The lovable little Audi A3 will be receiving a couple of new power plants thanks to the Volkswagen Group. The four ringed automaker has added an alternatively fueled four cylinder engine to the lineup in order to satisfy diesel drivers in Europe as well as increase mileage and reduce emissions. The 1.6 Liter TDI will be offered in two flavors, the first making 90 HP and the second putting down 105 HP, while torque output for the two turbo diesel engines is significantly higher.
In Europe they would say that the 1.6 TDI A3 will consume only 4.1 liters of diesel fuel per 100 kilometers, whereas in the U.S. we would say that it gets 57.37 MPG, all while emitting minimal greenhouse gasses. This excellent ecological performance is made possible by the new vehicle’s start/stop and energy recovery systems. The turbo diesel A3 is no slouch either, the high output version is capable of going from 0 to 60 MPH in 11.4 seconds, not bad considering the vehicle gets about the same gas mileage as a Prius.
Top Speed’s test fleet recently received a 2009 Cadillac Escalade Hybrid from General Motors. This oversized people mover seems more like another way to make a statement about being excessive while still thinking about the environment. The Cadillac is as luxurious as anything from the General is at the moment, with its 332 HP 6.0 Liter V8 and electric motor spinning a set of 22 inch chrome wheels, it will be nice to experience the lifestyle first hand.
The interior of our Escalade is comfortable and luxurious, adequate for $70,000 worth of extravagance and technology. From the driver’s seat you can enjoy an 8 inch navigation screen with everything from back up camera to nice little animation about what the Hybrid two-mode system is doing. The rear seat passengers should appreciate the flip down Panasonic DVD screen and Bose 5.1 surround sound system. The combination of wood on the center stack, steering wheel and armrest is nicely contrasted by the brushed aluminum piece in front of the passenger.
A few days ago we reported that Audi would be bringing an electric powered R8 to the Frankfurt Motor Show. However it is our sad news to announce that according to representatives from the German automaker, the speculations have been denied and there will be no battery operated mid engine super car in the Audi booth at Frankfurt in September. This is a little disconcerting, and considering that Audi has already cancelled a TDI V12 version of the R8 due to structural reasons, this is another let down at an attempt to create a high performance environmentally friendly super car. The reluctance to alternative fuel sources is very unlike the company’s “Vorsprung durch Technik,” Advancement through Technology, slogan would suggest.
However the R8 Spyder is still coming, but another disappointment is that the next generation luxury limousine, the Audi A8s unveiling has been delayed until the 2010 Geneva Motor Show. So for now, upstarts like Tesla and Fisker can relax, a major manufacturer is no longer out to build a better green super car.
You would think that an oil company would be all for gas-guzzlers and oil burners, vehicles that would keep the cash flowing and allow those companies to maximize profits. However there is one member of the crude retailing community that is more focused on getting the most out of every drop, as opposed to selling every last one.
The Hague based operation, Shell Oil, is committed to making the most out of the limited fossil fuel, that is why they have partnered with the Scuderia Ferrari in order to push the boundaries of both performance and efficiency. The pair work together to develop fuels that burn more proficiently on the racetrack and lubricants that allow the rotating parts of the highly sophisticated Formula 1 car to move with less friction and be less of a (parasitic) drag on the machine, allowing it t to be even more fuel efficient.
Shell’s efforts at conservation are not limited to the F1 circuit.
The oil company is also the title sponsor for the Shell Eco-Marathon, a competition whose record holders have achieved the equivalent of over 7800 MPG from their fuel-efficient forward thinking machine. The Shell Eco-Marathon is held in various locations around the globe, and invites students to design, build, and test their unique vehicles, all with the same goal, use the least amount of fuel to travel the farthest distance possible. The student design teams develop vehicles that run on conventional fuels like gasoline, ethanol and diesel, as well as futuristic concepts like solar power, hydrogen and other bio-fuels.
The world’s oldest automobile manufacturer, Daimler, has just acquired a sizable stake in the American all-electric car builder, Tesla. Even before the 10 percent sale, both companies were working together to use Tesla’s lithium-ion batteries in Mercedes Benz’s Smart electric car. Member of the Board of Daimler AG, Dr. Thomas Weber, said that "our strategic partnership is an important step to accelerate the commercialization of electric drives globally," because according to Benz, the future will be made up of at least electrically assisted vehicles.
Tesla Motors Chairman and CEO, Elon Musk, had this to say about the German conglomerate, “Daimler has set the benchmark for engineering excellence and vehicle quality for more than a century. It is an honor and a powerful endorsement of our technology that Daimler would choose to invest in and partner with Tesla.”
There are already 100 Smart electric cars on the streets of London; these electric vehicles have been part of large-scale testing since 2007 being tested in real world driving situations, conducting normal daily operations by fleet operators as well as private citizens. Later on this year, the Smart assembly plant in Hambach, France, will commence production of up to 1000 second-generation electrically powered Smart fortwo models, taking full advantage of the latest advances in lithium-ion battery technology.
In an attempt to conserve more of the Earth’s natural resources, Volkswagen’s future line-up will include a three-cylinder power plant and an all new hybrid engine. Unfortunately, the planed 55 MPG clean diesel roadster is on hold until the economy picks back up. In an interview with the German magazine, Auto Motor Und Sport, with VW’s head of development, Ulrich Hackenberg had this to say: “The three-cylinder is certainly a great future; we devote ourselves to intensive mechanical, thermodynamic and acoustic development. We will continue the three-cylinder, in any case in the VW Golf to offer."
The hybrid Golf will debut sometime in 2011 and Ulrich thinks that it will be the perfect personal transportation solution for densely populated urban centers, like the growing mega cities found in China and the United States.
If the roadster ever does become a reality, you probably won’t see a Porsche version, but according to Hackenberg, there is a strong possibility that Audi will have a four ringed version as well.
With fuel prices on the rise and the upcoming CAFE requirement imposed by the U.S. government, fuel efficiency has become a very important aspect of automaker’s vehicle lineups. When it was unveiled at the North American International Auto Show, the 2010 Chevrolet Equinox was hailed as the 9th vehicle offered by Chevy to reach an EPA estimated 30 MPG. Just as we like manufacturers that underrate their engines, it is even better when the automakers don’t exaggerate fuel mileage.
The latest tests have revealed that the new Chevrolet Equinox returns an impressive 32 MPG on the highway. This best-in-segment fuel economy results in a range of up to 600 miles for the General Motors CUV. The Equinox’s front-wheel drive power train and direct-injected 2.4 Liter four cylinder engine showed an EPA estimated fuel mileage of 22 MPG in the city and 32 MPG while cruising at highway speeds.
The Equinox’s closest competitors from Japan are nowhere as efficient at speed. The Honda CR-V gets 20/27 MPG and Toyota’s Rav-4 returns an estimated 22/28 MPG (city/highway). American cars are looking better and better every day.
The electric vehicle builder Fisker already has the lithium-ion powered Karma sedan and soon to be Karma Sunset convertible. But for 2010 the Tesla Motors competitor would like to offer something different, a more compact plug-in vehicle.
"We’re first doing the four-door and then we’re doing the convertible and then we’re planning some third derivative off the Karma platform. Then we’re planning a high-volume vehicle for a lower price. We’ve applied for a Department of Energy grant. If that loan comes through, we’ll have this vehicle on the road in 29 months" said Fisker himself.
Times are changing and as raw power gives way to economy some people are talking about the extinction of the internal combustion engine, like Nissan/Renault CEO Carlos Goshen. Fortunately for some of us gear heads, Ford’s Executive Vice President Mark Fields has confirmed that consumers will be seeing gas burning, piston pumping engines for at least the next 20 years. Mr. Fields also assured Top Speed that there is still a lot of development and technological advancement to be done, one of the reasons for Ford’s new EcoBoost V6.
The American automaker Lincoln has announced that an EcoBoost engine will power the 2010 MKS. By the year 2013, Lincoln’s parent company Ford plans on using the same fuel-efficient power plant in over 90% of their vehicles. The 3.5 Liter EcoBoost V6 found under the hood of the all-wheel-drive 2010 Lincoln MKS will produce 355 HP and 350 ft-lb of torque, all on regular grade gasoline. The twin turbocharged 6 cylinder provides the output of a V8 while returning a minimum of 17 MPG around town and at least 24 MPG during highway driving.
After the recent success of the Lotus Exige 270E Tri-Fuel at the Shanghai Motor Show, Youngman Auto, the lightweight English sports car builder’s Chinese partner has submitted a request that the concept go into production, at least for the Chinese market by the end of this year. The alternatively fueled Lotus made its debut at Geneva in 2008, and what set the car apart from normal flex fuel vehicles that can run on a blend of gasoline and ethanol, the Exige 270E adds methanol into the mix. It is no surprise that the Chinese are so interested in the Tri-Fuel, because back in 2007 China became the world’s largest producer and consumer of methanol. In 2008 nearly 1 Billion gallons of the alternative fuel was blended with gasoline in the panda loving country, and mixtures of methanol/gasoline are already available at many gas stations throughout the land.
Check out the diagrams after the jump to see how Tri-Fuel works.
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