Finally! Skyactive the final frontier is near

Skyactive-X the next generation

For months the chatters on the Washington Post online carchat, Real Wheels, have been asking when Mazda was going to bring out the next generation Skyactive technology. Finally! I have some information, not everything, but some. The engine is still under development, so some of the figures are subject to change

Technological innovations

Compression ignition and a supercharger are fitted to improve fuel economy together to deliver unprecedented engine response and increase torque 10–30 percent over the current SKYACTIV-G gasoline engine. Mazda is the one car company that has mastered the compression ignition that makes possible a super lean burn, which is a condition in which the ratio of gasoline to air is reduced to a level that would not ignite in a spark-ignition engine.

This super lean burn is the technology that improves engine efficiency up to 20–30 percent over the current SKYACTIV-G, and from 35–45 percent over Mazda’s 2008 gasoline engine of the same displacement. SKYACTIV-X even equals or exceeds the latest SKYACTIV-D diesel engine in fuel efficiency. There are no reviews on whether there will be Skyactive-r or turbo or the new Skyactive versus ecoboost.

SKYACTIV-X is the world’s first commercial gasoline engine to use compression ignition, in which the fuel-air mixture spontaneously ignites when compressed by the piston.

A proprietary combustion method called Spark Controlled Compression Ignition overcomes two issues that had impeded commercialization of compression ignition gasoline engines: maximizing the zone in which compression ignition is possible and achieving a seamless transition between compression ignition and spark ignition.

Skyactiv Features and dynamics

This new proprietary combustion engine combines the advantages of gasoline and diesel engines to achieve outstanding environmental performance, power and acceleration performance. I can hardly wait to drive the new Mazda6 with the next generation Skyactive technology.

With high efficiency across a wide range of RPMs and engine loads, the engine allows much more latitude in the selection of gear ratios, providing both superior fuel economy and driving performance.

Mazda can improve on the original “Sustainable Zoom-Zoom” vision announced in 2007, a vision that includes a future in which people, the earth, and society can coexist with cars, to enrich people’s lives. The Sustainable Zoom-Zoom has been extended to 2030, and the Skyactive technology will be part of that vision.