DeLorean regressa ao futuro como carro eléctrico

Um novo modelo da marca DeLorean, popularizada pelo filme Regresso Ao Futuro (Back to the Future), vai começar a sair da linha de montagem da fábrica da empresa em Belfast, na Irlanda do Norte, mais de 30 anos após o último veículo com aquele emblema ter sido lançado no mercado.

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Range Rover and Porsche Panamera go hybrid

Land Rover is debuting its Range_e, a diesel hybrid plug-in prototype, at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show in March. According to the British car manufacturer, the technology-packed Range_e is one of several working prototypes currently being developed at Land Rover's design and engineering centre in the UK.

The Range_e is based on a Range Rover Sport and features a 3.0-litre TDV6 diesel with an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission. Matched with a plug-in parallel diesel hybrid system it offers a premium SUV that can run as a pure electric vehicle. The 'Range_e' is the first capable 4WD model from Land Rover to achieve 89g of CO2. It has an EV range of 20 miles, a top speed of around 120mph and a range of 690 miles.

Porsche is also unveiling in Switzerland a new hybrid model, its second, the Panamera S Hybrid. According to the German sports car manufacturer, the new Panamera model produces 380 horsepower with fuel consumption of only 6.8 L/100 km on the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC).

Porsche calls its Panamera S Hybrid the most fuel efficient Porsche of all time. Optional low-rolling-resistance tires developed especially for the Panamera help this hybrid performance sedan deliver its NEDC fuel economy figure. But even with standard performance tires, the Panamera S Hybrid's fuel consumption is a low 7.1 L/100 km. Official EPA fuel economy estimates will be available closer to the car's on-sale date, Porsche states.

The Panamera S Hybrid sets new standards in terms of Porsche performance as well as hybrid efficiencies, the manufacturer claims. The S Hybrid accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in just 5.7 seconds and has a top track speed of 167 mph (270 km/h). Its range in purely electric mode is approximately one mile, with electric-only acceleration possible up to just over 50 mph (85 km/h).

The Porsche parallel full hybrid system also reduces consumption at high speeds thanks to its 'sailing' or coasting mode. When the driver lifts off the accelerator at normal highway cruising speeds, the gasoline engine is completely switched off and disengaged from the drivetrain by a decoupling clutch. This eliminates the combustion engine's drag forces and braking effect in the interest of lower resistance, fuel consumption and emissions. As soon as the driver presses the accelerator, to pass another vehicle for example, the gasoline engine smoothly starts within fractions of a second and engine rpms are increased to match the current vehicle speed. It does this seamlessly thanks to the Hybrid Manager, which also helps the Panamera S Hybrid accelerate dynamically in gears at higher speeds much like a conventional Panamera.

The same gasoline engine/electric motor combination that has already proven itself in the Cayenne S Hybrid drives the Panamera S Hybrid. A 3.0-liter supercharged V6 engine delivering 333 horsepower is supported by a 47-horsepower (34 kW) electric motor. Depending on driving conditions, either drive unit can operate independently or together to drive the rear wheels. The electric motor, which also serves as the car's generator and starter, combines with the decoupling clutch to form the compact hybrid module located between the combustion engine and the transmission. The electric motor is connected to a nickel metal hydride (NiMh) battery that stores electric energy recovered from braking and other driving situations. The transmission is the same eight-speed Tiptronic S fitted in the Cayenne models, with a wide range of gear ratios.

The Panamera S Hybrid has an even higher level of standard equipment than the V8 Panamera S, Porsche says. Adaptive Air Suspension with the Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) adaptive shock absorber system, Servotronic variable-assist power steering and a rear wiper have been added to the list of standard equipment. Other standard features include Porsche Communication Management (PCM) with navigation, the universal audio interface to connect an external audio source such as an iPod or a USB stick to the PCM system, and Bi-Xenon headlights. Inside, this new model also features an innovative display that provides the driver with relevant information about the status of the vehicle's hybrid drive systems.

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Newer, cheaper Ampera (Volt) already under development

From AutoEvolution: Before the European / British brother of GM's Chevy Volt, the Opel / Vauxhall Ampera, has even been released, GM Europe announced it will be replaced by a family of three extended-range electric vehicles within five years, that could potentially be made at General Motors’ Ellesmere Port factory in the UK, said AutoCar in a report.

While the first generation Volt/Ampera will be built in Detroit until 2015, the second generation of the extended range electric vehicles, which are already under development, will probably be manufactured in Europe.

“At that point it will make business sense to ramp up volumes of the Volt and Ampera, and to have several production sites for the ‘EREV’ model family,” said GM Europe president Nick Reilly for Autocar. “We will need one of those factories to be in Europe, and I’m very keen for it to be Ellesmere Port.”

The GM Europe official mentioned that the 2015 Ampera range will include a compact-medium hatchback, a four-door replacement of the upcoming Ampera and a crossover SUV similar to the Chevrolet Volt MPV5 concept that was unveiled at the Beijing Auto Show.

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James Martin reviews the electric Mini E

Tweet this post From the Daily Mail: Forgive me for talking shop, but this year’s been a crazy one in TV-land. The presenters of The One Show on BBC in the evenings are now the presenters of Daybreak on ITV in the mornings. The Bill was axed, The Stig was dishonourably discharged from Top Gear, Piers Morgan is on CNN and I woke up one morning to find Emma Bunton doing Lorraine Kelly’s job… Meanwhile, Jonathan Ross has been absent from our screens for most of 2010. Weird.

As for me, I’ve been mad busy all year except for a four-week break in the summer. Not that it was much of a break, as this magazine kept me at it with events at Goodwood, Silverstone and Brands Hatch, and tests of everything from hybrids to Ferraris.

Of course, I can’t complain, but it was almost a relief to get back into my normal routine – which, since you ask, includes commuting to the studio on a Friday morning and driving back late at night, past all my male viewers laying the groundwork for the hangovers they’ll enjoy during Saturday Kitchen.

Often I get a buzz out of driving around in something before it goes on sale. People do tend to notice you. But this week I’ve got something that’s not even close to being on sale. It might look like a normal Mini, but this is my first ever test of a research prototype, the all-electric Mini E. BMW has made a handful of these and given them to people to test for a year, to see how they perform under real-world, real-family conditions. Well, I don’t know how anyone else found it, but I reckon there’s a long way to go before the Mini E is ready to go on sale.

Actually, that’s not quite true – the car itself is great; it’s the battery life that’s rubbish. I found the same with the Tesla electric sports car, and as far as I know there’s no electric car that’s immune.

Let me tell you what I mean. The day it arrived, the car’s power meter told me I had 140 miles’ worth of juice. Great, I thought, and off I went to the shops and back – ten miles each way. When I got home it said I had 80 miles left. Eh? I know I failed my maths GCSE, but I’m pretty sure that’s 40 miles less than it should have been.

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UK releases list of EVs eligible for grants

From the Green Car Congress: The first nine electric drive cars to become eligible for the Plug-in Car Grant of up to £5,000 (US$7,900, €5,896) in the UK are: Mitsubishi iMiEV; smart fortwo electric drive; Peugeot iON; Citroen CZero; Nissan Leaf; Tata Vista EV; Toyota Prius Plug-in; Vauxhall Ampera and Chevrolet Volt. More will follow next year.

The grant will be available to motorists across the UK from 1 January 2011, reducing the cost of eligible cars by a quarter, up to a maximum of £5,000.

The Government is also encouraging a new network of electric vehicle recharging points in streets, car parks and commercial retail and leisure facilities as driving electric cars becomes a part of everyday life for pioneering British drivers. The successful bidding consortia in this second phase are based in: the Midlands; Greater Manchester; East of England; Scotland and Northern Ireland.

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London to ditch black taxis for green ones

From 1 January 2012 licences will not be issued for the iconic Hackney carriages that are more than 15 years old, London's mayor Boris Johnson has announced. According to the mayor's office, road traffic is responsible for about 80% of airborne pollution in central London, with black cabs contributing 20% of it.

In ten years time, black cabs could disappear altogether and be replaced with electric vehicles such as the one Volkswagen has opportunely unveiled today with the classic London black livery (it was previously presented in Milan and Berlin liveries). The Volkswagen Taxi could reach a top speed of 119 kph (74 mph) and has an estimated range of 299 kilometers (186 miles). The concept is shorter than the current smallest Volkswagen, the Fox, but was designed with a spacious cabin with room for two adults and an allocated area for luggage.

Sources: BBC and the Green Car Website

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UK petrol powered company cars to disappear in 10 years

From Just Auto UK: Petrol powered company cars could potentially disappear in 10 years, according to two sets of research by Lex Autolease in the UK.

"Diesel has already overtaken petrol as the fuel of choice in the fleet sector, which is renowned for being an early adopter of new vehicle technologies," said Lex Autolease principal consultant Chris Chandler.

"But clearly, there is an expectation the move away from petrol will accelerate as hybrids and EVs now begin to attract greater market share."

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