Mazda to Begin Leasing Hydrogen Hybrid in 2008; Long-Term Focus on “Sustainable Zoom-Zoom”
22 March 2007
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| Mazda Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid |
Mazda will begin commercial leasing of the Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid (earlier post) in 2008. The hybrid’s power will be increased by 40%, and it will offer a hydrogen range of 200 km (124 miles), double the 100 km of the first versions of the concept hybrid. Mazda will follow that with an improved hydrogen hybrid system shortly after 2010.
The rollout of the hydrogen-electric hybrids is part of the company’s long-term plan for technology development—“Sustainable Zoom-Zoom”—announced this morning in Tokyo. As part of that effort, Mazda says that it will work closely with Ford.
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| The layout of the hydrogen hybrid. Click to enlarge. |
In the Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid, the hydrogen-fueled rotary engine and the 30 kW electric motor are incorporated into a power unit that is transversely mounted at the front of the car in an FF layout. A NiMH battery pack is located under the second-row seats, and a high-capacity hydrogen tank is located in the space that would otherwise be occupied by a third-row seat.
The hydrogen rotary engine has the same hydrogen-gasoline dual-fuel system that is also used in the RX-8 Hydrogen RE.
Mazda is committed to working towards a sustainable future that brings continued happiness and excitement to people in a global society, by developing vehicles that never fail to excite, visually capture the customer's heart and provide a fun driving experience that keeps bringing them back to Mazda.
—Seita Kanai, Mazda's director and senior executive officer in charge of R&D
Other key initiatives in the Mazda plan are as follows:
Hydrogen combustion engines.. Mazda will continue researching hydrogen fuel technologies, with particular emphasis on internal combustion engine applications. The company plans an all-new Hydrogen RE with performance equivalent to a 3.0-liter gasoline engine and a range of 400 km. During this development period, Mazda says it will introduce other practical technologies in line with the advancing social infrastructure.
Gasoline engines. Mazda will introduce the Smart Idling Stop System (SISS) (earlier post) in the Japanese market in 2009. The company will introduce an E85 flex-fuel engine to the Northern European market in 2009. And Mazda will upgrade its diesel engine line in the early part of the decade beginning in 2010 to deliver more performance and lower fuel consumption.
Diesel engines. Mazda will evolve its clean diesel engine currently applied in vehicles for Europe, and introduce a new diesel engine that meets Japanese and North American emissions regulations toward the start of the decade beginning in 2010.
Automatic transmissions. Mazda will introduce a new automatic transmission with improved fuel efficiency and performance comparable to that of a manual transmission toward the start of the decade beginning in 2010.
Rotary engines. Mazda will introduce a new generation gasoline rotary engine with enhanced power and fuel efficiency toward the start of the decade beginning in 2010.
Mazda will also work to reduce vehicle weight to improve handling and cut CO2 emissions. For example, it plans a weight reduction of approximately 100 kg for the new Mazda2/Demio due for launch in 2007, as compared to the current model.
Mazda will also expand the application of bioplastics that were developed in collaboration with government, industry and academia. (Earlier post.) Bioplastics will be used in the Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid.
Hydrogen and rotary engine. Could that be the worst possible combination for efficiency?
Posted by: clett | 22 March 2007 at 07:05 AM
No, they could of used a wood fired steam engine !
Posted by: andrichrose | 22 March 2007 at 08:40 AM
Caol and rotary engines is a 80 gooy rv equippedwith a 12 foot perminent satalite dish and a built in swimming pool would be a bit less effiecent...
Posted by: wintermane | 22 March 2007 at 08:53 AM
I just want to see a hybrid RX-8...a little electric power to make up for the lack of torque at low rpm and then dump about 150lbs of comfort equipment to make up for the additional weight of the hybridization.
Posted by: Patrick | 22 March 2007 at 09:11 AM
whats he matter with these people , losing vast amounts of money making cars
that no one wants to buy seems to be all the fashion , and not just the preseve of the blue oval!
Just one large company putting a similar amount of effort and money into development and production of a decent EV at an affordable price and the world will change forever!
Posted by: andrichrose | 22 March 2007 at 09:20 AM
A wood fired steam engine would be far more sustainable!
(Come to think of it, double expansion design steam engines actually hit around 50% thermal efficiency at their best.)
Also, during the war, people here in the UK converted their gasoline cars to run on wood (heated to produce gas used in the engine, stored in a huge balloon above the car. No, really!).
Posted by: clett | 22 March 2007 at 09:41 AM
It's part of the spinning cliche' of most automakers.
Can we work with what we got now and let the scientists figure out alternatives for the future?
Here in the USA we should have more cars running on efficient [small] diesel engines using B100 and other using E100...or at least E85... then let's work on BEVS, HEVS etc...but let;s resolve the issue for today/tomorrow and not spend time dreaming of the hydrogen economy of the futre while we destroy the planet with ICEs and coal power plants!!!
Listen to Al Gore guys...and please do not pay any attention to those freaking relgious fanatics of the right wing who think that GOD will just resolve the issue with a simple nod of his big celestial head!!!
Can the right wing Republican fanatics move to a new place and leave us alone to enjoy planet earth?
How about Mars guys?
FS
Posted by: Fred | 22 March 2007 at 11:45 AM
The right wing evangelicals are increasingly part of the good steward movement.They are embracing environmentalism as their duty towards gods creation.
It is curious to hear an open minded person like you railing against a segment of society and advocating their banishment to a planet devoid of life.Perhaps the planet is not worth saving if it is to be shared with bigots like you.God forbid you gain power,you would burn dissenters to fuel your utopia.
Posted by: Earl | 22 March 2007 at 01:29 PM
Any utopia fueled by dissenters has to have a thermal
efffiency of over 50% or we may run out of them as well.
Society needs to advance, so maybe fueling it with carbon
based bipeds from both sides of the isle is only the alternative
that meets our insatiable deemands. Mars anyone?
Posted by: William | 22 March 2007 at 02:47 PM
Any utopia fueled by dissenters has to have a thermal
efffiency of over 50% or we may run out of them as well.
Society needs to advance, so maybe fueling it with carbon
based bipeds from both sides of the isle is only the alternative
that meets our insatiable deemands. Mars anyone?
Posted by: William | 22 March 2007 at 02:47 PM
fifty percent is easily achievable with a reversible quarter inch gonkulator.
Posted by: earl | 23 March 2007 at 10:35 AM
U thought you had to reverse the polarity of the nutron flow and multyplex the transvere universal hyperdimensional monkeywrench to get that kind of power...
Andyhoo its more about different fuel source then it is about eff as far as they are concerned. ANYTHING that uses non oil souces is a good thing to them.
Posted by: wintermane | 23 March 2007 at 11:39 AM
Maybe hydrogen wankels can run in a nice efficient power band, like the 3 cylinder that runs the genset in the Volt. If that is their plan, go for it.
Posted by: sjc | 23 March 2007 at 04:16 PM
If Mazda could do some more R&D on a flux capacitor, we could solve all of our problems by bringing in more solutions from the future.
Posted by: El Guapo | 25 September 2007 at 03:24 PM