Mazda has declared that by the middle of the decade they will have replaced their entire powertrain lineup and cut fuel consumption by 30 percent. On the powertrain side, engines will be upgraded across the board including a new direct injected wankel rotary. In 2009, a new Smart Idle Stop system will debut that restarts the engine using the direct injection system instead of the starter. Fuel will be sprayed directly into the cylinder and ignited to get the pistons moving. New gas engines will get direct injection and Mazda will add new clean diesels to the lineup worldwide as well as continuing to develop hydrogen-fueled engines.

Ford's Japanese affiliate intends to continue down the path begun with last years new Mazda2 and the new 6 this year by reducing the weight of new models. The trend of recent decades to higher powered engines has led to a cascading effect of increased mass to support the power. Mazda intends to reverse the process. From 2011, Mazda wants to cut at least 220lbs from new models.

[Source: Mazda]

Click the new Maxima for a high-res gallery of 60+ photos

According to Yo Usaba, senior veep of powertrains for Nissan, the upcoming clean diesel engine for the next Nissan Maxima may be paired only with a manual transmission. Although the stick would likely be the most efficient transmission choice, it doesn't seem all that appropriate for the American market, where automatic transmissions are the rule. It seems that Nissan is concerned with turbo-lag, which is the lull before the turbocharger kicks in and delivers the power. For this reason, the new diesel X-Trail for the Japanese market will come only in a shift-it-yourself flavor.

Apparently, diesels have the same poor reputation in Japan as in the U.S. and many Japanese drivers are stick-shift neophytes. Since this information hasn't kept Nissan from launching its first diesel in its home market with a manual transmission as its sole option, many are concluding that the same could be true in the states. We hope not, as sales would surely be negatively impacted by such a decision. A CVT would likely be a decent choice for this application, and Nissan has proven rather adept at making its seamless transmissions sell in America. We hope that it can make that combination work.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

Back in January BMW made the big announcement that it would finally introduce modern clean diesel engines to the U.S. market. At the time the Bavarian manufacturer told us that the new 335d and X5 xDrive35d would be launched by later in 2008 without getting any more specific than that. A blog specializing in news about the blue and white propeller brand is reporting that the new models will debut in mid-October. We decided to give BMW a call this afternoon and talked to spokesperson Charlene King. She reiterated the company has not made any new announcements about availability and re-confirmed that the diesels would debut this fall.

Having said that, last month Mercedes emphasized that they would be the first to offer Tier 2 Bin5 compliant diesels in the U.S. market when they launch BlueTec SUVs this fall. Neither company has actually provided an on-sale date, but there is no doubt that BMW will be racing to beat their arch-rivals to the showroom. Regardless of which company actually gets there first, both are likely to lose out to Volkswagen which has said they will begin selling the new Jetta TDI in September.

[Source: BMW, BMWBlog.com]

In case you haven't noticed, Volkswagen of American has a new spokesbug in their commercials. A couple of weeks ago, the German brand started running a series of ads featuring a black fifties era Beetle as the host of a talk show with the likes of Heidi Klum and German pop idol David Hasselhof as guests. The latest edition features the Bug in a debate with Napster creator Shawn Fanning about the relative merits of free music and clean diesel. Fanning makes it clear that since clean diesel is legal (in all fifty states) it is definitely cooler than free music. The Beetle seems unconvinced. We're waiting patiently for our crack at one of the Jetta TDIs that are due to start arriving stateside in June so we can make our own judgment. The real question may of course be, why can't we have both? While you ponder that check out the video after the jump.

The video above is an interview done in May with Walter Copan, chief technology officer of Clean Diesel Technologies (ticker: CDTI), by thestreet.com. Autobloggreen is not a stock tip or investing website but we wanted to show you what the stock market thinks about green, automotive companies. In the above video, Walter is asked if clean diesel will catch on in America and can the technology take on hybrids. Walter thinks clean diesels have potential because the technology has developed and new cars are being released.

Below the fold is a video done in a May episode of Forbes on Fox with Jeff Siegel and includes two interesting ethanol stocks. The first company is SunOpta (ticker: STKL), which is actually a food company but Jeff says they have plans to go into cellulosic ethanol and even want to built a plant. The second company is Pacific Ethanol (ticker: PEIX) which Jeff says is embracing regional production and are building ethanol plants in California. Bill Gates is about to sell his 21 percent stake in Pacific Ethanol.

Nobel peace prize Al Gore is getting in on sustainable investing, so don't be surprised to see a few more articles from AutoblogGreen with stock tickers.

Related:

• Stock analysts say we could be in an "ethanol bubble"
• Motley Fool sez AltairNano stock "missed the mark"

[Source: YouTube, Google Video]

This is the strangest and most wonderful thing I have read today. The EPA and Scholastic released a special edition of the popular children's book series the Magic School bus, called "The Magic School Bus Gets Cleaned Up." EPA Deputy Administrator Marcus Peacock recently read the book to school children in Cunningham Park Elementary School library in Vienna, Virginia. The students then went on Scholastic's traveling Magic School Bus, which includes interactive science experiments and a "new diesel particulate filter installed, courtesy of Caterpillar Inc." (pictures of the real Magic School Bus and particulate filter below the fold).

If that was not strange enough, the event also promotes the Clean School Bus USA program, which has cleaned up 2 million buses. "President Bush and EPA are making that black puff of diesel smoke from school buses something children only learn about in history class" said EPA Deputy Administrator Marcus Peacock. Leslye Schaefer. Scholastic Media Senior Vice President says, "Scholastic is thrilled to join the EPA in its effort to educate children and their families about clean air – and to make The Magic School Bus more environmentally friendly at the same time."

You can order the book for free by phone or e-mail from the EPA but supplies are limited because it's so popular! "Individuals, schools, and libraries may order up to 20 copies. Non-profit organizations working on diesel emissions issues and outreach may order up to 500. Other organizations, including for-profit companies, may order up to 100. Larger requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis." Even I want one! The idea that the EPA actually retrofitted a fictional, illustrated, cartoon school bus with pollution controls is just too funny.

I wonder if the EPA will get Ralph from the The Mouse and the Motorcycle an Enertia?

Related:

• "Daddy, read me a story" - the Doe's EV children's book

[Source: EPA]

New Zealand has bold plans for greening its automobile transportation. In the "Energy Strategy to 2050" report, presented by New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, there are calls for major changes such as:

• 5 percent of cars to be plug-ins by 2020, rising to 60 percent by 2040.
• 25 percent of cars to be fuel cells by 2050.
• 25 percent of vehicle fuels to come from renewable sources by 2020, rising to 80 percent by 2050.
• 80 percent of New Zealand's government vehicle fleet able to run on 10 percent biofuels or electric power by 2015.
• Fuel economy increased 25 percent by 2025.

These measures will halve transport green house gases emissions by 2040, and mean that New Zealand could be the first country to widely use biofuels, clean diesel and electric powered cars. They still can't beat the Vatican's claim, though.

[Source: MSNBC]

Below the fold is an hour-long video of a Google talk by Reed Benet, a bio-fuels-focused Ph.D. student at the University of California Davis Institute of Transportation Studies. Much of the second half of the talk has the audience asking, where is my diesel-hybrid and why are there no diesel-hybrids? As you may know from my article on VW, I don't think clean diesel is that great. Others think otherwise.

IMHO, a diesel hybrid would get amazing mileage but it could also be a marketing oxymoron. About 33 minutes into the talk Reed says there is really no invention that puts diesel engines "in compliance" with gasoline ones. Carbon is not the only problem with fuels, just like fuel efficiency is not everything. Diesel engines are a lot cleaner than they used to be, but diesel vehicles are not perfect.

Related:

• Senate hearing on diesel truck pollution Wednesday

[Source: YouTube]

We recently wrote about the VW's DIESELUTION tour. I took the video above of the Dieselution tour's stop at AltWheels Boston 2007. IMHO, VW should have called the tour Dissolution. Don't get me wrong. I like VW. I think they are great brand and really could have surfed the green revolution wave. I am glad they are planning on making "a" hybrid soon but VW's focus on re-branding diesel as clean diesel seems a pointless, uphill battle to me.

Take their display at AltWheels. The semi truck they use in the display was idling. The VW semi could have been idling the entire show, for all I know. I am guessing they were using it to power the video displays inside. They could have been getting ready to leave however. The video is dark because it was the last booth I checked out. Why would anyone go to beautiful Boston Hall plaza, an outdoor plaza, only to go into the back of idling truck to watch videos on monitors trying to convince you diesel is really clean now?

The compact segment is the most competitive in the European market. Cars measuring around 4 meters are the top-sellers on this side of the pond. They usually offer good room for the price, and they also offer cargo space once the back seats are folded. This segment is dominated by local models, such as the VW Golf (the leader to beat) and the Ford Focus, to name two models which are familiar to our US readers. The engines of choice are usually diesels and although low-sulfur diesel has been sold in Europe for a long time, they still pollute with particulates which cause smog. Particulate filters just aren't widespread yet and are currently installed only in premium models, very much like the implementation of cathalysts in gasoline cars, which started in the '90s.

However, this is not only a matter of European automakers. Japanese and Korean manufacturers are also in this race to get their chunk of the European market. And as a sample, here's the new Toyota Auris. The European compact Toyotas are a set of three models: the Corolla sedan, the Auris hatchback and the Verso MPV. One of Toyota's latest innovations has been the D-CAT (Diesel Clean Advanced Technology) range of diesel engines which appeared in 2005 in the Euro-Accord Avensis models.Toyota's particulate filter captures combustion debris in a reservoir and when it's full, the particulates burn completely - This means that at a certain moment, a Toyota leaves a grey cloud of smoke but leaves no particulates. Of course, the system is more complex and it includes special piezoelectric injectors, gas recirculation when the engine is cold and other features which makes these engines less polluting.

You might wonder what the performance of these engines are: 2.2 liters, and two different power outputs: 177 HP and 400 Nm of torque (about 295 ft.lb), and 125 HP and 300 Nm (230 ft.lb). Although it's the Auris we're showing here today, the D-CAT range of engines are currently installed in these three compact models mentioned and the RAV-4.

[Source: Toyota]
[Edited: Of course, Toyota's middle car is the Avensis in Europe, not the Accord!. Thanks to Joseph for pointing this out]

Click on the image for a gallery of high-res images of the clean diesel Mercedes-Benz E320 Bluetec.

Petrol is expensive in Europe and has been for a long time which goes a long way to explaining the popularity of fuel-efficient diesel passenger vehicles on the other side of the pond. Diesels account for over half of all vehicle sales in Europe compared to less than five percent in the U.S., or Australia for that matter. Diesel technology has progressed greatly though since the 1970's when many U.S. states banned them from the roads. And they're about to return.

These days modern, clean diesel engines include precise fuel injection, advanced engine management and particulate filters to reduce emissions. But even so, a big stumbling block to their re-introduction to the U.S. market has been the poor quality of the diesel fuel sold state-side. With the recent introduction of ultra low sulphur diesel though, those days are at an end and a wave of new clean diesel models will be coming to market during the 2007, 2008 and 2009 release seasons.

Hybrids have so far led the market in fuel-efficient new models but the premium for hybrid technology currently stands at around $4,000 over a conventional vehicle compared with just $2,000 for a diesel variant. And the 20 - 40 percent better fuel economy that diesels' enjoy over regular petrol vehicles could have a huge impact if they're embraced en-masse. The EPA has estimated a saving of 1.4 million barrels of oil per day in the U.S. if a third of the passenger vehicles on the road were oil burners - virtually the same amount being imported daily from Saudi Arabia.

Analysis: Expect consumer mind-share to shift slowly to encompass diesels as competition for hybrids, but by 2010 I think we'll see more diesel options available to consumers than hybrid options.

Related:

• Mercedes wants 10% of their US sales to be diesels by 2010
• The finalists for 2007 World Green Car are from BMW, Mercedes and VW
• Geneva Motor Show: Cadillac unveils powerful new V6 clean diesel engine

[Source: Matt Vella / Business Week]

The Australian state of Victoria may be planning to trial a fleet of hybrid diesel-electric buses after recently upgrading 24 of its existing public transport buses with clean diesel models. The Australian-first Euro 4 Clean Diesel buses, which are able to reduce carbon emissions by a third, are seen as an important stepping stone towards introducing hybrids models. The state government is planning to spend AUD$189 million (US$150 million) replacing 880 buses across Victoria in a move to make them compliant with national disabled access standards.

Analysis: Hybrid buses are already well established in many U.S. cities including New York and Seattle, with other cities around the world such as London planning their introduction. While trials of hydrogen-fueled buses are also taking place, I think it's important to move forward with hybrid technology available today - a fact reinforced every time I'm stuck behind a diesel bus in traffic belching out smoke.

Related:

• DOE & USDA study proves biodiesel massively reduces dangerous emissions
• New York City's clean air buses striving to be the cleanest fleet in the world
• PublicRoutes.com Launches Directions Resource for Los Angeles Public Transportation System

[Source: Drive.com.au]

Click on the image for two high-res images of GM's new 2.9-liter V6 turbo-diesel engine.

General Motors has debuted a new 2.9-liter V6 turbo-diesel engine, destined to find its way into the 2009 Cadillac CTS. Indicating that it will be "sold mainly in Europe", GM have signalled their intentions to go after Europe's finest in the hotly contested executive saloon market with the powerful new engine.

Delivering 184 kW / 250 hp of power and a monstrous 550 Nm / 406 ft-lbs of torque (compare this to the 155 kW and 526 Nm of the new Mercedes-Benz E320 Bluetec), the oil burner is built to match Cadillac's performance-oriented brand character. But Cadillac is likely to be far from the only brand in GM's stable which will eventually get to take advantage of this new engine; it can be installed in a longitudinal or transverse layout and can be adapted to a wide range of two- or four-wheel-drive vehicles so expect it to pop up all over.

Other high tech features include a closed-loop combustion control system which has been designed to give the engine longevity by allowing it to meet future emissions standards; state-of-the-art injection and combustion technology for low emissions and high performance; a variable geometry turbo; and an advanced engine management system for optimal fuel economy as well as reduced emissions and noise.

Analysis: GM's getting serious about the European market where you have to be packing an advanced clean diesel under the hood to be taken seriously when petrol prices are so high. It looks like a lot of work has gone into making this a really flexible engine through the emissions controls employed and its ability to be installed in a longitudinal or transverse layout. No word yet on whether it meets the latest Californian emissions standards or what the fuel economy can expect to be. I'll be looking forward to the details.



Full press release after the jump.

Related:

• Los Angeles Times: E320 Bluetec is best car Californians can't buy
• Geneva Motor Show: VW's new diesel line-up detailed
• Geneva Motor Show: Lotus unveils EVE Hybrid technology demonstrator

[Source: GM]

Click on the image for a gallery of high-res images of the 2007 Mercedes-Benz E320 Bluetec.

Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Dan Neil has a good piece about the California Air Resources Board adopting the EPA's Tier II, Bin 5 emission standard two years before most of the U.S. leaving the 2007 Mercedes-Benz E320 Bluetec as out of reach for Californians. Neil points out that the new E320 Bluetec does meet the Bin 8 emissions standard and gets 45 percent(!) better fuel economy than the equivalent petrol-powered E350.

Bluetec of course is Mercedes-Benz's branding for their clean diesel technology which sees the E320 Bluetec equipped with a NOx adsorber-catalyst, exhaust gas recirculation and a particular filter. Like your average modern oil burner, the off-the-mark times and power ratings aren't all that noteworthy, but the torque is massive. Neil describes the E320's pull well, "[it] has torque like a nuclear attack sub."

As I described in my recent Volkswagen Passat TDI review, all that torque results in amazing overtaking ability, "Even while driving up a reasonable gradient doing 100 km/h with the engine ticking over at 1,500 revs in sixth, there is torque on tap to blow past other cars without the Direct Shift Gearbox (DSG) even needing to switch down if you bury your foot."

Neil describes a similar sensation in the E320, "In the passing lane, this inoffensive burgher of the interstate pulls like a BMW M3."

Analysis: The only problem with buying a huge saloon with a clean diesel engine and great fuel economy is that you probably should have bought a smaller car anyway. Switching to diesel vehicles to maintain an unsustainable love affair with big vehicles is false economy.



Click here to watch Neil eat an E320-toasted bagel.

Related:

• In the AutoblogGreen Garage: 2007 Volkswagen Passat TDI
• Green Car Journal names its favorite 2007 models
• Camry Hybrid named 2007 Canadian Car of the Year

[Source: LA Times]

Industry organisation, Diesel Technology Forum, has announced that all major heavy-duty truck and engine manufacturers have met new Environmental Protection Agency standards for emissions cuts and have been certified by EPA for full production. To meet the new emissions requirements, new long-haul trucks are equipped with particulate matter filters which result in 2007 models being 90 percent cleaner than the previous generation. Nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions have also been reduced significantly with new technology.

Manufacturers now certified by the EPA to meet the most stringent diesel emissions standards in the world include Caterpillar, Cummins, Detroit Diesel Corp., International, Mack and Volvo. With 94 percent of goods shipped via diesel trucks, the life-cycle emissions of any products will fall as new trucks replace aging rigs on the road. Once new trucks fully replace the existing fleet, EPA predictions put the reduction in emissions of smog-forming gases at 2.6 million tons each year, and soot emissions at 110,000 tons annually.

Analysis: With clean(er) diesel technology now on the market via new 2007 truck models, governments need to look at incentives to get old trucks off the road. All the hard work by the truck and engine manufacturers to meet the EPA rules won't amount to much if it takes thirty years to turn over the fleet.

Related:

• DaimlerChrysler's Dr. Z wants Americans to take a fresh look at diesel
• Dodge Ram first to meet strict 2010 diesel emissions standards
• Isuzu sticks with GM for DuraMax diesel engine joint-venture

[Source: Diesel Technology Forum]