1pz Toyota Engine
Twyla Plack
Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda predicts battery-powered electric vehicles will never exceed a 30-percent market share. He also believes the internal combustion engine is not the enemy, but rather the carbon it spits out. With that in mind, it is no surprise that the Japanese automaker is still pursuing ICEs. A new family of inline-four engines was announced this week. Here's everything we know about them.
These will run on the usual fossil fuels but also carbon-neutral fuels such as liquid hydrogen, synthetic fuel, and biofuel. No fewer than three engines were revealed during the joint conference Toyota held with Mazda and Subaru. There's a new naturally aspirated 1.5-liter unit about 10 percent smaller in volume and height compared to the current engine. Not only is it going to be more powerful, but also more efficient. A weight loss of around 10 percent is promised.
Specific details about output and fuel economy have yet to be released since the four-pot is still being developed. Toyota did install it inside a Prius prototype and showcased it separately as well. The company goes as far as to say its new engines will "revolutionize vehicle packaging" thanks to their reduced footprint. By making them smaller, Toyota can lower a car's hood, making it more aerodynamic to further bolster fuel economy.
The second engine in the works is a turbocharged 1.5-liter mill. It'll be 20 percent smaller in volume than the naturally aspirated 2.5-liter currently in use. At the same time, height will be reduced by 15 percent. It's going to be roughly as powerful but with a major boost in efficiency of approximately 30 percent.
The most potent of the bunch will be a turbocharged 2.0-liter unit. Compared to the existing 2.4-liter turbo engine, the new unit has a 10-percent smaller volume and benefits from a height reduction of 10 percent. Toyota pledges significantly more power and 30 percent greater efficiency.
As you can imagine, the new engines are optimized for hybrid and plug-in hybrid applications. The Financial Times cites a person familiar with Toyota's agenda saying the inline-fours will debut in electrified cars near the end of 2026. Interestingly, some variations of the engines are going to burn diesel as well, according to FT.
As to why the automotive juggernaut is teaming up with Subaru and Mazda, it makes perfect sense when you think about it. Toyota owns a 20-percent stake in Subaru and five percent in Mazda. That said, these new engines are being engineered for Toyota models. Subaru is working on a next-gen hybrid setup based around its boxer engine while Mazda is pouring more money into its rotary engine serving as a generator.
Separately from the announcement of new engines for so-called "electric-rich" hybrids and PHEVs, Toyota is considering setting up a carbon-neutral fuel supply chain. To make it happen, it's joining forces with Japanese petroleum company Idemitsu Kosan, the country's largest oil company Eneos, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. The intent is to keep internal combustion engines alive for the long haul through decarbonization.
Subaru Corporation (Subaru), Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota), and Mazda Motor Corporation (Mazda) have each committed to developing new engines tailored to electrification and the pursuit of carbon neutrality. With these engines, each of the three companies will aim to optimize integration with motors, batteries, and other electric drive units. While transforming vehicle packaging with more compact engines, these efforts will also decarbonize ICEs by making them compatible with various carbon-neutral (CN) fuels*1.
Subaru, Toyota, and Mazda have always been driven by a deep understanding of their customers' diverse lifestyles. This understanding has led the three companies to develop signature engines*2 that not only represent their respective brands but also cater to their customers' unique needs and preferences.
In pursuing decarbonization, all three companies have focused on carbon as the enemy and sought to expand options by acting with passion and purpose. This mindset has driven efforts to ensure a future for the supply chains and jobs that underpin engines. Under the extreme conditions of racing, the companies have worked to broaden powertrain and fuel options by competing with vehicles running on liquid hydrogen and CN fuels.
This process has clarified the role that future engines will play in achieving carbon neutrality. With the next generation of engines, the three companies will seek to not only improve standalone engine performance but also optimize their integration with electric drive units, harnessing the advantages of each.
While being highly efficient and powerful, the new engines will also revolutionize vehicle packaging by being more compact than existing models. Smaller engines will allow for even lower hoods, improving design possibilities and aerodynamic performance while contributing to better fuel efficiency. The development will also emphasize compliance with increasingly strict emissions regulations.
At the same time, the new engines will be made carbon neutral by shifting away from fossil fuels and offering compatibility with various alternatives, including e-fuel (synthetic fuel), biofuels, and liquid hydrogen. In doing so, these engines will contribute to the broader adoption of CN fuels.
Upon this announcement, the CEOs of the three companies made the following comments:
"Achieving a carbon-neutral society is a challenge that must be undertaken by all of Japan's industries and society as a whole. As we continue to refine electrification technology, we will also enhance our horizontally-opposed engines with an aim to use carbon-neutral fuels in the future. Moving forward, the three companies sharing the same aspiration will continue to advance the pursuit of sustainable excellence in Japanese car manufacturing."
(Atsushi Osaki, Representative Director, President and CEO, Subaru Corporation)
"In order to provide our customers with diverse options to achieve carbon neutrality, it is necessary to take on the challenge of evolving engines that are in tune with the energy environment of the future. The three companies, which share the same aspirations, will refine engine technologies through friendly competition."
(Koji Sato, President, Member of the Board of Directors and CEO, Toyota Motor Corporation)
"We will continue to offer customers exciting cars by honing internal combustion engines for the electrification era and expanding the multi-pathway possibilities for achieving carbon neutrality. Given the rotary engine's compatibility with electrification and carbon-neutral fuels, Mazda will continue to develop the technology through co-creation and competition to ensure it can contribute broadly to society."
(Masahiro Moro, Representative Director, President and CEO, Mazda Motor Corporation)
Even as Subaru, Toyota, and Mazda compete in the product arena with unique engines and cars, the companies have a shared dedication to achieving carbon neutrality through a multi-pathway approach. Together with like-minded partners similarly skilled and passionate about engines, they will work to create the future of Japan's auto industry.
During a three-hour presentation at a Tokyo hall Tuesday, the car manufacturer giant announced it would offer lean compact engines that also run on so-called green fuels like hydrogen and bioethanol, or get paired with zero-emissions electric motors in hybrids.
This comes as many competitors in the auto industry are pushing for fully electric vehicles. China is revving its push for Battery Electric Vehicles, and its own BYD is threatening to outshine Tesla in that push.
Takahiro Fujimoto, a professor of business at Waseda University, believes electric vehicles are a key solution for reducing emissions. But they still have weak points, such as large amounts of emissions produced while making lithium-ion batteries, a chief component.
Other manufacturers may modify the engine after it has left the Toyota factory but the engine still keeps the original Toyota designation. For example, Lotus added a supercharger to the 2ZZ-GE in some versions of the Lotus Elise and Exige but it is still labelled 2ZZ-GE, not 2ZZ-GZE.
Starting in 2015, the designations after the dash have a maximum combination of three letters, even though there are more suffixes applicable. This is particular when newer engine technologies are introduced. Case in point, both the 2GR-FKS and 8AR-FTS engines have an electronic multi-point fuel injection, but the "E" suffix is not included in the code.
The Dynamic Force engine series introduced in 2017 uses a slightly different naming scheme. For instance, the two numbers between the first and second letters denotes the displacement of the engine. The rest of the naming scheme (such as the suffix) remains the same as with prior engines.
There are some engines that used the naming scheme of the Dynamic Force family of engines but are not actually part of them; a good example of this would be the F33A-FTV engine as despite it not belonging to the Dynamic Force family of engines, it still used the naming scheme normally used for the aforementioned engines. This also applies to the G16E-GTS engine as well.
Starting in 1957 until 1988, Toyota established a separate dealership in Japan dedicated to cars and trucks installed with diesel engines, called Toyota Diesel Store. When the dealership was disbanded, diesel products are now available at all locations, with commercial products exclusive to Toyota Store and Toyopet Store locations.
Toyota has not published an explanation of the codes used for engine features. Matti Kalalahti derived a list of engine feature codes and published them on his "Engine codes explained" web page in Oct 1999.
Toyota has built a lot of engines over the years. This guide seeks to help Toyota owners and enthusiasts understand the backstory of their vehicle's engine, how their engine fits into the Toyota line-up, the historical context of their engine, and so on. Our engine guide talks about every major Toyota engine family from 'A' to 'ZZ'. You'll find links for each engine family below in alphabetical order.