Japan’s Toyota Shows ‘An Engine Born’ With Green Fuel Despite Global Push For Battery Electric Cars

TOKYO —”An engine reborn.”

That is how Japanese automaker Toyota announced intentions to put a futuristic spin on the basic internal combustion engine.

During a three-hour presentation Tuesday in a Tokyo hall, the automaker giant said it would provide lean, compact engines that could run on so-called green fuels such as hydrogen and bioethanol or be paired with zero-emission electric motors in hybrids.

This comes as many automakers push toward all-electric automobiles. China is stepping up its campaign for battery electric vehicles, and its own BYD threatens to outperform Tesla.

Toyota | Pixa Bay Image

Japan’s Toyota Shows ‘An Engine Born’ With Green Fuel Despite Global Push For Battery Electric Cars

Toyota CEO Koji Sato stated that the “engine is optimized for the electrification era” and that the goal is to help the globe achieve “carbon neutrality.”

Toyota already has a well-known hybrid car, the Prius, which combines a gas engine with an electric motor. It alternates between the two to ensure a cleaner drive.

According to Toyota, the electric motor will be the primary driving force in future hybrids, with the new engine playing a supporting role.

Subaru Corp. and Mazda Motor Corp., constructing ecological engines to satisfy the inevitably approaching stricter emissions rules, attended Toyota’s presentation, dubbed a “multi-pathway workshop.”

“Each company wants to win, but we can be faster if we work together,” Sato stated.

Toyota | Pixa Bay Image

Japan’s Toyota Shows ‘An Engine Born’ With Green Fuel Despite Global Push For Battery Electric Cars

However, no specific date for the engines’ release was provided.

The legacy of the automobile engine could be felt everywhere.

Mazda announced that their famous rotary engine, which debuted more than 50 years ago, is being converted for electric vehicles.

Subaru, meanwhile, demonstrated its signature smaller horizontally opposed engine. Chief Technology Officer Tetsuro Fujinuki said the company was working on a wonderful “Subaru-like” electric vehicle, but he also stated that the engine would not be phased out entirely.

Toyota, too, is developing beautiful BEVs.

The executives stated on Tuesday that energy supply conditions varied globally, that goods had to fit a wide range of consumer needs, and that the capital required to mass-produce BEVS was substantial.

Toyota officials have consistently stated that 5.5 million jobs were at stake in Japan’s automobile production supply chain today, making a fast transition to electric cars neither economically feasible nor socially responsible.

Toyota | PixaBay Image

Japan’s Toyota Shows ‘An Engine Born’ With Green Fuel Despite Global Push For Battery Electric Cars

Takahiro Fujimoto, a management professor at Waseda University, feels that electric vehicles are an important approach to lowering emissions. However, they still have flaws, such as the massive volumes of pollution released while manufacturing lithium-ion batteries, a key component.

In Japan, for example, commuters use trains, which Fujimoto suggests might be a more environmentally friendly mode of transportation.

“At the absolute least, I feel that the growth and innovation of BEVs are critical. But that reasoning is not logically equivalent to arguing that all we need are BEVs,” he explained.

Fujimoto stated that uncertainties persist in research and development and social, political, and market factors.

“The world’s goal of carbon neutrality will most likely take decades to achieve. “It’ll be a long marathon race,” he explained.

SOURCE – (AP)