WARRENDALE, Mich., March 19 /PRNewswire/ -- The technical solutions for
the U.S. government's corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards may be
easier to define than they are to implement, and the discussion of what is
really possible is very important to society and the economy. The Society of
Automotive Engineers (SAE) 2002 World Congress in Detroit featured a
preeminent panel of automotive technical experts from industry and academia,
including members of the National Academy of Engineering. The panel discussed
and critiqued a paper entitled "Aggregating Technologies for Reducing Fuel
Consumption: A Review of the Technical Content in the 2002 National Research
Council Report on CAFE."
The lively and meaningful discussion surrounding technological solutions
to meet possible future CAFE fuel economy targets drew a standing-room-only
audience of engineers, industry management, supplier company technical staff,
and industry media. Due to the sensitive nature of the topic, those present
were asked not to attribute specific statements to specific panelists.
While the panel accepted the technologies presented in the NRC report as
valid solutions to increasing overall fuel economy, they found some serious
flaws in the methods used to aggregate the benefits of these technologies,
which had the effect of overstating the estimated benefit of the use of
multiple technologies.
The presenters expressed concern that if legislators use the NRC CAFE
Report as scientific fact, unrealistic target results could become law. They
went on to say that while this report is helpful in assessing the scope of the
problem and potential solutions, it is insufficiently reliable as a source
from which legislation can be drafted.
Among the technologies identified in the NRC CAFE Report to reduce fuel
consumption were:
-- Multi-valve overhead cam engines;
-- Variable valve intake and exhaust cam phasing;
-- Variable valve lift and timing; cylinder deactivation;
-- Variable compression ratio;
-- Intake valve throttling (continuously variable lift);
-- "Camless" valve actuation;
-- Continuously variable transmission (CVT);
-- Advanced (high-torque) CVT; and
-- Integrated starter-generator with idle shutoff.
SAE is a nonprofit engineering society seen by many in the automotive
industry as an ideal forum to bring together members of the academic,
regulatory, and industrial communities for policy and technical dialogue. The
society's magazine, Automotive Engineering International, contains a monthly
column on regulatory issues affecting standards development and manufacturing
of vehicles.
SOURCE Society of Automotive Engineers
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Related links:
http://www.sae.org
CONTACT:
Steve Yaeger of SAE Corporate PR,
+1-724-772-4068, or syaeger@sae.org
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