Turbo Pressroom
Posted 02.02.2012
NPR: Automakers Give Disregarded Diesels A Second Look
As automakers look for ways to meet new, tougher fuel economy standards, they aren’t just turning to new technologies like hybrid and electric cars. “Many in the auto industry are taking a second look at an old technology: the diesel engine,” said an article published on the National Public Radio (NPR) website. Thanks to the help of advanced technologies including the turbocharger, when you compare a diesel engine with other engines, “pound for pound in terms of fuel economy, the diesel engine wins,” said Margaret Wooldridge, a professor at the University of Michigan.
Posted 01.18.2012
Diesel Car Market Poised to Grow in 2012
The American Public Media radio program, Marketplace, discussed the exciting growth expected in the U.S. diesel car market in 2012. Ray Wert, the editor-in-chief of the car blog Jalopnik.com, told the Marketplace reporter: “there’s a need on every automaker’s part to hit the new fuel economy regulations, and an easy way to do that is to start offering diesel powertrains. They’re more efficient, they’re quiet, they’re quick to start, and they’re durable.” The report goes on to say that diesels are “33 percent more fuel efficient, on average, — and we’re talking 50 to 60 miles per gallon.”
Posted 01.04.2012
Rising Turbocharger Sales Expected for Years to Come
Bloomberg News reports that “Automakers’ need to spend $157 billion to double the fuel economy of their fleets might mean years of rising sales for makers of turbochargers, aluminum body panels and other components that boost efficiency.” The article goes on to say that “Honeywell International Inc., Alcoa Inc. and Johnson Controls Inc. are among companies that expect to benefit from spending by Ford Motor Co., Toyota Motor Corp. and General Motors Co. and other automakers.”
Posted 12.23.2011
SAE: New TwoStage Module Leads Honeywell’s Turbocharger Boom
SAE reported that Honeywell’s newest design, the TwoStage Module for the Audi A6/A7 3.0 diesel V6, produces a claimed 313 hp (233 kW), a 30% increase in power versus the baseline 3.0-L diesel V6. That’s about the same power as a 30% larger displacement engine but with 10% better fuel economy. The TwoStage turbo is a series-flow type in which a small turbo is joined to a larger turbo. A bypass (control) valve enables the two turbos to operate together or in single low-pressure stage mode. This provides good response throughout the rpm range as well as low emissions.
Posted 12.08.2011
Turbochargers Help “Old Dog” Perform New Tricks
Forbes published an article from the Mother Nature Network which says automakers are “seeing new possibilities in the tried-and-true internal-combustion engine. They’re making the old dog do some new tricks, with turbocharging (of downsized engines), direct injection, variable valve timing, lightweighting (carbon fiber, for instance) and clean diesels.” The article goes on to say that “Ford gained 20 percent in fuel economy — and 35 percent in performance — when it went from 4.6 liters to 3.5 in the bestselling F150 truck.” Plus, the premium on cleaner gas engines is “about half of what hybridization costs.”
Posted 12.02.2011
NPR: Better, faster, more efficient — and gas-powered
National Public Radio’s (NPR) Sarah Gardner reports that “the death of the internal combustion engine has been greatly exaggerated.” When interviewed for Gardner’s story about the auto industry’s ability to meet the government’s tough new fuel economy standards, Dave Cole, chairman emeritus of the Center for Automotive Transportation, said “it’s like that old Clairol commercial. Gasoline engines aren’t getting older, they’re just getting better.” That’s because automakers are downsizing their engines using “smaller, lighter gas engines power-boosted by little devices called turbochargers.”
Posted 11.28.2011
Turbochargers Help Make 40 the New 30
The television show “Closing Bell with Maria Bartiromo” on CNBC examined the recent growth in the number of 40 MPG cars available in the U.S. market and, specifically, the growth in fuel-efficient turbocharged gasoline engines. As the story points out, automakers anticipate gasoline prices will remain high, so they are developing 4-cylinder turbocharged gasoline engines that feel like a 6-cylinder engine with improved fuel efficiency. This lets car buyers “feel like they aren’t skimping when they go green behind the wheel.”
Posted 11.22.2011
Diesel Supporters Call for Technology-Neutral Government Policies
News outlets including The New York Times Wheels Blog, The Hill, Detroit News and more covered the recent white paper released by The U.S. Coalition for Advanced Diesel Cars. The document, which is credited to Norman Y. Mineta, the transportation secretary under President George W. Bush until 2006, calls for technology-neutral policy-making on fuel efficiency. The coalition says that some turbocharged gasoline and diesel engines could be nearly as energy-efficient as any other technology and, therefore, they object to incentives and other policies of federal and state governments that encourage the development and adoption of electric vehicles, while diesel technologies received no such encouragement.
Posted 11.14.2011
‘Turbo Tech Trifecta’ Named Automobile Magazine’s 2012 Technology of the Year
Automobile Magazine announced that the combination of direct gasoline injection, variable valve timing, and turbocharging – a combination they are calling the “Turbo Tech Trifecta” — has been named their 2012 technology of the year. While this technological combination has no official name, VW calls it TSI while Ford named it EcoBoost, the benefits are universal. Automobile Magazine says: “Today, fuel economy is rising as our cars keep getting faster and faster. It’s win/win, which is why the Turbo Tech Trifecta is a worthy award winner.”
Posted 11.04.2011
U.S. Experiences Diesel Engine Renaissance
GreenTechMedia reports that U.S. sales of diesel cars doubled in 2010 because the options on the road today are cleaner, offer more power than models of the past and the MPG “blows a gasoline car out of the water.” It goes on to say that “for drivers that are looking for economic gas mileage but not ready to make the leap to plug-in hybrids or electric vehicles, diesel is growing in popularity.”
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