Mazda has recently quietly approved two patent applications at the Japan Patent Office (Japan Patent Office), one for a 6-cylinder engine and an 8-speed gearbox. Looking back at the annual financial report released after March 2019, the brand's mid-term development plan until 2025 was revealed, one of which is Skyactiv-X and the second generation Skyactiv-D. The in-line 6-cylinder engine has now been approved for patent, which may also mean that this new generation of transmission unit will appear earlier and be used in the next generation of Mazda6 Atez.
For the development of transmission units, Mazda has achieved remarkable performance in its in-line 4-cylinder Skyactiv-G gasoline engine and Skyactiv-D diesel engine in the past, and even later The Skyactiv-X in-line 4-cylinder naturally aspirated gasoline engine with SPCCI (Spark Controlled Compression Ignition) "Spark Plug Controlled Compression Ignition Gasoline Engine Technology" was launched, which also attracted considerable attention from all walks of life. Big attention.
However, if you want to go back to the 6-cylinder engine, in the history of the Mazda brand, there has only been a V6 engine, but there has never been an inline 6-cylinder engine developed. Therefore, in March 2019, the Japanese fiscal year, after the financial report was announced, Mazda mentioned for the first time that it would develop an in-line 6-cylinder Skyactiv-X and a 2nd generation Skyactiv-D diesel engine. , and will even be combined with a longitudinal engine architecture to allow the practical application of rear-wheel drive and i-Activ AWD four-wheel drive.
Because of these data, the outside world has also speculated that Mazda may use the next-generation Mazda6 to match these transmission units to challenge the mid-to-large sedans of luxury brands such as BBAL.
However, when will these mid-term development plans for 2025 be launched? Now, as Mazda has passed the patent application for the in-line 6-cylinder engine and the 8-speed gearbox, it not only confirms that the plan for the in-line 6-cylinder engine at that time was by no means a piece of paper, but also revealed the development of the 8-speed gearbox. Mazda is indeed moving towards a higher-end market.
Therefore, the transmission unit of the next-generation Mazda6, in addition to the originally speculated rear-wheel drive or i-Activ AWD, will be equipped with an in-line 6-cylinder engine and an 8-speed gearbox. new possibilities.
The transmission unit of the next-generation Mazda6, in addition to the originally speculated rear-wheel drive or i-Activ AWD, will be equipped with an in-line 6-cylinder engine and an 8-speed gearbox. New possibilities.
This article comes from the author of Autohome Chejiahao and does not represent the views and positions of Autohome.