Gasoline Direct Injection Strategy Helps Engines Meet Emissions Targets Without Sacrificing Horsepower

AUBURN HILLS, Mich.--April 6, 2006--Siemens VDO is helping customers take a more direct route in their efforts to meet impending fuel economy regulations by offering gasoline direct injection technology that improves vehicle fuel economy. Direct injection fuel delivery injects gasoline directly into the engine's combustion chamber, enabling the vehicle to start with less fuel while simultaneously improving vehicle drivability and emissions.

"Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI) offers the customer a more efficient, cleaner combustion solution by directly injecting the fuel into the combustion chamber near peak pressure to better utilize the gasoline," said Siemens VDO North American Director of Powertrain Gasoline Systems Mike Crane. "Direct injection provides a precisely metered charge to the cylinder that allows beneficial engine design and operating changes - like a higher compression ratio - to be employed on the engine. GDI fundamentally promotes more stable combustion giving the customer better performance and lower hydrocarbon and carbon dioxide emissions with no sacrifice in engine performance. The technology also offers multi-fuel capabilities for emerging E85 applications."

Siemens VDO currently is pursuing a dual strategy of solenoid-actuated and piezo-actuated direct injection to address the needs of diverse customer market segments and models. The core components of both these gasoline direct injection systems are the injectors, the EMS 2 engine management system with corresponding software and a high-pressure fuel pump.

"Piezo Direct Injection offers the customer the greatest possible fuel savings throughout an extended engine operating range by facilitating stable lean combustion in stratified operation," said Crane. "Compared with a conventional port injection, Piezo Direct Injection helps reduce fuel consumption by 20 percent, depending on the total level of system integration, including engine downsizing."

The Solenoid Direct Injection system is a cost effective solution offering significant opportunities to save fuel, reduce emissions and boost torque at lower engine speeds compared to port injection systems. The Deka DI XL2 injector delivers the versatility required for variable injection through enhanced linearity, very fast opening and closing times and varying nozzle designs for swirl or multi-stream spray geometry for optimal adaptation to specific engine requirements.

The company also has developed a new high-pressure pump with greater flow control accuracy that requires less power from the engine to operate compared to competitive pumps. The pump generates fuel pressures of up to 20 MPa (200 bar) and works on the transfer principle. The moving parts are contained in an oil chamber separated from the fuel system by a stainless-steel diaphragm to minimize the drive torque, while simultaneously preventing oil contamination of the fuel.

"Whether it is a solenoid or piezo system, the Siemens VDO Direct Injection solution is the more direct route to meeting Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) and emissions targets for the internal combustion engine, while maintaining - and in some cases improving - performance and drivability," said Crane.

Siemens VDO is a tier-one supplier of automotive electronic/electrical systems and components with applications covering gasoline and diesel powertrain technologies, safety and chassis systems, body electronics, plus interior products including infotainment systems. Worldwide sales reflecting fiscal year 2005 totaled $11.3 billion (EUR 9.6 billion). For more information: www.usa.siemensvdo.com.

Siemens AG is one of the largest global electronics and engineering companies with reported worldwide sales of $96 billion in fiscal 2005. Founded nearly 160 years ago, the company is a leader in the areas of Medical, Power, Automation and Control, Transportation, Information and Communications, Lighting, Building Technologies, Water Technologies and Services and Home Appliances.

Siemens in the USA has sales of $18.8 billion and employs approximately 70,000 people throughout all 50 states and Puerto Rico. Eleven of Siemens' worldwide businesses are based in the United States. With its global headquarters in Munich, Siemens AG and its subsidiaries employ 460,000 people in 190 countries. For more information on Siemens in the United States: www.usa.siemens.com.