Toyota reveals new powertrains for TNGA-based vehicles

Toyota has revealed its new powertrain line-up for vehicles that are based on the TNGA (Toyota's New Global Architecture) platform. The company intends to deploy these new powertrains in its vehicles from 2017. Toyota claims that the newly developed powertrains are lighter and more compact, as compared to the ones currently being used. They have been designed to keep the center of gravity as low as possible, with an intent to improve the car's handling characteristics. According to the automaker, the new powertrains offer up to 20% better fuel efficiency, up to 15% lower emissions and around 10% more power.

New 2.5-litre petrol engine
The company's new internal-combustion power plants have been named "Dynamic Force Engines". The line-up includes a 2.5-liter direct-injection in-line four-cylinder petrol engine that uses high-speed combustion and other efficiency-based technologies. The automaker claims that this engine can extract a thermal efficiency of 40% when used in gasoline-powered vehicles and 41% in hybrid vehicle applications.

New 8-speed and 10-speed Automatic Transmissions
Toyota has further introduced two new automatic transmissions: an 8-speed Direct Shift-8AT and a 10-speed Direct shift-10AT. Toyota claims that both these gearboxes have been designed while taking various measures for minimizing energy loss and improving transmission efficiency. The clutch has also been optimized to reduce clutch torque loss by approximately 50%, as compared to a conventional 6-speed transmission. The manufacturer also claims that these new automatic transmissions are more compact and lighter than comparative conventional transmissions.

Toyota Hybrid System II (THS-II)
Toyota has also improved its hybrid system for 2.5-liter engines with the development of the new Multistage Toyota Hybrid System II (THS-II), which is now also suitable for rear-wheel-drive-cars. The company claims better performance and efficiency from the new hybrid powertrain, owing to appropriate weight reduction and high-thermal efficiency of the new 2.5-litre engine. The plug-in hybrid system now gets a large-capacity lithium-ion battery that will likely increase the EV range of Toyota vehicles.

Toyota is working on many other new powertrains. By 2021, the automaker plans to introduce 17 versions of nine new engines, including the above-mentioned 2.5-liter engine. It will also be revealing 10 versions of four transmissions and 10 versions of six hybrid systems.