GM Europe to launch 2 fuel-efficient engines

By John Revill
General Motors Europe will launch two new fuel-efficient engines from next year.
 
A 1.6 liter compressed natural gas (CNG) turbo engine for the Opel Zafira will be introduced in 2009.
 
In 2010, a 1.4 liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine is likely to be in the Opel-Vauxhall Astra lower-medium and Meriva small minivan. It could eventually replace the 1.6 and 1.8 liter naturally aspirated engines.
 
Both engines have been developed at Opel's engine facility in R¨¹sselsheim, Germany.
 
"These new engines represent our ongoing approach to replace larger displacement engines with more compact, highly charged units for maximum performance and efficiency benefits," said Dan Hancock, GM Powertrain Vice President, Global Engineering.
 
Both engines are new variants of GM's existing engine families used globally.
 
The 1.4-liter turbo engine is a new addition to an engine family that ranges from 1.0 to 1.4-liter displacement.
 
It will deliver an approximate 8 percent improvement in fuel consumption compared with a higher displacement naturally aspirated engine with similar output. It will also be EURO 5 compliant.
 
The engine will be manufactured at the GM Powertrain assembly facility in Aspern, Austria.
 
The 1.6-liter CNG turbo is a new variant in the 1.6-liter engine family that includes a naturally aspirated gasoline unit and a CNG unit.
 
The 1.6-liter CNG turbo will be produced in the GM Powertrain assembly facility in Szentgotthard, Hungary.
 
CNG has a 25 percent lower CO2 value than a comparable gasoline engine.
 
The engine has an improved fuel efficiency of between 8 and 10 percent depending on the car it is used in.
 
Karl Mauer, spokesman for GM Powertrain Europe, said: "We had some business customers in France, Italy and Germany, who were driving Zafira taxis with naturally aspirated 1.6 engines CNG, but they wanted more power."
From: Automotive News Europe

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