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Study Assesses Product Attribute Trade-offs and Technological Progress; Meeting Proposed Obama Fuel Economy Standards Will Require Downsizing and Change in Fleet Mix

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Christopher Knittel, of the UC Davis Department of Economics and Institute of Transportation Studies, developed a model to examine the technical relationship between vehicle weight, engine power and fuel economy—to which he refers as a production possibilities frontier (PPF)—and how this PPF shifts out over time. Knittel, 2009.

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Study finds that aluminum reduces electric vehicle cost against steel counterpart for same targeted range

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A C-segment crash reference vehicle (Volkswagen Golf) with steel unibody and internal combustion engine served as the basis for this study. The mass and crashworthiness properties of this vehicle were analyzed in four Euro NCAP and FMVSS 301 high-speed load cases, serving as the crash reference within the project.

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Honda begins sales of Clarity Fuel Cell in Japan; targeting 200 units first year

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Honda will begin with small-volume production at the Production Supervisory Unit and Powertrain Production Supervisory Unit (located in Tochigi, Japan), eventually expanding production volume. Honda is planning to introduce the Clarity Fuel Cell to Europe and the US before the end of 2016. Earlier post.). Earlier post.).

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New Mahle piston ring coating for high-output GTDI engines; chromium nitride using high-velocity oxygen fuel process

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Under development since 2011 at Mahle’s thermal spray development labs in Michigan, the new process initially was designed for high-output GTDI engines currently in production by two US domestic automakers. Conventional plasma methods are used for ring production at Mahle’s St.

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Honda leverages older name for new FCV: Clarity Fuel Cell makes its debut at Tokyo; 435-mile range on JC08

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unveiled the planned production model of its all-new fuel cell vehicle (FCV), called Clarity Fuel Cell, at the 44 th Tokyo Motor Show 2015. Honda will begin with small-volume production at the Production Supervisory Unit and Powertrain Production Supervisory Unit (located in Takanezawa-machi, Shioya-gun, Tochigi, Japan.),

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Study finds technology cost of achieving European 2020 LDV CO2 targets more than offset by resultant fuel savings

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This first report (Phase I) examines only the impact of improving the efficiency of fossil-fueled vehicles, in which efficiency gains are delivered by the improvement of the internal combustion engine vehicle, including lightweighting, engine downsizing and hybridization.

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Global WorldAutoSteel Project Presents Interim Results of FutureSteelVehicle (FSV) Phase 2 Project for Low GHG Body Structure for Electrified Vehicles

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General results included: New benchmark in weight reduction achieved through Advanced High-Strength Steel optimized structures, enabling powertrain downsizing for affordable electrified vehicles. —Jody Shaw, Chairman, FSV Program and manager of Technical Marketing and Product Research at United States Steel Corporation.