While it’s difficult to find the silver lining in $4 a gallon gasoline, high gas prices actually do have an upside. From single inventors to large companies, everyone is now scrambling to find ways to improve fuel economy – something that will benefit all of us in a few years.
One such company in France’s MCE-5 Development, a research firmed based out of Lyon. MCE-5 is currently working to develop gasoline and diesel engine technology that will return the economy of a hybrid at a fraction of the cost. “It’s possible to have the fuel efficiency of a hybrid for one-tenth the cost,” Vianney Rabhi, director of strategy and development for MCE-5, told Business Week. “Even if there’s a big step in battery development, hybrids will be costly.”
MCE-5’s technology is similar to General Motor’s HCCI and Mercedes-Benz’ DiesOtto technology – which basically runs a gasoline engine as a diesel — but also incorporates a few other tricks, such as Variable Compression Ratio. The result is a 1.5L naturally aspirated engine that produces 220 horsepower and still returns 45 mpg.
MCE-5 thinks automakers will stick with internal combustion engines for the “next 20 to 30 years”, so new technology to make them more efficient will be critical. Despite the advances, mass production of these new technologies is still probably another 8 to 10 years away. However, if automakers decide to combine MCE-5’s technology with a hybrid powertrain, a 65+ mpg car wouldn’t be out of the question.
07/08, 11:33 AM
posted by:
Fromes
Unlike the 70s and 80s the technology now exists where you can have good gas milage and emmissons with solid performance, sounds like a win-win to me
07/08, 11:52 AM
posted by:
jumpoffit
france? eh- freedom fries !!!!!
07/08, 11:59 AM
posted by:
xyunya
yep, frogs. But they do have good engineering: Peugeot race car before WWI had 4 valves per cylinder and turbo; Citroen Avant was first front wheel drive; Michelin did invent radial tires.
07/08, 12:12 PM
posted by:
golf4me
Yeah, I can do without hybrids. What are they gonna do with the toxic batteries when they expire? How are the batteries made? What kind of toxic waste does that create? Where does the energy come from for plug-ins? Coal? Yeah, that’s gonna help. Just make light, efficient IC powered cars and there would be no need for gimmicks.
07/08, 12:16 PM
posted by:
Fletch
1.5L engine making 220hp ??? That definately needs a turbo to make closer to 300hp. I’ll take that power and 35mpg.
07/08, 12:32 PM
posted by:
RaineMan
Odds are to get that much power out of a 1.5L they hiked the compression ratio so much that you couldn’t turbo it without detonation. Remember the days of leaded gasoline when Premium was 100 octane and you could get a 12:1 compression ratio out of a big-block V8? Gone for now.
This is one field where ethanol could come in handy. Since it has a super-high octane rating you can throw all kinds of hiked compression, increased timing, and boost at it and not have any problems at all.
07/08, 12:34 PM
posted by:
RaineMan
And Fletch… The 2.0L in my Cobalt SS is making 240hp to the wheels and returning 35MPG on 16PSI and a conservative tune… does it all day… no problems.
07/08, 12:38 PM
posted by:
johnnycanuck
Anyone else remember when you could tune your car with a screwdriver?
07/08, 1:58 PM
posted by:
xyunya
^^^ I realized then why it is called “screwdriver”
07/08, 2:23 PM
posted by:
Fletch
Nice #’s RaineMan, my stage 2 Legacy GT should be around 230awhp at 16.5psi, but gets 26/27 highway mpg on 93 pump of course.
07/08, 2:53 PM
posted by:
RaineMan
That’s a decent setup there Fletch… too bad Subaru’s boxer-4 is such an inefficient design. I love that pulsing exhaust note.
07/08, 3:59 PM
posted by:
MugenSentraKen
=========>>That is a decent setup Fletch…RaineMan too, especially…heck, i wish my 247whp SR20DET 2.0 got 35mpg. it probably gets right around 28-ish on the highway…
07/08, 4:01 PM
posted by:
MugenSentraKen
===>>i love that pulsing boxer note too…
07/08, 4:37 PM
posted by:
beatusmongous
Pulsing boxers? WTF?
I’m not gonna go there.
07/08, 5:24 PM
posted by:
THawkoo
I think this is what has the Saudi’s so worried. They know they’re screwed.
Global Warming and the price of a gallon of gas has driven the demand for another fuel source to reality.
Unless gas were to fall to 99 cents a gallon again tonight, I don’t think ANYTHING will stop the demand for new technology to power cars.
In a couple generations, the Saudi’s will be back to eatting sand and screwing camals and all will be right with the world.
07/08, 5:24 PM
posted by:
alex189a
beatus- flawless.
07/08, 10:46 PM
posted by:
A4
THawkoo is awesome
07/09, 6:51 AM
posted by:
El Aleman
a) pretty sure they already used a turbo unless it’s a motorbike engine
and
b) Mercedes DiesOtto (what a retarded name for such a brilliant engine) already features Variable compression ratio.