Rolls-Royce adopts CGI for engine heads

Further evidence of the growing acceptance of the transition towards compacted graphite iron (CGI) as a material of choice of engine makers can be found in the decision by Rolls-Royce AG subsidiary MTU Friedrichshafen to use CGI for the cylinder heads of an upgrade of its class-leading Series 2000 industrial engine.

The CGI cylinder head upgrade, compared to the previous generation head, was specified to enable increased power and to ensure durability in the demanding duty cycles experienced by marine, mining, construction and stationary power generating engines.

Volvo, Geely developing sub-compact

Volvo and Geely Automotive (Volvo’s owners in China since 2010) are developing a subcompact vehicle platform in the joint Swedish research and development centre the partners opened last year.

Reports say the small model will be used exclusively by Geely to compete against the Ford Fiesta, Volkswagen Polo and Toyota Yaris.

Volkswagen readies new Polo

Volkswagen’s Polo is set for an update with a range of new technologies and efficient engines, along with a makeover inside and out.

Chief among the changes for the Polo – over 14 million of which have been sold worldwide since its introduction in 1975 – is a range of new EU6-compliant engines offering fuel efficiency improvements of up to 21 per cent over the old units.

Efficiency key to 2014 F1 - Mercedes

For 2014 the F1 motor racing fraternity has probably the greatest change in regulations in its history, according to Paddy Low, technical chief of Mercedes AMG Petronas, as he unveiled the new engine today.

“The headline is 'efficiency',” he said. “The fact that we can run a full race on 100kg rather than 150kg of fuel sends a great message about the technology we can deliver for Formula One - and gives an important message to the automotive world in general. It's not simply about the fuel saved per car on a Sunday afternoon, it's about the technology itself.”

Tata Motors chief dies in fall

Karl Slym, 51, has been found dead after falling from his 22^nd floor bedroom in the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok.

Slym is reported to have been responsible for the Tata Motors car-making operations in India as well as Tata’s interests in South Korea, Thailand and South Africa.

Nissan develops ‘engine in a suitcase’

The prospect of an ‘engine in a suitcase’ has become a reality with the latest 1.5-litre three-cylinder engine from Nissan that develops 400bhp.

The engine weighs only 40kg (88lb) and is only 500mm tall x 400mm long x 200mm wide (19.68” x 15.74” x 7.78”).

2013 car market in Australia

The first thing that is different from the UK is that most Aussies have this dream of either driving round Australia or going up north into the tropics in the winter. All this involves driving on dirt roads in the outback in a 4x4.

So, there is a big market for 4x4s and also for pick-up trucks which are used by trades people for work and family use - so there are four-door pick-up trucks. This means that a huge sector of the market is for 4x4s and pick-ups, many of which are 4x4s.

Navistar putting MWM up for sale?

According to US news agency Bloomberg, heavy duty truck maker Navistar Inc. is exploring its options for MWM, its South American truck-engine business. One option may be to sell the unit.

Last May, this newsletter posed the question: Navistar: has it too many engine plants? Clearly the issue of Navistar International’s engine overcapacity, coupled with a growing closeness to Cummins Inc., suggests the topic of conversation in Navistar’s board room has stretched beyond the fate of its three engine plants in the US.

Solihull revs up for 2015 aluminium Jaguar

 This year, JaguarLandRover’s UK Solihull manufacturing site will be the scene of much activity as advances are introduced in the aluminium process of building body-in-white (BIW).

Up until now, JLR’s two main centres of excellence for aluminium vehicle BIW manufacture have centred primarily on the company’s Castle Bromwich site and Solihull. Castle Bromwich, in particular, has seen a previously substantial investment (by Ford Motor Company) in equipment to stamp and handle aluminium body panels, primarily using a line of Schuler presses, provided the bedrock for the technology.

Scania introduces biodiesels

Scania is introducing two Euro 6-certified, 13-litre truck engines that can run on any diesel blend, right up to 100 percent biodiesel (EN

14214).

The versions certified for biodiesel operation are the mo­dular, six-cylinder, 13-litre 450 and 490bhp engines.

UK leads EU charge in car sales growth

The UK is the blue-eyed boy of Europe as car registrations edge closer to those of Germany.

In 2013, the UK car industry registered 2.264 million vehicles, a rise of 10.8 per cent. Germany in comparison experienced a 4.2 per drop to 2.952 million vehicles.

Vauxhall built only 44,000 vans in 2013

The Vauxhall Van Plant in Luton, UK built over 44,000 vans last year, making it Britain’s number one van maker for the 12^th year running, according to figures released today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

The Bedfordshire-based Vauxhall celebrated 110 years of building and selling vehicles in 2013 and achieved 12 years of manufacturing dominance.

UK engine output tops 2.5 million

UK engine production rose 2.3 per cent in 2013 to 2,553,316 units, the highest since 2008. The figure for 2012 was 2,495,371.

The growth in engine production was boosted by a sales boost in the UK providing a rise of nine per cent. Exports however fell 1.7 per cent

The principal engine manufacturers in the UK are: BMW, Ford – Bridgend and Dagenham, Honda, Nissan and Toyota.

Nissan’s UK output to top 600,000

Nissan’s manufacturing plant in Sunderland, Tyne & Wear, has capacity to build over 600,000 vehicles, according to Trevor Mann, executive director of Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK, speaking today.

It is exactly 30 years since the agreement was signed by the Japanese vehicle builder and the UK Government to build the plant in the UK which has since become the biggest vehicle manufacturing plant in the country.

Last year the plant produced over 500,000 vehicles and has capacity to raise this by one-fifth.

The company employs over 6,500 people and this will to rise to over 7,000. The facility in Sunderland builds vehicles and engines.

A new Nissan model rolls off the production line today. The new vehicle, the second generation Qashqai, has helped create 500 new jobs at the Japanese car giant's UK plant in the coming months.

With this and other new models expected to be awarded to the UK plant, which is one of the jewels in Nissan’s worldwide manufacturing crown, will edge employment eventually to near the 8,000 mark.

Some 286,000 Qashqai cars were built last year, with production numbers expected to be similar in 2014. The car is Nissan's best-selling model in Europe.

Engineers at the Sunderland plant work closely with their counterparts at Nissan’s European Technical Centre (NETC) at Cranfield, Bedfordshire.

Eighty per cent of the output of the Sunderland plant is exported. ∎

China to get first purpose-built CGI foundry

One of China's largest automotive component conglomerates has entered into a long term technology supply agreement with the Swedish process control specialist SinterCast for the production of compacted graphite iron (CGI) engine components.  

Under the terms of the agreement, SinterCast will install a System 3000 Plus process control system at the company's new purpose-built CGI foundry in China.