Projo Cars Blog

TOKYO - As an engineering student in the 1960s, Takeo Fukui picked the analysis of nitrogen dioxide emissions as his senior thesis with one goal in mind: joining Honda Motor to get a foothold in the world of motor racing, according to Reuters.

He made the cut but, as luck would have it, Honda pulled out of racing that same year in 1969. Founder Soichiro Honda had decided the company should focus instead on improving its engines to clean emissions for an increasingly green-minded public.

Forty years later, Fukui leaves behind a similar mandate as he vacates his CEO post this week, having yanked Honda out of Formula One racing six months ago.

And while auto executives talk about the dawn of a new century of automobiles as gasoline-electric hybrid cars enter the mainstream, Fukui says engine technology will remain at the core of Honda's efforts.

"Engines still have a long way to go," he told Reuters. "You can't improve the hybrid system without working on engines."

 Tags  Honda

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