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Mazda6 diesels leave Europe; 2.2L Skyactiv diesel approved in U.S.

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Old 10-13-20, 08:52 PM
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mmarshall
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Default Mazda6 diesels leave Europe; 2.2L Skyactiv diesel approved in U.S.

Mazda is pulling the Mazda6 diesel sedans and wagons from Europe at the same time that the 2.2L diesel is now getting final certification in the U.S.

I, for one, am not one of the diesel-haters, and, personally, like their driving characteristics.....low RPMs, torque down low, no spark plugs to replace or foul (although they come with glow-plugs for initial-starting), and relatively good gas efficiency, plus their extremely durable engine-blocks (if engineered correctly). They have been one of the propulsion-systems that have been seriously neglected in this (IMO) insane rush to full-electrics and plug-in hybrids)

https://www.autoevolution.com/news/m...us-149961.html

Mazda6 Diesel Discontinued in Europe, SkyActiv-D 2.2 Gets Certified in the U.S.

10 Oct 2020, 17:56 UTC ·
by Mircea Panait
Home > News > Car Profile

Ever since the Dieselgate scandal that convinced Volkswagen to invest heavily into electrification, compression ignition is seen as some kind of Boogeyman of the automotive industry. The question is, have you tried imagining semis and other heavy haulers with gasoline engines, hybrid, or all-electric powertrains?

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Not even the European Union did, which is slowly but steadily phasing out new passenger vehicles running on fossil fuel. However, there are automakers that can’t make a case for diesel any longer in this part of the world. Mazda, for example, is pulling the plug on the 6 sedan and wagon SkyActiv-D 2.2.

Autocar.co.uk doesn’t know if other models such as the CX-5 will follow suit, but the painting is on the wall if we take a moment to look at the CO2 emissions of a mild-hybrid gasoline powertrain versus a turbo diesel with similar displacement.

In the case of the Mazda3 hatchback, the SkyActiv-D 1.8 is WLTP-rated at 131 grams of CO2 per kilometer while the SkyActiv-G 2.0 M-Hybrid returns 116 grams. Level up to the SkyActiv-X engine, and you're looking at 103 grams.

The U.S. is different from Europe in terms of emissions regulations, though. A decade since we’ve been promised the SkyActiv-D 2.2 in this part of the world, Mazda has confirmed to Carscoops that the inevitable has happened.

Originally slated to arrive in 2013 (!!!) instead of 2020, the Mazda6 sedan with this engine has completed certification in the United States along with the CX-5 crossover. “More information will be released at the appropriate time,” said Mazda’s spokesman, but still, what can you expect from the optional mill?

Both nameplates are equipped with a twin-turbocharged mill, a sequential system that eliminates the tradeoffs between low-RPM response and high-RPM performance. A small and a large turbo promise up to 168 horsepower and 290 pound-feet (393 Nm), and Mazda designed the system for single turbo operation, both compressing in series, and both operating in parallel.
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Old 10-14-20, 03:11 AM
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At this point even they are aware their diesel US strategy is a failure but they have to follow through. It took them forever to do so and then VW happened.
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Old 10-14-20, 06:27 AM
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Whhhhhyyyyyyy?
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Old 10-14-20, 06:33 AM
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sdls
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Mazda follows this cycle;

hype some amazing new technology
get it tied up in “regulatory approval” for a decade
ultimately do not deliver
Repeat
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Old 10-14-20, 06:42 AM
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mmarshall
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Originally Posted by Vladi
At this point even they are aware their diesel US strategy is a failure but they have to follow through. It took them forever to do so and then VW happened.
I don't blame Mazda for VW's faults. And if the American public shuns diesels, it's not their fault either.
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Old 10-14-20, 06:53 AM
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Originally Posted by sdls
Mazda follows this cycle;

hype some amazing new technology
get it tied up in “regulatory approval” for a decade
ultimately do not deliver
Repeat
Couldn't have said it any better. Mazda spends more time making concept cars and marketing than they do actually updating their portfolio. That's why I'm also dubious about the rumored RWD 6.
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Old 10-14-20, 08:11 AM
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My big takeaway from any diesel cancellations or diesel gate scandal is Toyota’s insistence that diesels are too costly to meet emissions protocols. They always said the “could” do it but chose to do the hybrid route for North America and Europe as costs are the reason.

Now I see Mazda wasting their time with diesel....

Last time I rode in a diesel was 5 years ago....a customer of mine had a Q5 diesel...we went to 5 different gas stations to find diesel and the 6th one had just one pump....
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Old 10-14-20, 11:12 AM
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Seems like a ton of R&D to develop a costly engine that will never sell in volume in the US(Does Mazda even sell in volume as a whole anymore?)

The issue with diesels, as neat as they are, is that the emissions systems required to keep them clean introduce a HEAVEY financial burden on the owner via reduced mpg and very expensive maintenance. Thousands of dollars to repair the systems when they fail, oh and boy do they fail. In terms of maintenance cost, I'll take a gas engine every day. Spark plugs are a much cheaper and simpler affair than all the crap that comes on a modern diesel. Modern gas engines, even from the worst automakers, tend to last 2-300k these days so the longevity argument doesn't really pan out either.

Diesels have their place in the US, but IMO it's mostly in the HD truck market where you need the torque.

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Old 10-14-20, 12:16 PM
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Originally Posted by LexsCTJill
My big takeaway from any diesel cancellations or diesel gate scandal is Toyota’s insistence that diesels are too costly to meet emissions protocols. They always said the “could” do it but chose to do the hybrid route for North America and Europe as costs are the reason.
I'm not sure Toyota's position here makes a lot of sense. In most cases, simply having one (diesel) engine under the hood is cheaper and simpler than installing a gasoline engine and having anywhere from one to three separate electric motors, plus a bulky, expensive hybrid-battery-pack.

Last edited by mmarshall; 10-14-20 at 03:52 PM.
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Old 10-14-20, 12:23 PM
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Originally Posted by mmarshall
I'm not sure Toyota's position here makes a lot of sense. In most cases, simply having one (diesel) engine under the hood is cheaper and simpler than installing a gasoline engine and having anywhere from one to three separate electric motors, plus a bulky, expensive hybrid-battery-pack.
I see your point...but from a sales and volume perspective, lets just assume a diesel car and a hybrid car cost the same to produce....the hybrid sort of makes more sense from a consumer perspective and North America is very gasoline heavy in usage.
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Old 10-14-20, 01:07 PM
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Originally Posted by mmarshall
I'm not sure Toyota's position here makes a lot of sense. In most cases, simply having one (diesel) engine under the hood is cheaper and simpler than installing a gasoline engine and having anywhere from one to three separate electric motors, plus a bulky, expensive hybrid-battery-pack.
I believe Toyota believes that diesels are a dead end tech and the future are hybrids and EVs.
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Old 10-15-20, 04:11 PM
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maybe mazada needs these diesels to increase their fleet MPG to meet that EPA regulation? or is that off the table now? i apologize if so, i'm so behind...
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Old 01-14-21, 10:41 AM
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Looks like it's being pulled. I can't imagine anyone is surprised.

Mazda Kills CX-5 Skyactiv-D Diesel in the U.S.

The turbodiesel 2.2-liter engine only ended up on sale in America for a single model year, despite years of effort to get it certified here.
  • Mazda will no longer sell the diesel-powered CX-5 in the U.S., as first reported by CNET.
  • The 2.2-liter Skyactiv-D diesel engine was offered in the compact crossover for the 2019 model year.
  • Plans for a Skyactiv-D version of the Mazda 6 sedan have also been dropped.
Mazda's long diesel saga is over. The company confirmed to C/D that it is dropping the Skyactiv-D turbodiesel from its U.S. lineup due to low consumer demand, meaning that this engine will no longer be offered in the CX-5 crossover. Plans for the Mazda 6 Skyactiv-D have also been dropped.

The CX-5 Skyactiv-D finally went on sale in the U.S. for the 2019 model year after many years of ups and downs regarding Mazda's diesel plans and the emissions certification process. We tested a 2019 CX-5 diesel and achieved a 34-mpg result in our 75-mph highway fuel economy test, better than its EPA estimate. But the 168-horsepower diesel inline-four was priced significantly higher than the CX-5's more powerful gasoline engines, and did not find a large audience. The CX-5 diesel is not listed on the EPA site for either the 2020 or 2021 model years.

In April 2019, Mazda announced that the Mazda 6 mid-size sedan would also get the Skyactiv-D engine, along with an option for all-wheel drive. That vehicle never materialized, and a page on Mazda's consumer site about the model has now disappeared.

There are now very few diesel-powered cars left for sale in the U.S. In the wake of Volkswagen's dieselgate scandal that broke in 2015, automakers such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Chevrolet, and Jaguar pulled their passenger-car diesels from the U.S. market. Several pickup trucks and a SUVs do still offer diesels in America, however, such as FCA's EcoDiesel V-6 found in the Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator and Ram 1500, and GM's Duramax inline-six found in Chevy, GMC, and Cadillac full-size SUVs and pickup trucks.
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Old 01-14-21, 11:24 AM
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There are just 7 on Cars.com for the entire country. all used 2019s with pretty low miles
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Old 01-14-21, 11:29 AM
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Everytime I'm concerned about the future of Lexus, the back of my mind always goes "At least it's not as bad as Mazda."
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