HONDA VOW TO MAKE EVERY ONE OF THEIR CARS GREEN

Honda's global car production last year totalled 2.3 million units. The global capacity should climb to 2.85 million by 2003 - including 1.25 million vehicles from Japan. Honda announced the technical outlines of its next-generation engines for its three divisions-automobiles, motorcycles, and power products, as well as its 2005 targets for fuel consumption and exhaust gas purification this week as a build-up to their offerings at the forthcoming Frankfurt and London Motor Shows presumably. To meet these new targets, the company has announced technical outlines of its next-generation engines for all three divisions - cars, motorcycles and power equipment products - which will give it greater competitiveness and strength worldwide.

For cars, Honda plans to achieve an average fuel efficiency improvement of 25% or more above its 1995 figure by the year 2005 together with a reduction in hydrocarbon (HC) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) exhaust gas emissions to one quarter of the 1995 levels by 2005.

For motorcycles, Honda plans to achieve an average fuel efficiency improvement of 30% or more above its 1995 figure by the year 2005 together with a reduction in HC by approximately one third. For power products, the respective targets have been set at fuel efficiency improvement of 30% with a reduction in HC and NOx to about 30% of 1995 levels by 2005.

At the same time as making these announcements, Honda introduced two prototype fuel cell electric vehicles, the FCX-V1 and FCX-V2, designed to run on hydrogen fuel and methanol respectively. In view of possible future changes in the fuel infrastructure and to accumulate engineering expertise, Honda has been striving to develop fuel cell vehicles - and is planning to have one commercially available by 2003. They are not alone!

Honda also introduced its 'next generation' 2.0-litre petrol engine designed to set a new benchmark for internal combustion engines. The new four-cylinder VTEC unit achieves approximately 20% or greater fuel efficiency compared with conventional 'lean burn' petrol engines with exhaust gas emissions of at least 50% less than government mandated standards in Japan for the year 2000.

Finally the company announced plans to install its programmed fuel injection system (PGM-FI) in 50cc class two-wheelers as well as the company's larger engine size motorcycles to achieve improvements in both fuel consumption and exhaust emissions.

Announcing these plans at the Japanese launch of the Honda Insight (Honda's revolutionary petrol/electric coupe), the company's President Hiroyuki Yoshino said: "We want to be the world-leader in the 'development-time-speed race' enabling Honda to meet the customer demands around the world in the shortest time. By achieving our first three challenges - improving speed, efficiency and flexibility, continuing globalisation and advancing environmental and safety technologies - we can build the foundation of our fourth challenge - offering new and distinctive values for our customers. Finally, we want to enter the new century by continuing Honda's unique challenging spirit ."

For more detailed descriptions of these technologies click here.

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