Rotary and Hybrid Engines Highlight Winners of 2004 Ward's 10 Best Engines

[Mr. Wiseman]

Text

[mazdamazda]

SOUTHFIELD, Mich., Dec. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Two unique and unusual engine
"formats" headline the winners of Ward's 10 Best Engines awards for 2004, a
highly anticipated auto industry award competition that for a decade has
served as the auto industry's most-recognized barometer of powertrain-related
product development.
Ward's 2004 list of honored engines marks the tenth anniversary for the
Ward's 10 Best Engines awards.
Mazda Motor Corp.'s all-new Renesis rotary engine and Toyota Motor Corp.'s
more-powerful hybrid-electric Prius drivetrain are two non-traditional engine
systems winning Ward's 10 Best Engines honors for 2004. Renesis is the
exhilarating new iteration of the rotary engine design to which Mazda alone
has remained devoted since the company's first production engine in 1967.
Mazda has over the years launched successive new generations of its innovative
rotary, and the Renesis brings significant and exciting new improvements to
the design.
Ward's 10 Best Engines judges this year also reward another non-
traditional engine design, Toyota's Prius hybrid-electric drivetrain that
combines several high-tech components into a gasoline-electric "system" that
delivers high mileage, excellent responsiveness and remarkably low emissions.
Toyota's hybrid "system" is comprised of a small, highly efficient 4-cylinder
gasoline engine, an electric motor to enhance the gasoline engine's power and
a continuously variable transmission. A sophisticated powertrain-control unit
leverages the best attributes of each component.
Fuji Heavy Industries' Subaru arm earns its first spot on the Ward's 10
Best Engines list with its high-performance horizontally opposed "boxer" 4-
cyl., which powers the critically acclaimed Subaru WRX STi. The turbocharged
boxer engine delivers one of the highest horsepower-per-liter ratings of any
engine available in the U.S., making it unusually powerful in relation to its
size -- an attribute always appreciated by Ward's 10 Best Engines editor-
judges.
Rounding out the new entrants to the 10 Best Engines list is Audi AG with
its power- and technology-laden 4.2L DOHC V-8, which powers the special S4
variant of the company's A4 compact sedan/wagon lineup. The thrusty Audi V-8
produces 340 horsepower and 302 lb.-ft. of torque, making it one of the
market's most powerful V-8s.
Trucks and SUVs continue to account for a significant portion of the U.S.
market, and engines powering those types of vehicles are well-represented in
the 2004 Ward's 10 Best Engines. A significant first-time winner is
DaimlerChrysler AG's 5.9L inline 6-cyl. turbodiesel, developed in conjunction
with and made by well-known diesel engine maker Cummins Inc. The new Cummins
600 turbodiesel is the standard engine for DC's Ram Heavy Duty pickup line and
is the most powerful diesel engine available in the segment.
Two truck/SUV engines returning as Ward's 10 Best Engines winners are
General Motors Corp.'s outstanding Vortec 4.2L dual-overhead-cam inline 6-cyl.
and DC's 5.7L Hemi Magnum V-8. Both engines are emerging as stalwart winners
on the Ward's 10 Best Engines list and the Hemi "Definitely is the best-
marketed, best-advertised engine in the industry," says Bill Visnic, Ward's
senior technical editor.



Six-cylinder engines, the most popular choice of U.S. vehicle buyers, are
represented by Nissan Motor Co.'s "VQ" 3.5L DOHC V-6, the only engine to win a
Ward's 10 Best award each year in the competition's decade-long history, Honda
Motor Co. Ltd.'s 3L DOHC V-6 available in the Accord and BMW AG's renowned
3.2L inline 6-cyl. found in its M3 coupe and convertible.


The Ward's 10 Best Engines for 2004:

Engine (and tested vehicle)

* Audi AG 4.2L DOHC V-8 (S4)
* BMW AG 3.2L DOHC I-6 (M3)
* DaimlerChrysler AG 5.7L Hemi Magnum OHV V-8 (Dodge Ram)
* DaimlerChrysler AG 5.9L Cummins 600 OHV I-6 turbodiesel (Dodge Ram
Heavy Duty)
* Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. Subaru 2.5L DOHC turbocharged H-4 (Subaru
WRX STi)
* General Motors Corp. Vortec 4.2L DOHC I-6 (GMC Envoy)
* Honda Motor Co. Ltd. 3L DOHC V-6 (Accord Coupe)
* Mazda Motor Corp. 1.3L Renesis rotary (RX-8)
* Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. 3.5L DOHC V-6 (Infiniti G35)
* Toyota Motor Corp. 1.5L DOHC I-4 Hybrid (Prius)

Five of 2004's 10 Best Engines are first-time winners, which Visnic says
symbolizes the increasing fractionalization of the U.S. vehicle market -- and
highlights the intense competitive pressures at work on the auto industry's
powertrain developers and engineers.
"Multi-year 10 Best Engines winners may become more rare," says Visnic.
"Powertrain-development cycles, just like those for the entire vehicle, are
becoming increasingly more compressed. The effect will be obvious: We'll see
more new or revised engines coming to market more often."
On the tenth anniversary of the Ward's 10 Best Engines competition, this
year's winners show more diversity than at any time in the past, Visnic adds.
"The 'spread' of engine types -- and even the vehicles they power -- is
refreshingly distinct. This year's list includes a high-mileage, eco-friendly
hybrid system arm-in-arm with several powerful V-8s. And although
performance-oriented engines always enjoy a certain edge with Best Engines
judges, the reality is that because most of these engines power vehicles that
can essentially be considered 'mainstream,' there has never been so much
engine performance available to buyers of reasonably common vehicles."
Visnic stresses that the most relevant aspect of the Ward's 10 Best
Engines list may be that it highlights the crucial relationship between
engines and vehicles that are successful in the market. "A Best Engines
mantra essentially has emerged over a decade of presenting these awards," says
Visnic. "It's simple. With very few exceptions, each and every 10 Best
Engines winner over the past decade has powered a commercially successful
vehicle. We are convinced that is no coincidence."
During a two-month test period, six editors from Ward's Communications
evaluated the engines "nominated" from 32 different cars, trucks and SUVs.
Scoring encompassed the crucial engine characteristics of power, torque,
noise, vibration and harshness (NVH), technical relevance and basic
comparative numbers. All engines nominated and tested were in vehicles with a
base MSRP under $52,500. "The engines in high-priced vehicles should be
outstanding," says Visnic. "By setting a realistic base price, we ensure the
awards have value and relevance to the average consumer."
Details of the Ward's 10 Best Engines will be featured in the January
issues of Ward's AutoWorld and Ward's Engine & Vehicle Technology Update and
at http://www.wardsauto.com .
Ward's Communications is a world-leading provider of auto industry news,
data and analysis, having served the industry's information needs for nearly
80 years. Ward's AutoWorld is a monthly magazine serving more than 68,000
automotive professionals globally. The twice-monthly newsletter Ward's Engine
& Vehicle Technology Update provides analysis of engineering advancements and
technical issues. WardsAuto.com is an online subscription service delivering

[pissword]

i saw kanina sa TOP GEAR, yung mazda rx-8 ba? rotary engine na 1.3L with 228 BHP huwaa.. anu yan hehehe and same time sila sa track ng top gear ng 350Z nissan. at 1min31.8 sec driven by stig

and the mini with 275 BHP sus!!! wala lang share ko lang since nabasa ko un rotary engine ng mazda dyan sa taas....

[papa tots]

hall of fame na dapat ang nissan VQ engine. 10 straight years na kasama.

the nissan VQ engine is the most versatile engine in the world right now, as it has been used in many different types of vehicles (family cars, luxury cars, sports cars, SUVs, vans).

[pissword]

yan yung engine ng cefiro dba... ive read na 2 years ago ata un na one of the best engine ata yan ever.