Mercedes-Benz announces diesel hybrid
There is a huge divide between the way a gasoline engine prefers to run and how a diesel engine can be made happy.
Gasoline engines are sort of like men with sex - we love quick, repeated bursts of energy. Diesels are like women - difficult to get started but once you do, boy they run and run for a long time. Okay I stole that from Larry the Cable Guy.
But the point of this stupidity is that diesels have not, until now, been used in hybrid drivetrains because of the repeated on-off stop-start driving pattern that comprises a hybrid drivetrain. That being said, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of diesel engines is Mercedes Benz and if anyone were going to do a diesel hybrid, it would be them. It looks like they’ve done it and in a press release I got this morning, here are the details of the world’s first diesel hybrid passenger car.
From Daimler-Benz:
Mercedes-Benz is opening a new chapter in its brand’s core segment and at the same time setting new standards for luxury-class business vehicles: the E 300 BlueTEC HYBRID, available as a Saloon and Estate, impresses with new record values when it comes to efficiency. It boasts exemplary consumption levels (4.2 l/100 km[1]) as well as impressive performance: the 4-cylinder diesel engine of the E 300 BlueTEC HYBRID has 150 kW (204 hp) and 500 Nm. Combined with an electric motor producing 20 kW and 250 Nm, this results in a coherent overall concept. The E 300 BlueTEC HYBRID is the most economical luxury-class vehicle in the world.
The V6-cylinder petrol engine in the E 400 HYBRID produces 225 kW (306 hp) and 370 Nm, and is also supplemented by a further 20 kW and 250 Nm from the electric motor. The consumption figures based on the American CAFE standard are: City 24 mpg, Highway 31 mpg, Combined 27 mpg.
“With these two E-Class models we are now continuing our comprehensive hybrid offensive. The modular technology opens up a quick way for us to complement other model series with hybrid models”, explains Professor Dr. Thomas Weber, Daimler Board Member for Group Research and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars Development. “With a clear focus on the different requirements of global markets, we are able to offer precisely the models which our customers want. The E-Class hybrids provide a clear reduction in consumption as well as a very impressive driving experience: they represent hybrid motoring at the premium level.”
The new models do not require their passengers to have to compromise when it comes to space, however, whether in terms of the interior or the luggage compartment. And there are also additional benefits to the intelligent modular hybrid concept, which represents a comprehensive enhancement of the Mercedes-Benz S 400 HYBRID which has advanced to the position of clear market leader since 2009: no changes to the vehicle body are required, the hybrid module is both flexible and modular, thus allowing its use in other model series, and in addition to diesel and petrol variants there will also be right-hand drive variants. Meanwhile, the extra cost involved here is only moderate. The new hybrid models will be celebrating their world premiere at the Detroit Motor Show (14 to 22 January 2012) and will appear on the market over the course of the year. The E 300 BlueTEC HYBRID is initially planned to be launched on the European market, while the E 400 HYBRID will be made available on the American market first, followed by other countries such as Japan and China later.
Highlights of the E 300 BlueTEC HYBRID at a glance:
- Compact, intelligent and modular hybrid concept: no changes to the body of the base vehicle are necessary
- Also available as an Estate
- Space, safety and comfort remain unchanged
- No compromises in terms of space, safety and comfort
- Significant increase in comfort with start/stop operation; noiseless start, complete climatic comfort
- Top marks for consumption in the luxury-class business vehicle segment: 4.2 litres/100 km, 109 g CO2/km
- Part of the intelligent downsizing strategy of Mercedes-Benz: increase in the engine output of the E 300 BlueTEC HYBRID with 150 kW + 20 kW electric motor/500 Nm + 250 Nm, compared with the E 250 CDI (150 kW/500 Nm), positioning it at the same level as the E 300 CDI (170 kW/540 Nm)
- Fuel savings of around 15 percent compared with the E 250 CDI – even in actual road traffic conditions
- Impressive hybrid driving experience (start/stop function, regenerative braking, boost effect, purely electric motoring and “sailing” function)
Highlights of the E 400 HYBRID at a glance:
- Compact, intelligent and modular hybrid concept: no changes to the body of the base vehicle are necessary
- No compromises in terms of space, safety and comfort
- Significant increase in comfort with start/stop operation; noiseless start, complete climatic comfort
- Consumption combined (CAFE): 27 mpg
- Part of the intelligent downsizing strategy of Mercedes-Benz: increase in the engine output of the E 400 HYBRID by some 20 kW and 250 Nm thanks to the electric motor
- Impressive hybrid driving experience (start/stop function, regenerative braking, boost effect, purely electric motoring and “sailing” function)
[1] All consumption and performance figures are preliminary figures based on the Saloon model, as at December 2011
Wednesday, December 21, 2011 at 6:06AM | Email Article
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E300 BlueTec, the new hybrid models, based on a modular hybrid system. The car will be powered by a specially tuned twin-turbocharged 2.2-liter four-cylinder diesel engine.