start-stop system
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The fuel economy boost might be negligible, but should you worry more about wear and tear?
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Start-stop systems on U.S. light trucks doubled to one in five in a single year
Electric cars may be all the rage, but for now, all but a tiny fraction of the 250 million vehicles on U.S. roads burn gasoline or diesel fuel. One of the ways that new vehicles are boosting fuel efficiency is the use of what are called "start-stop" systems, which switch off the engine while the...
John Voelcker -
2019 Ram 1500 pickup has 48-volt 'mild hybrid' system for fuel economy
The dominant news at the 2018 North American International Auto Show in Detroit was about pickup trucks. Ironically, the Detroit automaker with the fewest electrified models on sale was the only one to bring hybridization to a new truck, in the form of its brand-new 2019 Ram 1500. Fiat Chrysler...
Mark Stevenson -
48-volt mild hybrids heading toward ubiquity in Europe as diesel declines
Public concerns over diesel cars, and their ebbing sales, have become a well-documented phenomenon in Europe after decades of popularity. When the VW diesel scandal exposed deliberate cheating, and real-world testing revealed that virtually no diesels certified for sale actually met emission...
Sean Szymkowski -
Hey, media, get it straight: "electrified" is NOT "electric," and the difference matters
OK, reporters of the world, it's time for a little chat. We know—believe me, we know—that you are cranking out a whole lot of copy, with much less support than you used to have, on far tighter deadlines, to feed a voracious, anonymous online audience whose clicks get you paid. But it's...
John Voelcker -
Would weaker EPA rules kill advanced start-stop hybrid systems for U.S.?
Today's political climate has made for fluid motion in regulations, and corporate average fuel economy targets haven't been left out. Suppliers and automakers have already begun investing heavily into vehicles to be sold in 2022 through 2025, which will include various fuel-saving and...
Sean Szymkowski -
Sometimes interesting predictions come buried inside a completely different topic. Take, for example, an investment note on the auto-parts supplier Continental contained in a roundup of industry research, market analysis, and news items issued yesterday by investment bank UBS. It contains the prediction that diesel engines' share of the global market will fall by two-thirds between now and 2025. DON'T MISS: Mayors of 4 capital cities to ban all diesel vehicles by 2025 The note came inside a paragraph on page 2 of yesterday's "Daily Research Summary—Europe," notes on research that the...
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Start-stop systems to soar in number over next decade
Start-stop systems will continue to proliferate over the next decade, analysts say.
Stephen Edelstein -
Start-stop systems to be offered on all GM vehicles by 2020
General Motors reportedly plans to offer start-stop on at least one powertrain in every model by 2020.
Stephen Edelstein -
48-volt mild hybrid systems: what they do, how they change the car
More carmakers may soon turn to 48-volt mild hybrids to improve fuel efficiency.
Stephen Edelstein -
Electrification, sure, but gasoline engines will endure: supplier
Increasingly stiff limits on carbon emission and minimum fuel economy in most of the world's car markets mean that more plug-in electric cars must be sold. With battery costs steadily falling and the pricetag rising for the new technologies that make cars more efficient, some now envision a world...
John Voelcker -
2016 Cadillac Start-Stop Systems To Use Ultracapacitors To Augment Batteries
Start-stop systems in certain 2016 Cadillac models will use ultracapacitors for better performance.
Stephen Edelstein -
Ten years ago, startup lithium-ion battery maker A123 Systems was the darling of business media, poised to enter the big leagues of electric cars after successfully selling its cells to power-tool makers. Then came the Fisker Karma, U.S. government grants, a factory in Michigan, the economic meltdown, quality-control problems, and ultimately bankruptcy. DON'T MISS: Electric Cars "Not Viable Markets" For Reborn A123 In U.S., Europe In Next 10 Years, CEO Says A decade later, the reconsistituted A123--now owned by China's largest auto-parts maker, Wanxiang--sees only 25 percent of its revenue...
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12-Volt Lithium-Ion Battery For Advanced Start-Stop Coming In 2018
Johnson Controls claims its new start-stop system can improve fuel economy up to 8 percent.
Stephen Edelstein -
Conventional Gasoline Engines A Minority In 2 Years? Not So Fast...
Progress must be coming at a much faster pace than we thought: Conventional gasoline engines will power only a minority of the new cars sold just two years hence, according to a new report. That means more than half the vehicles sold will have hybrid, diesel, natural gas, or plug-in electric...
John Voelcker -
Start-Stop In U.S.: 7% Now, 57% In 2020, But Drivers 'Resist': Analyst
Start-stop systems have finally started to arrive on U.S. new cars in noticeable numbers. The systems, which simply turn off a car's engine when it's sitting stationary and then switch it back on as the driver's foot starts to lift off the brake, are now fitted to 7 percent of new cars sold in the...
John Voelcker -
Will Ultracapacitors Save Start-Stop Systems From Consumer Wrath?
Start-stop systems, which switch off a car's engine while it's stopped to boost fuel efficiency, are now entering the U.S. market in serious numbers. Many European makers, including BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and MINI, are fitting them as standard on 2015 models, and there are more to come: By 2022, some...
John Voelcker -
Chrysler To Fit Start-Stop As Standard On Certain 2015 Models
Start-stop will be standard on certain 2015 Chrysler 200 and Jeep Cherokee models.
Stephen Edelstein -
Electrification is becoming an increasingly important factor in improving the fuel efficiency of vehicles. Cars like the Toyota Prius hybrid made it mainstream, but there are varying degrees to which batteries can be used for saving fuel. MUST SEE: Elio 84-MPG Three-Wheel Prototype: Driven In Parking Lot (Video) One of them is being explored right now by Ford and Samsung. The two firms are testing a new battery designed to boost the effectiveness of regenerative braking in non-hybrid vehicles. In recent years, we've seen elements of hybrid vehicles appearing in cars that aren't technically...
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2015 Chevrolet Impala Gets Start-Stop, But Hybrid 'Eco' Gone
New information on updates for 2015 to the Chevrolet Impala full-size sedan range note that a start-stop system will be fitted to the four-cylinder model as standard equipment. So the 2015 Chevy Impala LS model with the base 196-horsepower 2.5-liter four-cylinder will now switch off its engine when...
John Voelcker -
Chevrolet Malibu Buyers Appreciate Gas-Saving Stop-Start Tech
Stop-start engine technology is used widely in cars in Europe, but until recently very few automakers have applied it to vehicles sold in the U.S. For the most part, that's because the benefits aren't shown up in EPA testing. But a few automakers are also worried that customers may not be accepting...
Antony Ingram -
Ford To Have Start-Stop On 70 Percent Of Vehicles By 2017
Stop-start systems have taken much longer to infiltrate the U.S. market than they have elsewhere, but several manufacturers are finally coming around to the idea of the gas-saving technology. One such automaker is Ford, which has announced that 70 percent of its North American vehicle lineup will...
Antony Ingram -
Will Small 48-Volt Lithium-Ion Battery Boost Start-Stop In U.S. Cars?
Johnson Controls hopes its new compact lithium-ion battery pack will jump start the mass-adoption of start-stop systems.
Stephen Edelstein -
2014 Chevrolet Malibu Start-Stop System: How It Works (And Why It Has 2 Batteries)
The 2014 Chevrolet Malibu's 2.5-liter engine matches the pricier Malibu Eco's hybrid drivetrain for fuel economy.
Stephen Edelstein