Tag: SkyActiv

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CorkSport Welcomes the CX-5 to the Family!

CorkSport is the proud new owner of Mazda’s newest addition to its line-up, the CX-5. Picked up straight from the port of Tacoma yesterday, the sporty new CX-5 will be helping CorkSport develop a new line of Mazda performance parts aimed at fulfilling the performance potential in the new SkyActiv engine technology line.

The CX-5 is available in three trims, Sport, Touring, and Grand Touring. We opted for the base sport trim which is currently the only option available with a manual six speed transmission. The Sport comes standard with seventeen-inch alloys, push-button start, tilt/telescopic steering, and cruise control.

The design is based on the Minagi concept car, and is Mazda’s first production vehicle to utilize the Kodo design language. The new five-point grille gives a real feeling of width, as it cuts into the headlights before leading to the lower center portion of the front grille and the interior is modern and clean and the driver-centric cockpit features a small, sporty steering wheel.

The CX-5 has the new SkyActiv 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and includes a direct injection, variable valve and exhaust timing, a specially designed exhaust manifold and a high compression ratio of 13.0:1. The engine’s broad torque band, the new transmission, and the reduced weight work together to deliver good acceleration. The quick revving engine has an excellent mid-range punch and the engine delivers a smooth, bossy engine note.

The electric power assist steering system offers crisp, quick steering and highly precise control. The geometry of the suspension links and the bush characteristics are optimized to ensure light, linear steering response at mid-to-low speeds and excellent high-speed stability.

We have already began development of a new SkyActiv short ram intake which will be launching later this year along a with a number of other performance parts to support the new SkyActiv suspension and engine.

CorkSport is happy to add the CX-5 as our newest project car!

Gwynne-

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More Turbos from Mazda

CorkSport likes to be in the know on what Mazda is up to so I spend a good deal of time keeping in touch with my contacts at Mazda headquarters and searching the internet for clues on what Mazda is developing. I recently ran across a fascinating bit of information looking up patent applications with the US patent and trademark office that gives us a very interesting clue as to what Mazda may have in store for us in the future.

Mazda had a patent approved on January 12, 2010 for a forced induction engine with two sources of boost. The patent refers to an electric driven compressor (electric supercharger) which disengages when the engine reaches a pre-determined mid-range RPM point at which point the engine switches over to an exhaust driven compressor (a turbo charger).

This could be really handy for a small displacement engine when you want to get a large amount of power. The electric supercharger gives the engine the necessary boost to get the mid-range where the engine can then develop enough exhaust flow to spin the turbocharger.

This is the same theory used for a twin turbo charged engine but with instant boost from the electric supercharger. It can give a small displacement engine a decent torque improvement and the turbocharger will add the benefit of top-end power.

The whole idea gets even better with a variable vane turbine that would adjust to the engine speed. The faster the engine speed the more exhaust volume, allowing you to get the most out of the turbocharger efficiency.

This whole patent has the fingerprints of 2015 Mazdaspeed 3 written all over it if you ask me. You would still be getting the smaller, eco-friendly, SkyActiv engine but when you put your foot on it there is a big turbocharger lurking to give you gobs of torque just like the current Mazdaspeed 3.

I will give a word of warning though, not all things which have patents ever see the light of day, but the fact that Mazda spent the time and effort to patent this idea with the US patent office, gives me hope we will see a version of this patent in the next 3-4 years.

-Derrick

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i-ELOOP: Mazda Reveals New Regenerative Braking System

Mazda recently announced a new groundbreaking system called i-ELOOP that they are claiming as the first regenerative braking system that uses a capacitor. Mazda will be introducing this new technology into their 2012 models, which they say will improve fuel economy by 10%.

Mazda says that the odd name is an adaptation of “Intelligent Energy Loop” and represents the company’s intention to efficiently cycle energy in an intelligent way.The i-ELOOP will use a capacitor which is an electrical component that stores large volumes of electricity in place of a battery to convert the vehicles kinetic energy into electricity when the vehicle decelerates. The energy it produces will be used to power the climate control, audio system and other electrical components of the car.

This type of system is already used in EV technology, with the difference being that regenerative braking systems in electric vehicles use an electric motor and dedicated battery to operate. Mazda avoids the need for this by featuring a new 12-25V variable voltage alternator, a low-resistance electric double layer capacitor and a DC/DC converter.

In their press release, Mazda said “The variable voltage alternator generates electricity at up to 25V for maximum efficiency before sending it to the Electric Double Layer Capacitor (EDLC) for storage. The capacitor, which has been specially developed for use in a vehicle, can be fully charged in seconds. The DC/DC converter steps down the electricity from 25V to 12V before it is distributed directly to the vehicle’s electrical components. The system also charges the vehicle battery as necessary. “

Mazda has yet to name the production model that will feature i-ELOOP but it has been designed to work in harmony with the new SkyActiv engine and transmission technologies that are currently rolling off the production line in the new 2012 Mazda 3’s.

Mazda continues to amaze by combining new technologies with traditional concepts in order to improve fuel efficiency for its vehicles without sacrificing performance.

Gwynne-

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The Future

Bye Bye Ford. Mazda has confirmed that the Mazda independently designed Cx5 chassis and engine technology will be the new platform for the next generation of the Mazda 3 and the upcoming Mazda 6 replacements.

So what does this mean for Mazda? This shows that the haters in the automotive press, which in 2009 said that Mazda doesn’t have the engineering capabilities to develop a new platform, once again have no idea what they are talking about. Take the quote from Aaron Bragman, Auto Analyst for IHS Global Insight, posted in a TruthAboutCars article in December 2009, “The reality is Mazda is too small to do it on their own…Ford may have other options. They’ve got a European organization that is very good at developing small cars.” In other words, Mazda might want to start looking around for another partner.

Fast forward to today and Mazda has launched a whole new platform that incorporates stronger, lighter, ultra-high tensile steel in its construction, brand new SKYACTIV technology that employs a range of green technologies to increase fuel efficiency, and a clearly defined goal of where they want to be in the next 10-15 years in the automotive landscape.

With news of the soon to be released Cx5, the concept car Mazda 6 replacement the Takeri being shown, and the drawings of the Mx5 popping up the future looks really good for Mazda.


(Picture Above Courtesy of Top Speed)

I am really looking forward to the news that Mazda is looking to offer a 2 door Mazda 6 in the future. It has been too long since the Mx6 left the Market back in 1997 and the only 2 door North America has seen since is the Mx5.

Takeri Mazda 6

This just goes to show that Mazda is not a company to be underestimated.

-Derrick

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CX-5 Debut and US Release in Summer of 2012?

The Transportation Department published a press release yesterday (July 14, 2011) granting in full the Mazda Motor Corporate petition for an exemption of the CX-5 vehicle line from the Theft Prevention Standard and determined that the “antitheft device to be on the line as standard equipment was likely to be as effective in reducing and deterring motor vehicle theft as compliance with the parts marking requirements of the Theft Prevention Standard…”

Why do we care, you might ask? This is a key indicator that Mazda is readying the Mazda CX-5 for release in the US and based on the pattern we have seen from past models that have made an entrance into the US market, it is likely that we will see the 2013 CX-5 for sale in the US by summer of 2012.

The Mazda CX-5 will be the third model in the CX line-up, next to the CX-7 and CX-9, and will appropriately be the smallest one. Mazda said in a press release about the CX-5 that “(It) will be the first production vehicle to incorporate Mazda’s new design theme, ‘KODO – Soul of Motion’ as debuted on the Mazda SHINARI concept car, as well as the full range of breakthrough SKYACTIV technologies, including engines, transmissions, body and chassis. The CX-5 will join Mazda’s global line-up in 2012”

According to autocar, the CX-5 will be available with diesel and a six-speed manual (though the diesel is not likely to be made available in the US) and are also proposed with a double body variant 3 and 5 doors, all of which should ensure that the compact crossover not only looks good but is also fun to drive and fuel efficient.

Look out for the debut of this car at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show this September.

Gwynne-