Toyota’s new 2.5L gas engine will have a 13:1 compression ration, and the hybrid version will have 14:1. Will they require high octane fuel for those high compression ratios?
Makes me wonder if this is to let the Camryget bigger/heavier.
I doubt it’ll need premium. The Mazda engines have 14:1 or more, run on regular.
More for efficiency and marketing. MPGs are up quite a bit. I bet weight is unchanged, if not lower.
I agree, but will also acknowledge that modern four-bangers are a whole lot peppier than they used to be.
I also believe that in 15 years some 60% of new cars will be hybrids with the balance being EVs. I think the days of cars run purely on gasoline are coming to an end.
I don’t think any of the other alternative powertrain vehicles (like hydrogen) will comprise more than 1% or 2% of the mix altogether, because the infrastructure simply isn’t being developed and the motivations to do so simply don’t seem to be there. Besides, I think battery technology is about to experience a major jump. There’s a small company that’s developed a lithium battery that’s perfectly safe (no dendrite formation) and will allow pure lithium to be used rather than lithium ions, and that should make their energy density much greater… a real boon to the lithium battery industry. Gas stations may begin to all add recharging stations to their sites.
The transition to all electric will be a tough one. People are too used to resupplying energy in 5 minutes or less. Waiting around for recharging, even if it’s a half hour will be intolerable to many if not most. I said many years ago on this site, what would be a game changer is something like the Blue Rhino of power packs. A universal pack that can be exchanged in minutes and be on your way. You don’t own the pack and have no worries/expense if it cr@ps out. Gas stations could be replaced by pack stations, with racks of universal packs being charged and made ready for the next customer.
I also like the idea of wireless recharging. You pull up over a loop embedded in the ground. The car could even lower the mating coil on board to provide better coupling and faster energy transfer. No cables to connect or maintain. The first twenty spots in front of stores could be equipped in this way so you have seamless recharging…
While I agree, I’ll also point out that EV drivers tend to have their gas station right in their garage. You plug it in at night and it’s at 100% well before morning. EVs with 200-300 mile ranges are getting more and more common.
The only time you ever have to worry about recharging away from home is when you’re on a road trip, and I don’t think people will mind an extended rest stop while their car charges as much as they would mind having to sit around for half an hour on the way home from work.
I remember you and I both advocating that solution. I think that was 2 or 3 forum versions ago 
I still like this idea in concept, but I’m thinking it might not come to fruition simply because range has gotten so much better. When we were pushing that idea, you were lucky to get 60 miles out of a charge on an EV.
The flip side to the Blue Rhino solution is that when I buy a new grill, I have to turn in my nice, brand new tank and get some old rusty piece of junk in exchange, and for that reason I always have mine refilled at an old-fashioned propane station until it gets old and rusty. I suspect that someone driving a car with a 300 mile range might feel the same way - “My battery is in great shape. How do I know how old the exchange battery will be?”
The car could be sold either way; OEM pack you own or rental pack. That way, if you start out renting a pack, you don’t have to surrender your brand new one and get a beater in exchange.
Yeah, I agree the range is improving but there will always be people that forget to plug it in at night or leave unexpectedly on a long trip.
I’ve been thinking of building an electric motorcycle to ride to work. They want $10k+ for one that can hit expressway speeds, last for 50 miles (based on my usage profile) and recharge in around 2h. However, there is no place to plug it in when I get to work… But I can bring the pack in to recharge or better yet, keep a spare pack at work and exchange it when I’m ready to leave…
I’ve been toying with converting my MR2 to electric. The engine leaks oil and at nearly 200,000 miles is tired anyway. It’d cost 5 grand+battery. I haven’t pulled the trigger yet, but I keep looking at the kit. The plus side is that it’d be a lot faster than it is now. The downside is putting probably 10 grand or so into a 24 year old car.
Yours would recharge in 2 hours on regular 110v? That’s not bad.
And I posted some time ago a battery with liquid electrodes would allow the spent material to be pumped out and fresh pumped in almost as fast as filling with petrol.
Then the spent electrode liquid could be rejuvenated at the “gas” station with electricity, eliminating most of the need for truck distribution to the stations.
If EV carmakers can’t even come up with a common standard for charging systems (Tesla is different), no WAY they’ll come up with interchangeable batteries (not that I think they’d be a good idea).
The aftermarket is already taking care of that. https://longtailpipe.com/2015/11/09/new-ev-charging-adapter-lets-j1772-car-owners-use-tesla-hpwc-charging-stations-cool-or-theft/
New product that adapts normal EV chargers to Tesla’s outlets.
It should be noted that there is a common standard for charging systems, and for reasons that are frankly somewhat baffling, Musk has chosen to develop his own rather than use it.
In that and similar issues I can easily agree with assessments that consider Tesla to be the Apple of car manufacturers.
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Was it based on any established technology or just an idea you had?
I agree with Honda’s move. I’m much more interested in horsepower and torque than the mere number of cylinders. Personally, I’d rather have a four cylinder 2.3-liter engine than a six cylinder 2.3-liter engine, for a variety of reasons, mostly related to ease of maintenance on a four cylinder engine.
Regarding the idea of being “relegated to appalling right-lane submission to faster cars,” I find that is only a problem for those who don’t exploit the full acceleration lane, and wait to accelerate until they’re trying to merge. The only time I have a hard time merging onto a highway with my 1.6 liter four-cylinder car is when I get stuck behind some idiot who doesn’t accelerate in the acceleration lane. The only reason anyone “needs” a 3-liter engine on a car is if they drive like idiots. For everyone else who knows how to drive, more displacement and more horsepower are about “want,” not “need.”
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Honda’s new four is more powerful than the V6 it replaces.
You said in the Civic Type R it is more powerful, but it isn’t clear that the exact engine (same power) will be used in the Accord, is it? Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure it will be powerful. As I mentioned, my son in law bought a 2016, and there is enough power to get you down the road. If I buy an Accord, it will likely be with the base 4-cyl engine. The Type R gets V6-like fuel economy (22/28 mpg) and the base 4- cyl gets 26/34; even better with the CVT.
You’re right, final hp hasn’t been announced. But I bet the 2L turbo beats the 3.5L, maybe not by much, but it’ll let them brag “Better mpgs AND more power!”
The Type R also has higher torque. They never show a power curve, just the maximum torque and RPM. Both HP and torque could easily be higher than the V6, and you won’t have to deal with that stinkin’ timing belt anymore.
I understand that the turbocharged TYPE R is inevitable. But what I don’t understand is why turbo and high redline are mutually exclusive. F1 engines can rev past 10k and they have to last for one season.
There were rare occasions that I had to merge onto freeway via ultra short on ramps by revving the engine to the redline in second gear. What I really wish was a 2nd gear that’s good for 70 mph as I really didn’t want to dip the clutch and coast between 2nd and 3rd at around 50 while traffic is coming up from behind
Back to the Accord, I wonder what kind of highway mileage it would get compared to the TYPE R, as it wouldn’t be dragging that huge wing in the back.
Redline in 2nd vs 5k rpm in 3rd? max torque is usually 4500rpm. So you accelerate faster when you are past the torque curve?