European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 4, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 16 the stars and stripes sunday August 4,1991gm dismisses japanese engine claim Detroit up a general motors corp. Dismissed As inaccurate two japanese automakers announcements last week touting a clean bump engines As new developments noting Friday that pm had used similar technology in the past. A the lean bum philosophy has been known for years and pm has been researching it since the mid-1930s,�?� said Richard m. Donnelly pm vice president and head of the pm powertrain division. A a we be used it in production a number of times when leaded gasoline was in  a Honda spokesman in Detroit said the japanese automaker never claimed to invent lean Burn technology. Honda a real news he said concerns a variable timing engine valve technology that allows High fuel Economy combined with Strong engine performance. Donnelly said a clean Burn is an exciting technology that can improve the fundamental efficiency of combustion. However the Basic problem with this technique is that it generates greater amounts of oxides of nitrogen and is suitable Only for very Small engines and very Light  current technology would not allow these engines to meet regulations that will go into effect in the near future Donnelly added. What is needed is a new nitrogen  the technical papers Toyota and Hongja presented at the Academy of sciences workshop in California three weeks ago made exactly the same Point a a new catalyst is needed if lean Burn technology is to meet future emissions standards a Donnelly said. Earlier this week Honda and Mitsubishi made separate announcements in Tokyo regarding the development of Small engines that use 20 percent less fuel and Cut pollution compared with traditional engines. The Honda spokesman said that while specific nitrogen ratings on its engine were not immediately available the Honda civic vex meets All current standards and will be sold in California this fall. But he could not be sure if the car will meet future limits the current nitrogen ratings for cars in every state except California is 1.0 Gram per mile. That is to be Cut to diagrams per mile in 1994, the Epa said Matching the level in effect in California. But the California level is to be Cut to 0.2 Gram per mile in 1997, said Jerry Martin of the California air resources Board. Honda a new engine will be available in a civic Hatchback Model called the vex. The 16 valve 1.6 liter four Cylinder engine will have More horsepower than the current 62 horsepower motor of the same size. Fuel Economy should be 48 Miles per gallon in the City and 55 mpg on the Highway. By contrast the most fuel efficient four seat civic on the Market is Epa rated at 33 and 37 mpg respectively. Pm is exploring the limits of lean combustion using a modified 2.3 liter Quad-4 engine in a 3,250-Pound vehicle Donnelly  touts quit smoking plan for trucks by the los Angeles times Detroit a in a step toward eliminating smoke belching trucks and transit buses from the Road Detroit diesel corp. Has built the first methanol powered engine for heavy duty vehicles that meet new tougher California emission standards the company said Friday. U the alternative fuel engine which was developed and tested primarily in California reduces by 90 percent the soot like pollutant emissions that pour out of the tailpipes of diesel trucks and transit buses As required by 1991 standards established by the californian air resources Board for new heavy duty vehicles. Methanol engines Cost about $30,000 More than diesels and their average life is about 100,000 Miles Shorter. But with the California Market closed to new vehicles that done to meet its standards and similar requirements of the Federal clean air act about to be phased in engine and vehicle manufacturers Are increasingly pressed to create technology that can comply with the Law. Cynthia Barker a spokeswoman for the California Energy commission said other engine manufacturers will Likely follow closely in Detroit diesels tracks. A a what a significant about this is that Detroit diesel is the first one through the door a Barker said. Cummings engine co. And Avistar International corp. Are All in the Energy commissions program to test methanol engines in heavy duty vehicles. The Detroit diesel methanol powered engine is expected to be used primarily in transit buses throughout California. A Detroit diesel has been working for Over 10 years to get there we be made a $10 million investment to get there and we Are there a said company spokeswoman Nancy Martin. Bill Sessa a spokesman for the California air resources Board said the Detroit diesel engine is particularly important because unlike some of the other alternative fuelled engines under experimentation it has Broad applications for everyday  Mutual funds due to technical problems the Mutual fund listing did not arrive in time for this  Arm of the robot a robots Are being ordered by american Industry in record numbers analysts say. This welding one from emf anus robotics corp., is to japanese import that goes by the name arc mate  jury rules Magazine innocent in libel Case Portland Maine a a Federal jury on Friday said Forbes Magazine was innocent of libel in an article likening the finances of a troubled Maine company to a a ponzi  the jury agreed that a reasonable Forbes Reader would not find the article defamatory to Brothers Anthony and Paul Gelardi founders of shape inc., a maker of cassettes for audio and video. The Gelardin sued Forbes editor James Michaels and writer Richard Behar for unspecified damages arising from a february 1989 article a charming their  jurors also delivered a verdict in favor of the firms former chief executive officer Patrick Kareiva he was sued for slander for statements he made in four interviews with the writer. Kareiva used the term a ponzi scheme to describe shapes financing. Though the phrase is derived from Charles ponzi a 1920s swindler jailed for Pyramid investment schemes the defense argued it is now used to describe the business practice of borrowing More Money to pay off existing debts. A ponzi is simply a Means of finance and in and of itself does not connote criminality or fraud a Forbes lawyer Jonathan Piper told reporters. John Paterson attorney for the Gelardin had argued Forbes and its staff members did a Hatchet Job on the Gelardin that damaged their reputations. After the verdict he said a a we re disappointed but that a the Way the system works the 20-year-old company became overextended in the mid-1980s and filed for bankruptcy Protection in late 1988. It was the largest chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in Maine a history. Per sad Forbes wrote the article to illustrate the lax lending practices that allowed Banks to keep extending new Loans at a time when Snape a debt had risen sharply