And they’ve simplified it, as what was once a selection of around 800 engine variants has now been reduced to around 20 Dynamic Force engines. So far, only inline-three, inline-four and V-6 Dynamic Force engines are available. But how does Toyota’s current, downsized engine range compare to its rivals? Let’s break down the key details.
Thermal efficiency is everything
Nothing is more important to an engine’s overall performance than its thermal efficiency, whether your goal is power or fuel economy. An average modern combustion engine can typically achieve an efficiency of about 35 percent, which is considered good. Toyota’s first Dynamic Force Family engine, the 2.5-liter A25A-FKS inline-four, achieved 40 percent, and its hybrid counterpart surpassed that at 41 percent. Those are not good numbers, but rather astonishing ones.
The growing efficiency of engine technology
To really put thermal efficiency into perspective, a Nissan study reported that it took almost thirty years of development to go from 30 percent efficiency to 40 percent efficiency. Modern combustion engines have achieved a thermal efficiency of 50 percent, but function only as a generator for an electric battery. This lean combustion method is achieved by limiting the engine’s operating range to a “fixed point” and designing the entire engine to further optimize that exact speed. Recent developments continue to show that achieving greater than 60 percent is entirely possible for a generator-style combustion engine, if we adapt and optimize all available options for efficiency.
The efficiency limits of pure combustion engines
As far as pure combustion platforms go, Toyota’s Dynamic Force Family is still the benchmark with an efficiency of around 40 percent. Remember, this figure and technology were introduced in 2018 and we have gone through seven years of development since then. Recently, starting in 2024, Chinese automakers Geely and BYD both announced hybrid combustion engines with thermal efficiency figures of more than 45 percent. While these figures are still unverified and we won’t be receiving vehicles from any of these brands in the US, this shows that developments in this area are ongoing. Although a thermal efficiency of 50 percent is still not guaranteed for a pure combustion engine, this is certainly possible in the future. In 2014, V-6 turbo hybrid Formula 1 engines started with a thermal efficiency of 40 percent and became 10 percent more efficient in just six years. The same percentage increase will certainly take longer for consumer combustion engines, but we know it is possible.
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The technology implementation in Toyota’s Dynamic Force series
So if Toyota’s Dynamic Force engines are still the benchmark for efficiency, what technology is Toyota using to achieve these exceptional figures? Let’s discuss the main contributors.
D-4S fuel injection system
One of the key systems at play in Toyota’s Dynamic Force engines is the D-4S fuel injection system. Toyota’s D-4S is a dual direct injection and port injection system that improves both power and fuel economy by optimizing fuel delivery based on engine load. How it works is that at wide open throttle and high loads, only direct injection is used, which allows for higher power and more efficient charging, along with higher compression ratios. However, at low to medium engine loads, both port and direct injection are used, which improves the overall air-fuel ratio, leading to greater fuel economy. While dual port and direct injection systems are certainly not groundbreaking technology, no other automaker to date has used the technology as efficiently as Toyota.
The total package is more important than individual innovations
Of all the technologies implemented in Toyota’s Dynamic Force engines, only one was considered a “world first” or something that had never before been applied to a consumer internal combustion engine. That detail was the piston skirt’s specific finishing method with a laser-applied crosshatch groove pattern that allows for a mirror finish that reduces overall friction and improves wear resistance. As cool and complicated as that sounds, we’d be surprised if this new innovation added even a percentage to the engine’s overall efficiency standards. So this shows that Toyota’s industry-leading efficiency is not achieved by any single breakthrough or detail, but rather by the quality of the overall technology that is implemented. From the under-square design to the electric water pump, every feature of Toyota’s Dynamic Force engines is designed and optimized for fuel efficiency. What’s impressive is how well the entire orchestra plays together, rather than a standout solo performance from an individual instrument.
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How Toyota Dynamic Force stacks up against the competition
While Toyota may be the leader in engine efficiency, there is no shortage of viable alternatives available from rival brands, especially their perennial rivals, Honda and Mazda, along with their competitors across the pond, Kia and Hyundai. How do these alternatives compare to Toyota’s Dynamic Force engines? Let’s break it down.
Honda
Let’s start with Honda. Honda’s most compact and fuel-efficient engine, developed specifically for hybrid applications, is the 1.5-liter Atkinson cycle inline-four. According to Honda, this engine achieves a maximum thermal efficiency of more than 40 percent. Compared to the brand’s emblematic 2.4-liter K24 inline-four, this hybrid engine offers more torque, despite a reduction in width of more than 12 percent. Honda’s larger 2.0-liter direct-injection hybrid inline-four also achieves an astonishing 41 percent thermal efficiency, as well as 30 percent more torque compared to its 2.0-liter direct-injection inline-four predecessor.
Mazda
When it comes to electrification, hybrid adoption and fuel efficiency, Mazda is late to the party. Even now, we won’t get a real taste of Mazda’s homegrown hybrid capabilities until the Mazda CX-5 Hybrid debuts in 2027. The Japanese brand was counting on them Combustion technology “Skyactiv-X”. to be their saving grace, but that turned out to be a mistake. What was supposed to be Mazda’s revolutionary development never even made its way to the US because it was expensive, underpowered and not as efficient as we had hoped.
Mazda has also tried adding a rotary engine as an EV generator, as found in the Mazda MX-30 R-EV, but the fact that we’re not getting this in the United States means there are more questions than answers about this emerging technology.
Hyundai and Kia
Korean automakers Kia and Hyundai have refined the capabilities and efficiency of their powertrains with great success over the past decade. Currently the 2025 Be Niro is the SUV with the best gas mileage in the industry at 53 MPG combined, and it’s not even close. The current generation Kia Niro achieves this spectacular efficiency figure thanks to its ‘Smartstream’ 1.6-litre hybrid inline-four. But how can this little engine manage such incredible efficiency without sacrificing performance?
Well, that’s the thing, it does deliver performance, and we mean a lot of it. The 139 horsepower this powertrain produces is just enough to be considered functional on America’s highways, and the 2024 Kia Niro’s 10.8-second zero-to-60 time is slow enough to infuriate even the most patient driver. As you can see, it’s not so easy to have your cake and eat it too when it comes to automotive engineering.
Fortunately, both Hyundai and Kia offer a turbo variant of the Smartstream 1.6-liter inline-four on slightly larger models than the Kia Niro, such as the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid. This turbocharged variant addresses many of the engine’s performance issues at the expense of some efficiency. With 227 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque, the Smartstream 1.6-liter turbo still achieves around 43 MPG combined, which is good enough to put vehicles like the Kia Sportage Hybrid at the very top of fuel-efficient SUVs.
However, sedans still offer better MPGs than any SUV, and the 2025 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid offers an impressive 47 MPG combined, thanks to the naturally aspirated hybrid 2.0-liter inline-four. On the larger side, the 2026 Hyundai Palisade Hybrid is the automaker’s largest three-row SUV and still gets 31 MPG combined thanks to a hybrid 2.5-liter turbocharged inline-four, the largest and most powerful Smartstream hybrid available.
Sources: fueleconomy.gov, Formula 1
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