Move to smaller cars speeds up

An hybrid car. Photo / Herald on Sunday

Six years ago, 29 per cent of Americans were driving V8-powered vehicles. Now it is 18 per cent. Back then, 43 per cent had a six-cylinder engine under the bonnet. Now 37 per cent use a six.

But the telling statistic that Americans are changing driving patterns is this: in 2005, 26 per cent drove a four-cylinder car - now 43 per cent do.

Four cylinders have replaced sixes as America's most popular engine choice, powering 43 per cent of US light vehicles sold in the first half of this year, according to IHS Automotive.

Four-cylinder engines overtook sixes in 2009. The V8 has lost favour even faster. So far this year, more than half the vehicles sold to retail consumers in the United States had four cylinders, up sharply from a third in 2006, says research group J.D. Power and Associates.

Two factors are driving the shift, reports Automotive News.

Buyers beset by high fuel prices are downsizing vehicles or opting for the smaller of two engine choices. And carmakers are shrinking vehicles and engines to meet tougher 2016 federal fuel economy rules.

The carmaker push and consumer pull are reshaping the American car market. Making engines simultaneously smaller, more powerful and more fuel-efficient costs a bundle because manufacturers must combine multiple technologies such as turbocharging, direct injection and variable-valve timing, said Michael Omotoso, J.D. Power's senior manager of global powertrain forecasting.

Carmakers are even preparing to test demand for three-cylinder engines.

Ford will use a one-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine in the Ford Fiesta in the US.

BMW will use a three-cylinder in the Mini.

Kregg Wiggins, senior vice-president of Continental's North American powertrain division, expects engine sizes to shrink, with the percentage of engines that are under two litres doubling over the next six or seven years.

In 2017, Continental forecasts, 3.4 million engines installed in North American-built vehicles will have a displacement of less than two litres, up from 1.2 million in 2010.

With sales forecast to grow, that would mean one in five vehicles would have a two-litre or smaller engine in 2017, up from one in 10 in 2010.