Honda unveils diesel system to rival gasoline cars
Honda Motor Co. said on Monday it has developed a
new and simple diesel powertrain that is as clean as gasoline-fuelled cars,
unveiling plans to mount it on a car for the U.S. market by 2009.
Click image — then click “See the Film” - then click “Watch the Film”
Honda Motor Co. said on Monday it has developed a new and simple diesel powertrain that is as clean as gasoline-fuelled cars, unveiling plans to mount it on a car for the U.S. market by 2009.
Diesel engines, which now power half of Europe’s new cars, are slowly gaining traction with fuel-conscious consumers around the world since they typically get 30 percent better mileage than gasoline cars.
Their weakness has been the higher exhaust levels of nitrogen oxide (NOx), a greenhouse gas, and carmakers are racing to come up with ways to clear the world’s strictest emissions regulations, which the United States will usher in next year.
Honda’s new diesel drivetrain generates and stores ammonia within a two-layer catalytic converter to turn nitrogen oxide into harmless nitrogen.
Honda engineers said the technology is superior to a process pioneered by Germany’s DaimlerChrysler AG because the latter requires a complex system and heavy add-ons to generate ammonia from urea-based additives.
But Japan’s third-biggest auto maker said it planned to roll out the advanced diesel engine, first in the United States within three years and later to other regions.
Honda’s a prize-winner for this commercial, too.
Posted: Mon - September 25, 2006 at 07:45 AM