go.

Audi, Subaru, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Daimler, Ferrari, Lotus, Kia, Maserati, Porsche, Suzuki, Volkswagen and Volvo
Each of the brands mentioned above are attempting their own hybrid models, and several have brought some noteworthy test models to auto shows. Several are on their way to bringing those cars to market right now, but are still a few years away from seeing them on the road in more than just 'test fleets'. Some are closer than others, while some probably have no intention of ever going hybrid unless they are forced to do so by the tighter restrictions being enforced in Europe, Asia and the US in the coming years.

Looking for more information on one of the brands above?
Either search for the brand name here on this site or use the categories below or on the sidebars.  Each of the major brands listed will have more information that I've accumulated over the years.

Senin, 29 Maret 2010

Mazda Will Have Hybrid Technology From Toyota

Despite the back and forth last week (Toyota will be hybrid components, Toyota won't be supplying hybrid components), Toyota and Mazda did get together and ink a deal.

Expect Mazdas first hybrid sedan to show up in 2013, using hybrid components supplied by Toyota. Mazda will be piggy-backing on Toyota's already extensive research and practical use of hybrid technology, while Toyota will be helping reduce its own costs by the art of economies of scale.

Toyota has also supplied parts to Nissan over the past few years for the Nissan Altima Hybrid.

The Mazda hybrid may only be available in Japan (base on the following quote:
"Hybrids are spreading fast in Japan, and launching a model in the domestic market has become an urgent task," Mazda Executive Vice President Masaharu Yamaki told a joint news conference in Tokyo.

Mazda had to go elsewhere now that Ford is no longer as big a partner.

The press release from Mazda and Toyota:

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) and Mazda Motor Corporation (Mazda) have reached an agreement on the supply under license of hybrid technology used in the Toyota Prius.

Leveraging this agreement, Mazda plans to combine the hybrid system with its next-generation SKY* engine that is currently under development, and develop and manufacture a hybrid vehicle in Japan. Mazda is aiming to commence sales of a hybrid vehicle starting in Japan by 2013.

Positioning response to environmental issues as a management priority, TMC began sales of the Prius, the world's first mass-production hybrid vehicle, in 1997. Since then, over 2.3 million TMC-produced hybrid vehicles have been delivered to customers in over 70 countries and regions.

TMC recognizes the importance of benefiting the environment by encouraging the popularization of its eco-friendly technologies, which are represented by its hybrid systems. Accordingly, TMC has announced that it will consider requests from other companies to supply hybrid technology.

Based on its long-term vision for technology development, Sustainable Zoom-Zoom, Mazda aims to increase the average fuel economy of Mazda vehicles sold globally 30 percent by 2015, compared to its 2008 level. In order to offer all of its customers driving pleasure as well as outstanding eco-friendly and safety performance, Mazda is implementing a Building Block Strategy. Under this strategy, Mazda will enhance the core aspects of its vehicles - including engines, transmissions and weight reduction - and then progressively add electric devices such as idling stop, regenerative braking and hybrid systems.

Through this partnership, each company intends to offer technologies and products with outstanding environmental benefits to as many people as possible.

*Concept name for engines and transmissions that are intended for launch from 2011 onward.

Jumat, 26 Maret 2010

Toyota May Not be Supplying Mazda

Toyota is now saying "Nothing has been decided" in a reply about the possible deal with Mazda.

Yesterday, a Nikkei report said a deal had been struck. Toyota would supply the hybrid components. Mazda would build a hybrid sedan by 2013.

But it seems that the deal is not finalized.

Kamis, 25 Maret 2010

Mazda Hybrid by 2013 via Toyota

A Nikkei report (via Reuters) says Toyota will be supplying Mazda with some key hybrid components. That will give Mazda the ability to put a hybrid vehicle on the road by 2013.

Mazda will introduce a midsize hybrid vehicle by 2013, putting them years behind the major players (Toyota, Honda, GM, and Ford).

Toyota will be selling their Toyota Hybrid System II (THS II) to Mazda, which includes the battery, electric motor, a generator and a power control unit.

Nissan has used hybrid components from Toyota to build their Nissan Altima Hybrid. By selling their components to other auto makers, Toyota helps defray their cost to develop the Hybrid Synergy Drive by building up their economies of scale.

Jumat, 18 Desember 2009

Mazda May Be Talking to Toyota About Hybrids

Mazda may be in talks with Toyota to develop hybrid vehicles for their line-up.
Mazda May Follow Suzuki, Mitsubishi With Alliance (Update2) - Bloomberg.com
Mazda has said it plans to introduce its own hybrid car, yet it also is in talks to use Toyota’s system, said Koji Endo, managing director of Advanced Research Japan in Tokyo.

Supplying the system would add volume and cut costs for Toyota, Endo said.

“Even if there were talks of any alliance, I wouldn’t be able to speak about it,” Toyota Executive Vice President Takeshi Uchiyamada said Dec. 14.
Mazda, like other car makers, are being pushed towards fuel efficiency technology and developing a hybrid system on their own may be just too expensive to do it on their own.

The article points out Mazda has been working with Ford primarily for years as Ford owned a sizeable stake in the company. But with Ford selling off a big chunk, Mazda will need to look to other car companies to partner with in order to move forward.

Senin, 05 Oktober 2009

Mazda Looks to Raise $1 Billion to Research Hybrids

Mazda is looking to raise $1.1 billion through a share offering. The automakers plans on spending $670 million on Research and Development. The rest will go towards capital investment. The monies will come from issuing 315.2 million new shares and selling 96.8 million treasury shares.

Mazda is expected to spend $3.3 billion in R&D over the next three years. They will be focusing on improving the internal combustion engine (ICE) and developing hybrid technology. Mazda has said they would improve their ICE fuel efficiency by 30 percent by 2015.

The capital improvements will be used for the production facilities and R&D facilities to create those next generation products.

Ford's stake in the company will be diluted from 13.8% down to about 11 percent.

Source: Autonews

Rabu, 26 Agustus 2009

Mazda Looking to Up Fuel Economy by 2015

Seems like a long time from now, but Mazda is planning on increasing their fleet fuel economy by 30% over the next five or six years.

Mazda will be working on its powertrain, but without giving up the rotary engine.  They are looking to add in idle-stop (start-stop technology) and direct injection spark ignition.  That may also lead to regenerative braking, electric power steering, and electric water pumps.


The direct injection spark ignition will have a combination of smaller displacement, higher power output, and greater efficiency.  It's estimated the 2.0 liter four-cylinder engines paired with the new transmissions will increase city and highway fuel economy by 10 mpg to 32 and 42 mpg, respectively.





Mazda is also considering lightening up the frame using alternate structural materials and new bonding tech.

The next generation of engines will most likely start with the redesign of the 2013 RX-8, Mazda 5, or the MX-5 Miata.

Kamis, 16 Juli 2009

Mazda to Buy Hybrid System From Toyota

According to a Nikkei report (via GCC), Mazda will be entering into a deal with Toyota for their hybrid system to be inserted into Mazda vehicles starting in 2013. (Sounds similar to the deal with Nissan and the Altima hybrid???)

The deal is expected to conclude soon, with Toyota supplying "batteries, motors, control units, and other components made by group autoparts manufacturers." Mazda will get to enter the hybrid market, while Toyota gets to make money off their system. It will likely reduce costs (economy of scale) for Toyota, as well.

The system is expected to be used in midsize vehicles, with Mazda targeting 100,000 vehicles a year.