TVS Motor’s new fuel-sipping gambit

TVS MOTOR HAS revealed a new technology, seven years in development, aimed at improving fuel efficiency by as much as 20 percent. If used in the company’s Wego scooter, it can potentially increase fuel efficiency by 8-10kpl. The new technology, which is yet to be christened, will find its way into TVS products within 18 months from now.

“We have completed the development of technology and now need to conduct tests in actual riding conditions and various weather conditions before commercial production,” Harne Vinay Chandrakant, president, New Product Development, TVS Motor Company, told Autocar Professional.

“The objective of this technology is to deliver a compact engine layout that will deliver enhanced fuel efficiency and which is usable across product forms like scooter, motorcycles and step-thrus. This technology also delivers the lowest CO2 in scooters while providing for low-floor board and space for luggage,” added Harne. The technology was developed by a team of 30 engineers. TVS Motor has filed over 15 patents for the new technology.

TVS will first implement the new technology in its scooter range. “Scooters have a lower fuel efficiency compared to motorcycles. This technology will reduce the gap in mileage between our scooters and motorcycles,” said Harne.

The technology, termed as ‘TVS Automatic Transmission’, employs an automatic transmission in place of conventional Continuously Variable Transmission Technology (CVT), which changes gears more seamlessly through electronic control, automatically selecting the gear ratios for a particular riding condition. This enables the engine to run at its most efficient rpm for a range of operating conditions, thereby maximising engine performance to achieve peak efficiency and overriding the requirement of a clutch.

Harne said, “We have developed this technology on a highly innovative vehicle layout with compact packaging and light weight construction with a 110cc four-stroke engine with two independent, high- precision actuators for the clutch and gearshift operations, mounted directly on the engine itself. The characteristics of the actuators are specifically optimised for low power consumption and frequent gear changes while riding in dense traffic.” A new ECU (electronic control unit) has been used to enhance the performance and fuel economy, thus giving greater convenience of riding. TVS Motor says an advanced cooling arrangement, which is based on the vehicle motion itself, avoids use of engine-driven fan, thus minimising the additional consumption of fuel. The improvement in engine efficiency is obtained through friction reduction and multi-map electronic ignition control, while transmission efficiency is boosted through the new technology.