Toyota has outed a new line of engines that have been designed as an ideal pair for their new TNGA (Toyota New Global Architecture) platform. To complement these 9 new motors, four new transmissions have also been announced.
Importantly, the priority list that the Japanese automotive giant focused on can all be fairly labelled as having additional leanings to improve the driving experience. These engines will offer more performance and torque while cutting on fuel consumption and exhaust emissions, expectedly.
Specifically, Toyota claims a 10 percent increase in power as well as a 20 percent improvement in fuel efficiency and a 15 percent cut in CO2 emissions. But they are also engineered them to be inherently lightweight and with a lowered centre of gravity to improve handling across all the cars they will be slotted in to.
These will include hybrids, plug-in hybrids, along with future versions of their more conventional cars, signalling a company-wide reprioritisation where Toyota cars can slowly build a reputation for also being fun - something they haven’t been able to brag about in relation to their closest competitors.
Back to new engine family, which Toyota has cutely dubbed ‘Dynamic Force’, it kicks off with a naturally aspirated 2.5-litre direct injection four-cylinder that should see first light at the Detroit Motor Show next month in the all-new Camry.
Its internals have been tweaked to reduce friction and incorporate high-speed combustion, something that aids in fuel economy but also lends itself to a more eager and responsive engine, with a claimed thermal efficiency improvement of 40 percent. Impressive.
Toyota has also chosen to eschew turbocharging for this generation of engines as well consequently choosing to keep engine capacities level while other major automakers have fully embraced turbocharging downsized motors to achieve their efficiency targets.
But even without forced induction, Toyota is confident that torque will be ample at all speeds, possibly aided by an electric motor as part of a wider spectrum of hybrid offerings in the immediate future. They aim to increase its workforce allocation by 30 percent toward hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrain development.
An improved hybrid drive is also said to be featured in their next generation of cars, offering technologies such as direct drive electric motors and higher capacity batteries with all-electric range over 50km. As an interesting aside, Toyota also claims it can be easily adapted for rear wheel drive configurations, leading us to suspect their next BMW co-developed Supra will indeed be partly electric.
Accompanying this initial powertrain announcement, Toyota has shed light on two new automatic transmissions, one with 8 forward ratios and the other with 10 speeds, that are said to provide a more direct shifting in normal use and developed with the same low friction measures undertaken with the Dynamic Force engine family.
It will take time for this powertrain assault to fully flesh the full gamut of these 9 new engines and 4 new transmissions have been rolled out to cover the vast majority of Toyota cars. By 2021, it’s expected that 17 variations of these engines along with ten new transmissions would have been introduced, including a new CVT.
These new components will also play a large role in the spec sheets of Lexus’ future portfolio, starting with a new generation model that could be introduced as early as 2017.
For more on Toyota vehicles, including pricing and specifications, check out our Showroom.
