Diesel power for Honda CR-V

Honda has introduced its first diesel to the South African automotive market.

The CR-V 2.2 i-CTDi has a 2204cc, 16-valve, four-cylinder turbodiesel for which Honda quotes 103kW at 4000rpm and 340Nm at 2000 which, it says, makes the new CR-V ideal for towing weekend toys down to your favourite playground.

It will accelerate from 0-100km/h in a claimed 10.3sec with a top speed of 187km/h but what Honda is really trumpeting is its fuel-consumption ??“ it says the oil-burner CR-V will average 6.5 litres/100km, dropping to 5.7 at a steady 100km/h.

Thanks to high-pressure, common-rail, direct fuel-injection the engine is also smooth-running, says Honda, without the usual diesel clatter at idle and under acceleration .

The combustion chambers are linked to a continuously variable swirl control valve in the intake manifold chamber which, it says, provides smoothly-graded control of the swirl ratio, varying from a high setting during idling and midrange operating conditions to a low setting at higher engine speeds.

The common rail injection system operates at pressures of up to 1600bar and a pilot injection or "pre-squirt" prior to the main injection phase helps to lower combustion noise.

The CR-V 2.2 i-CTDi is available on the SA market with a six-speed manual gearbox that has a tall sixth gear for relaxed, long-distance cruising.

The turbodiesel retains the petrol model's all-wheel drive that engages when needed by transferring torque to the rear wheels as soon as the control unit senses the need for additional traction

Source: [url=http://www.motoring.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=3855750&fSectionId=819&fSetId =381]Motoring[/url]