通用汽車公司（General Motors）全球產(chǎn)品整合副總裁 Ken Morris 主管公司的動(dòng)力總成業(yè)務(wù)，他對(duì)目前大肆宣傳的電動(dòng)推進(jìn)系統(tǒng)發(fā)展趨勢(shì)有一套獨(dú)特觀點(diǎn)。事實(shí)上，你可能想不到目前發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)業(yè)務(wù)仍是通用汽車公司的關(guān)鍵業(yè)務(wù)之一。最近，在接受《汽車工程》雜志的采訪時(shí)，Morris 表示，“你隨便看看現(xiàn)在的報(bào)道，可能會(huì)以為我們已經(jīng)放棄（內(nèi)燃）發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)，一切都要向電動(dòng)推進(jìn)系統(tǒng)邁進(jìn)了，但事實(shí)上并非如此。”
Morris 表示，“在我看來，通用汽車公司正處于向電動(dòng)推進(jìn)系統(tǒng)轉(zhuǎn)型的時(shí)期，而且就交易量而言，我們的轉(zhuǎn)型速度可能沒有你想象的那么快。IHS 數(shù)據(jù)顯示，從現(xiàn)在起 10 年后，90％的發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)市場(chǎng)仍將是內(nèi)燃機(jī)的天下。”
“然而，一旦真正優(yōu)質(zhì)的電動(dòng)汽車開始大批量上市、相關(guān)充電基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施開始呈現(xiàn)規(guī)模，到時(shí)候的情況你真的很難預(yù)測(cè)。”Morris 進(jìn)一步補(bǔ)充說，“最后，你必須給客戶提供他們想要的東西：燃油經(jīng)濟(jì)性、性能、質(zhì)量和可靠性。無論是研發(fā)內(nèi)燃發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)、混動(dòng)汽車還是電動(dòng)汽車, 這都是我們所有研發(fā)的終極目標(biāo)。有人可能對(duì)電動(dòng)汽車接受很快、有人可能由于工作需求對(duì)內(nèi)燃發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)‘依依不舍’，這都是有可能的，我們要做的事就是為各種客戶提供可以選擇的菜單。”
內(nèi)燃機(jī)時(shí)代行將終結(jié)？
然而，這并不意味著通用汽車對(duì)電氣化未來的到來持懷疑態(tài)度。事實(shí)上，通用汽車已經(jīng)針對(duì)電氣化動(dòng)力系統(tǒng)進(jìn)行了大量投資。“我們?cè)诩冸妱?dòng)汽車上的資源投入翻了一倍，但并沒有放棄內(nèi)燃發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)工作。” Morris 解釋說，“如今，我們正在開發(fā)兩款全新的內(nèi)燃發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)。市場(chǎng)對(duì)高性能、高能效的發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)總是有需求的。無論是開發(fā)全新的發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)型號(hào)，還是對(duì)現(xiàn)有發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)進(jìn)行優(yōu)化，毋庸置疑的是通用汽車的內(nèi)燃發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)研發(fā)仍將持續(xù)數(shù)十年。”
“如今負(fù)責(zé)內(nèi)燃發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)的機(jī)械工程師在純電動(dòng)推進(jìn)系統(tǒng)研發(fā)中還有用武之地嗎？”Morris 回答到，“我認(rèn)為有，因?yàn)樗麄儾粌H技術(shù)專業(yè)而且經(jīng)驗(yàn)豐富，已經(jīng)在長(zhǎng)期工作中證明了自己戰(zhàn)勝新挑戰(zhàn)的能力，他們肯定能幫上忙。”
平衡全球組合
“汽車是世界上最復(fù)雜的行業(yè)之一，”Morris 解釋說,“作為一家全球汽車制造商,成功的關(guān)鍵就是時(shí)時(shí)刻刻、方方面面地做好準(zhǔn)備。無論是全球任何一個(gè)市場(chǎng)，監(jiān)管環(huán)境變化帶來的影響遠(yuǎn)超燃料價(jià)格。你必須嚴(yán)格平衡在該地區(qū)的產(chǎn)品組合及相應(yīng)銷量，從而滿足公司作為一個(gè)整體在該地區(qū)的合規(guī)需求。”
“例如，柴油發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)在中國(guó)的普及率非常、非常低。”Morris 補(bǔ)充說，“但這個(gè)市場(chǎng)對(duì)全球各地的影響卻非常深遠(yuǎn)。過去，全球汽車行業(yè)的質(zhì)心可能是歐洲和美國(guó)。但中國(guó)，特別是在純電動(dòng)汽車和混合動(dòng)力汽車技術(shù)出現(xiàn)以來，正在推動(dòng)全球汽車行業(yè)的變化。我研究過數(shù)據(jù)，柴油發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)的普及率在歐洲已經(jīng)下降了，那還會(huì)反彈回來嗎？”
內(nèi)部研發(fā)與供應(yīng)商合作
“俗話說的好，要不求人、要不求己，別無他法。我們必須為我們的車型尋找市場(chǎng)上最合適的解決方案，如果沒有合適的，我們就自己開發(fā)一個(gè)。”Morris 當(dāng)被問及原始設(shè)備制造商和供應(yīng)商之間關(guān)系將如何變化時(shí)表示，“無論你如何進(jìn)行整合、如何規(guī)劃車輛功能、如何執(zhí)行系統(tǒng)運(yùn)作，但最關(guān)鍵的是車輛的靈魂不能改變，這也是通用汽車永遠(yuǎn)不會(huì)放棄的東西。”
“這也是決定各種汽車是否能在自動(dòng)駕駛世界中脫穎而出的關(guān)鍵，”Morris繼續(xù)道，“誰可以客戶提供最佳體驗(yàn)？我認(rèn)為，通用汽車從系統(tǒng)層面整合駕駛/操控、噪音/振動(dòng)、轉(zhuǎn)向/制動(dòng)器的能力就是我們的一大優(yōu)勢(shì)。未來，到底是供應(yīng)商幫我們供貨？還是我們自己研發(fā)？這都不重要，重要的是如何將其恰到好處地融合在每一款汽車中，這才是通用汽車與眾不同的地方。”
今天的挑戰(zhàn)
在Morris 看來，每天最緊迫問題是什么？“我認(rèn)為是內(nèi)燃發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)，這是為所有純電動(dòng)汽車和自動(dòng)駕駛汽車研發(fā)‘輸血’的動(dòng)力，以及這些產(chǎn)品的盈利性如何。我每天的目標(biāo)：首先，是讓通用汽車成為市場(chǎng)上最好的汽車，這是因?yàn)槲覀儾荒芸刂瓶蛻舻馁?gòu)買決定，只能為客戶提供更好的選擇；其次，盡量提高車輛的能源效率，這不僅可以增加車輛的賣點(diǎn)，而且也是我們進(jìn)入很多市場(chǎng)的先決條件；最后，我們還必須盡量提高這些車輛的盈利性，這樣才能為未來的研發(fā)計(jì)劃提供資金。”
Morris 作為全球汽車巨頭通用汽車的掌門人之一，顯然對(duì)未來汽車科技的發(fā)展趨勢(shì)很有發(fā)言權(quán)，但他似乎理性地選擇著眼當(dāng)先。“人們很容易被新技術(shù)所迷惑，而忽略了目前的汽車行業(yè)也是每年可制造 1700 萬到 1800 萬輛汽車的巨輪。”Morris 解釋說：“這種規(guī)模的行業(yè)需要大量設(shè)備、技術(shù)和人力的支持，新技術(shù)是在發(fā)展，我們也確實(shí)在前進(jìn)，但傳統(tǒng)車輛的動(dòng)能仍不可忽視。”
As the VP of global product integrity at General Motors, Ken Morris oversees powertrain engineering, and has a first-hand view of the often ballyhooed trend of electrified propulsion. You might be surprised to learn that GM is, in fact, still very much in the engine business. “The way things are being covered right now, you would think we had just stopped everything, and everything is electric, and that certainly is not the way things are going to develop,” Morris said in a recent sit-down with Automotive Engineering.
“I would say GM's in transition, and the speed of that transition in terms of volumes is probably, you know, less huge than you would expect. IHS data says 90% still ICE 10 years from now,” Morris noted, referencing the respected industry analyst.
“But you never know what's going to happen when really good electric vehicles come out in volume, and the infrastructure starts coming around,” Morris said. “In the end you want to provide what the customers want: fuel economy, performance, quality, reliability. We're developing ICEs to match those, developing hybrids, developing electric vehicles. The key is to provide a kind of a menu. Some people are going to be early adopters and some people are going to be diesel diehards because that's a tool they need.”
End of the ICE age?
This does not mean that GM is doubtful of an electrified future, and it is investing accordingly. “We're doubling the number of resources that we have on BEVs, but we still have a tremendous amount of work to do on ICEs,” Morris explained. “We've got two brand-new engines in development right now. There's always going to be a need for really high-performance, high-efficiency engines. Doing that with new engines, or continuing to polish the stone on existing engines, we'll be in that business probably decades for sure.”
“Do I believe mechanical engineers can transfer those skill sets to help us on BEV propulsion systems?” Morris noted to the query. “I do. And that's the thing: It's not just good people, they're brilliant. They're experienced and they've been around the block multiple times. You definitely want to bring them along.”
Balancing the global mix
“The auto industry is the most complex industry in the world,” Morris explained. “The key to being a global automaker is you have to be prepared for whatever region you're trying to sell your vehicles in. The regulatory environment alone drives much more than fuel prices. What you need to do to meet the regulations in terms of what your mixes are, and how many you sell of each type of powertrain.”
“China for example, very, very low adoption of diesel,” Morris added. “And China is driving a lot of what's happening in the rest of the world. It used to be Europe and the United States as kind of the centroid of automotive technology. But China, especially along the lines of BEVs and hybrids and that technology, is driving that. I've looked at the numbers and the penetration rate of diesels has gone way down in Europe, and so does that bounce back?”
In-house and supplier expertise
“The saying is we'll either find a way or make a way. We're going to take the best solution that we can get for the vehicle, and if there isn't a good solution, were gonna make one.” Morris said when asked about the evolving relationship between OEMs and suppliers. “The key—and this is something that General Motors can never let out—is the soul of the vehicle and how you integrate all those things, and how does the vehicle function and how does it perform?”
“That's what's going to be the separator of vehicles in the AV world,” Morris continued. “Who's providing the best experience for the customer? I think our ability to integrate ride/handling, noise/vibration, steering/brakes has really come along as a company, and I think that's one of our strengths. It's a system exercise. The separation between what suppliers give us versus what we invent, that's going to be a case-by case basis. But how we dial that car in, that's us.”
Today's challenges
What does Morris see as the most pressing concerns facing him daily? “The motor that's going to fund all of the BEV and AV stuff are the IC engines and how profitable we are on our standards. My goal every day– number one – is to make those the best vehicles they can be, because people can buy anything they want. Then we have to make them as fuel-efficient as we can for selling points to customers, but also the regulatory environment. Lastly, we need to make as much money as we possibly can on these vehicles, because we want to fund the future.”
Morris is obviously in a thoughtful position to comment on future tech, but he appears rationally anchored in the present. “It's easy to get enamored with a new technology and forget what a massive industry we have making 17-, 18-million vehicles a year,” he explained. “There's a lot of equipment behind that, a lot of technology, a lot of people working on it. It's like an enormous ship. We're moving, and the technology is changing, but there's still a huge amount of momentum for the traditional vehicles.”
Author: Paul Seredynski
SAE Automotive Engineering
通用汽車新型 2.7L “雙蝸殼”渦輪增壓 4 缸發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)將為公司的電氣化未來投資“輸血”。
“因?yàn)樗麄儾粌H技術(shù)專業(yè)而且經(jīng)驗(yàn)豐富，已經(jīng)在長(zhǎng)期工作中證明了自己戰(zhàn)勝新挑戰(zhàn)的能力，他們肯定能幫上忙?！?/span>