Ethanol Powered Mazda Furai Racecar
>> Sunday, June 5, 2011
This is a concept vehicle which few of us will ever drive. The Furai is Mazda’s next hope in the future of car racing. While going green on the race track is not exactly an eco-minded endeavor, we’re still intrigued that this vehicle can be fully powered by ethanol. The very cool looking performance sports car shows that if ethanol has a place in the auto industry, that place is in the car racing arena.
It is a powerful machine, capable of achieving 60mph in about 3.2 seconds, and its maximum speed is 172mph. Instead of working from a regular chassis, the manufacturer decided to begin with a fully formed Courage C65 chassis, Mazda’s chassis of choice. The vehicle weighs a bit less than a ton, and its engine produces around 460bhp.
The Furai, while fully functioning, is never going to make it past the concept stage. It is simply a promotional vehicle. But at least they fitted it with an ethanol engine. There is no doubt that ethanol is a dicey proposition as a fuel source for vehicles. The fact is, that it can cause a number of problems if it’s sourcing is not managed properly. However, it is a potential stopgap replacement to our energy problems.
The CX-7 is a mid-size crossover SUV model from Mazda, the production version of the MX-Crossport concept car. The CX-7 is built in Hiroshima, Japan, starting in early 2006. The CX-7 was shown publicly for the first time at the 2006 Los Angeles Auto Show in January. Production officially began on February 20 at Mazda's Ujina#2 factory in Hiroshima. The CX-7 went on sale in spring 2006 as a 2007 model. It is also Mazda's first mid-size SUV since the Navajo was discontinued in 1994. The CX-7 receives an all-new platform instead of sharing the Ford/Mazda CD3 platform used by the larger Mazda CX-9/Ford Edge/Lincoln MKX crossovers as well as the Mazda6. It uses the front suspension of the Mazda MPV minivan, with the rear suspension from the Mazda5. Many of the all wheel drive components come from the Mazdaspeed6. It shares its turbocharged engine with the Mazdaspeed6. It uses a 6-speed automatic transmission. The CX-7 currently slots between the Tribute and the CX-9. Power comes from the same 2.3 L straight-4 MZR engine used in the Mazdaspeed3 and Mazdaspeed6 coupled with a 6 speed Aisin automatic transmission, and tuned to produce 244 hp or 182 kW (Australian model 175 kW) at 5000 RPM and 258 ft·lbf (350 N·m) of torque at a low 2500 rpm, 99% of the maximum torque is available to 5000 rpm. The MZR 2.3L DISI turbo engine found in the Mazdaspeed3 and Mazdaspeed6 has been retuned in the North American-Spec CX-7 to deliver torque at a lower RPM for less turbo lag off the line. This was achieved thanks to a redesigned, smaller KO4 turbocharger. UK-Spec CX-7's feature the same, larger KO4 turbocharger and transmission found in the Mazdaspeed line.
The CX-7 features fully independent suspension, four-wheel ventilated disc brakes with standard anti-lock brakes, stability control and traction control, and a choice of either front wheel drive or Mazda's Active Torque-Split all wheel drive system. With the Active Torque-Split system, two computer-controlled magnetic clutches feed up to 50% of the engine's torque to the rear wheels. The Australian combined cycle official fuel economy is 11.5 L/100 km (24.6 mpg-imp; 20.5 mpg-US). Fuel Economy varies among different tests, owners, and models, but drivers report a typical range between 10.0 L/100 km (28.2 mpg-imp; 23.5 mpg-US) and 18.0 L/100 km (15.7 mpg-imp; 13.1 mpg-US).
