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Efficiency of a supercharger mainly depends on the clearances between the rotors and the housing, but it has hitherto proved impossible to reduce the clearances without a strong possibility of seizure. A two lobe Roots type supercharger has been developed which overcomes this problem by means of a special resin coating on the rotors. As a result, an increase of 18% in volumetric efficiency of the supercharger is achieved. Engine torque is increased by 30%. Drive power loss resulting from the operation of a supercharger at partial load when boost was not required caused fuel consumption to increase by about 10%. An electro magnetic clutch and an air by-pass valve controlled by the onboard computer were used in the new supercharger to eliminate this fuel economy loss. A passenger car equipped with the new supercharged 2-liter engine demonstrated about the same acceleration performance as a 3-liter class car without sacrificing fuel economy.

Fuel efficiency improvement measures are focusing on both cold and hot conditions to help reduce CO2 emissions. Recent technological trends for improving fuel economy such as hybrid vehicles (HVs), engine start and stop systems, and variable valve systems feature expanded use of low-temperature engine operation regions. Under cold conditions (oil temperature: approximately 30°C), fuel consumption is roughly 20% greater than under hot conditions (80°C). The main cause of the increased friction under cold conditions is increased oil viscosity. This research used the motoring slipping method to measure the effect of an improved crankshaft bearing, which accounts for a high proportion of friction under cold conditions. First, the effect of clearance was investigated. Although increasing the clearance helped to decrease friction due to the oil wedge effect, greater oil leakage reduced the oil film temperature increase generated by the friction.