Electric vehicles to the fore at Frankfurt Show
Wed 23 September 2009
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The World's car makers displayed their latest models at the Frankfurt Motor Show this week but most comment and coverage centred on designs incorporating electric and hybrid motors. A number of manufacturers showed new models using the latest lithium-ion batteries. There was was also focus, however, on a new high efficiency petrol engine.
753 exhibitors were reported to be taking part in the Frankfurt Show, which was opened to the public by Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sept. 17 and runs to Sept. 27. Matthias Wissman, president of the German Association of Automotive Industry, said that 62 vehicle makers were at the show, with 82 world premieres.
Ford announced a new family of petrol engines which the company says offers the opportunity to reduce engine capacity without suffering a reduction in performance. Ford says that fuel consumption and CO2 emissions are reduced by up to 20 per cent compared to a conventional petrol engine as a result of a combination of new technologies; direct petrol injection, turbocharging and variable valve timing.
Ford says it plans to introduce its 'EcoBoost' brand to Europe, starting with the 2010 C-Max minivan, and has hinted that two- and three-cylinder versions and sizes under one litre could follow. Currently the choice is between a 1.6- and two-litre versions of the new engine. Vehicles using 'EcoBoost' engines have already been introduced in the United States.
Volkswagen introduced the E-Up!, a small city car powered by a Li-ion electric motor which can reach a maximum speed of 84 mph (135 kph) and travel up 81 miles (130 kilometers) on a single charge.
Renault, also, showed four new electric models; there was a hybrid Mercedes B-Class, called the F-Cell, which sports a fuel cell and an electric motor; and the first plug-in version of Toyota's Prius hybrid, featuring a battery that can be charged from a standard household socket.
Renault recently announced that it plans to sell 100,000 of its zero-emission, four-door Fluence electric model in Israel and Denmark by 2016 in partnership with Better Place, the privately owned US-based company which is developing nationwide car recharging infrastructure in both countries.
Twizy, the tiny two-seat city car Renault shown in pre-production form on Tuesday, will have an electric driving range of 100km. The other models – the Fluence, Zoe family car and electric Kangoo van – will have a range of 160km (100 miles).
Meanwhile, Audi presented the e-tron, a high-performance sports car with a purely electric drive system. Producing 230 kW (313 hp) and 4,500 Nm (3,319.03 lb-ft) of torque, the two-seater accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h (0 – 62.14 mph) in 4.8 seconds. Audi says that the lithium-ion battery provides a range of approximately 248 kilometres.
GM's Chevrolet Volt, the much-heralded plug-in electric car was also on show. The car uses an internal-combustion engine to extend its range beyond the standard commuting distances its batteries are designed to handle.
BMW provided a look farther down the road with its supercoupe, the Vision EfficientDynamics. It is a high performance, plug-in diesel-electric hybrid powered by a three-cylinder 1.5-liter turbo engine, and by two electric motors, one for the rear wheels, one for the front.
An industry expert, Ferdinand Dudenhoeffer, was reported as saying that there would be an electric car at almost every stand at this year's Frankfurt Show. However, he also said that he expected it would be some time before they were produced and displayed in dealer showrooms.
In a related development, Samsung and Bosch have announced a collaborative move in a bid to launch commercial production of lithium-ion batteries. The companies hope that production will take place in a newly constructed plant in South Korea by 2011 and they have a stated aim to secure a third of the global market.
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