After years of wooing customers to big, asphalt-scorching engines, automakers are starting to think small again as gas prices rise. More buyers are showing interest in economical four-cylinder engines rather than those with thirstier six or eight cylinders, said executives at USA TODAY's Automaker Roundtable.
We have seen some shift, and we are reacting to it as fast as we can," said Mark LaNeve, General Motors' North American marketing chief. So far this year, about 31.5% of vehicles sold have come equipped with four-cylinder engines. That's up from 29.2% in 2003, reports the Power Information Network. The percentage of vehicles with six- and eight-cylinder engines dropped over the same period.
Where Size Matters
Honda: The Accord with a V-6 -- even in its hybrid version -- hasn't sold as well as the four-cylinder model, said Richard Colliver, executive vice president of Honda's U.S. unit. "Because of the price of gasoline, the perception is four-cylinders are more efficient engines," he said. Asked if he wished the hybrid Accord had been built as a four-cylinder model, he replied, "In hindsight, yes." There are no plans to discontinue the model.
GM: Last year, about 60% of Chevy Malibus sold had six-cylinder engines. The rest had fours. This year, the mix is exactly the opposite, said GM spokesman Tom Read.
Ford: Fusion sedans sell faster when they have a smaller engine -- in an average 66 days for four-cylinder engines, compared with 84 days for six -- says Ford spokesman Jim Cain.
Four-cylinder engines generally get better gas mileage than larger engines, which can range all the way up to 12 cylinders in some ultra-luxury models.
But new technology in the sixes sometimes reduces the advantage of a smaller engine. Fusions with a four-cylinder and manual transmission get just two more miles per gallon on the highway than the six-cylinder model with automatic transmission. Toyota's new RAV4 shaves the four-cylinder highway advantage over the six-cylinder to 1 mpg.
Yet, "there's a ton of development going on around four-cylinder engines," Read said. Case in point: GM's Saturn Sky Red Line roadster, just unveiled at the New York International Auto Show, will come with a direct-injection, turbocharged 2-litre four that packs 46% more horsepower than the larger 2.4-liter engine in the regular version.
The Chrysler Group's new four-cylinder engines, going into vehicles such as the new Dodge Caliber, get 5% better gas mileage than the engines they replace, yet have horsepower and torque ratings close to the six-cylinder versions. A 300-horsepower four will go into the high-performance version of the Caliber, said spokesman Nick Cappa.
Don't expect a four- or even six-cylinder version of Chrysler's rip-snorting Hemi engines anytime soon. Asked whether it might create a four-cylinder version of its famed Hemi, Chrysler global sales and marketing chief Joe Eberhardt was unequivocal. "No," he replied.
source:http://www.motortrend.com/features/auto_news/2006/112_news55/gas_mileage.html
We have seen some shift, and we are reacting to it as fast as we can," said Mark LaNeve, General Motors' North American marketing chief. So far this year, about 31.5% of vehicles sold have come equipped with four-cylinder engines. That's up from 29.2% in 2003, reports the Power Information Network. The percentage of vehicles with six- and eight-cylinder engines dropped over the same period.
Where Size Matters
Honda: The Accord with a V-6 -- even in its hybrid version -- hasn't sold as well as the four-cylinder model, said Richard Colliver, executive vice president of Honda's U.S. unit. "Because of the price of gasoline, the perception is four-cylinders are more efficient engines," he said. Asked if he wished the hybrid Accord had been built as a four-cylinder model, he replied, "In hindsight, yes." There are no plans to discontinue the model.
GM: Last year, about 60% of Chevy Malibus sold had six-cylinder engines. The rest had fours. This year, the mix is exactly the opposite, said GM spokesman Tom Read.
Ford: Fusion sedans sell faster when they have a smaller engine -- in an average 66 days for four-cylinder engines, compared with 84 days for six -- says Ford spokesman Jim Cain.
Four-cylinder engines generally get better gas mileage than larger engines, which can range all the way up to 12 cylinders in some ultra-luxury models.
But new technology in the sixes sometimes reduces the advantage of a smaller engine. Fusions with a four-cylinder and manual transmission get just two more miles per gallon on the highway than the six-cylinder model with automatic transmission. Toyota's new RAV4 shaves the four-cylinder highway advantage over the six-cylinder to 1 mpg.
Yet, "there's a ton of development going on around four-cylinder engines," Read said. Case in point: GM's Saturn Sky Red Line roadster, just unveiled at the New York International Auto Show, will come with a direct-injection, turbocharged 2-litre four that packs 46% more horsepower than the larger 2.4-liter engine in the regular version.
The Chrysler Group's new four-cylinder engines, going into vehicles such as the new Dodge Caliber, get 5% better gas mileage than the engines they replace, yet have horsepower and torque ratings close to the six-cylinder versions. A 300-horsepower four will go into the high-performance version of the Caliber, said spokesman Nick Cappa.
Don't expect a four- or even six-cylinder version of Chrysler's rip-snorting Hemi engines anytime soon. Asked whether it might create a four-cylinder version of its famed Hemi, Chrysler global sales and marketing chief Joe Eberhardt was unequivocal. "No," he replied.
source:http://www.motortrend.com/features/auto_news/2006/112_news55/gas_mileage.html
