Sky engines will cut Mazda fuel 30%

The company is pushing ahead with plans to introduce its next-generation direct-injection petrol Sky G engines across the local range next year. The Sky D diesel engines are also in the pipeline.

The company's head of global marketing, sales and customer service, Masazumi Wakayama, says the company is committed to lowering fuel economy across its entire range by 2015. "The Sky engines are critical to that goal," he says.

Initially 2.0-litre petrol Sky G and a 2.2-litre diesel Sky D will arrive. The petrol engine is said to deliver a 15 per cent fuel economy gain while the diesel improvement is 20 per cent over current equivalent engines.

Add CarsGuide as a preferred source in Google Search

Add CarsGuide as a preferred source in Google Search

Wakayama says the Sky G equipped Mazda3 delivers the same economy and emissions as today's Mazda2. Both the petrol and diesel engines will be mated with a new automatic transmission, called Sky-Drive, which acts like a dual clutch transmission.

Importantly too, the Sky G engine will be mated to Toyota's hybrid drive system to power a new hybrid car. The hybrid is expected to arrive first in the Mazda6 around 2013 after both Japanese carmakers announced a hybrid technology sharing agreement last month.

Wakayama says the Mazda hybrid will have all the qualities expected of a Mazda. "It will drive like a Mazda," he says.

Although hybrids represent 20 per cent of total car sales in Japan, Wakayama believes the internal combustion engine is not dead. "We believe that the vast majority of cars will have internal combustion engines in 2030," he says. "That is why we are working to optimise these base technologies first.  This will benefit customers by minimising the cost of ownership."

Apart from more efficient engines like the Sky range, Mazda is focused on reducing weight, introducing lower rolling resistance tyres and improved aerodynamics of its cars. "After that we will introduce stop-start and regenerative braking and hybrid systems," he says.

"The phased introduction of these technologies will form the future of Mazda. Of course this will eventually also lead to an electric vehicle too but we are not doing that straight away."