DaimlerChrysler:Clean Diesels, Hybrid Electric Vehicles and Fuel Cells Will be a Part of Our Automotive Energy Landscape
WASHINGTON, May 13 -- DaimlerChrysler's advanced technology specialists from Auburn Hills to Stuttgart are working with suppliers and research facilities around the world to develop automobile systems that will greatly reduce, or possibly eliminate, fossil fuel consumption and subsequent emissions.
These technological advances will be among the topics explored in a series of public policy expositions, conferences and briefings held in the Washington, DC area in May and June by industry, government and non- governmental organizations.
DaimlerChrysler will participate in the following activities:
* 2002 Tour de Sol, Electric Vehicle Rally -- starting in Washington, DC,
May 14
* Electric Vehicle Association of America briefing/Ride & Drive --
Capitol Hill, May 14
* Congressional Fuel Cell Expo -- Capitol Hill, May 20
* Clean Diesel Ride and Drive and Expo -- Capitol Hill, May 21
* Future Car Congress, USCAR/SAE/DOE conference -- Arlington, VA,
June 3-5
Through these events DaimlerChrysler will showcase its technological efforts and achievements to improve current products, and develop new vehicle systems and long-term new vehicle alternatives.
According to Rob Liberatore, DaimlerChrysler Senior Vice President, External Affairs and Public Policy, "DaimlerChrysler's goal is to mitigate the environmental impact of our transportation systems by developing affordable new technologies which meet our customers needs. We are committed to leading the industry in developing long-term solutions with fuel cell technology. "
ONGOING IMPROVEMENTS
With the development of every new product from Chrysler, Jeep®, Dodge and Mercedes-Benz and smart comes the challenge of meeting customer needs, while minimizing the overall impact on the environment. Following are examples of DaimlerChrysler's accomplishments to date:
* Over twenty years, DaimlerChrysler's fleet has become 50 percent more
fuel-efficient.
* Over thirty years, ozone-forming emissions of hydrocarbons and nitrogen
oxide have been reduced 96 percent.
* For the 2002 Model Year, 99 percent of DaimlerChrysler's passenger car
and light duty truck fleet is Low Emission Vehicle (LEV) certified.
* Since 1998, DaimlerChrysler has sold almost 900,000 minivans powered by
flexible fuel (gasoline/ethanol) 3.3L V-6 engines.
Advances will continue to be made within the areas of gasoline engines, emissions management, aerodynamics, and vehicle materials. One area of particularly dramatic improvement has been new clean diesel technology:
* Mercedes-Benz common-rail diesel engines (CDI) offer up to 25 percent
improved fuel economy compared to similar gasoline engines and emit
lower levels of carbon dioxide.
* To improve combustion and reduce particulate emissions, CDI engines use
high-pressure, reduced-size fuel injectors to more finely disperse the
fuel into the cylinders.
* Exhaust systems have been redesigned to reduce exhaust emissions below
current European EU-3 requirements. Research and development by both
engine manufacturers and fuel suppliers continues to address NOx and
particulate matter emissions, both of which are higher than gasoline
engines.
In the United States, DaimlerChrysler currently markets the Dodge Ram diesel. Outside the United States, DaimlerChrysler markets a host of Mercedes diesel models, as well as diesel-powered Dodge Durango, PT Cruiser, Jeep Cherokee and Grand Cherokee and Chrysler Voyager models.
NEAR TERM NEW VEHICLE SYSTEMS
In the coming years, DaimlerChrysler will offer a wider array of vehicle choices to meet different combinations of consumer needs, including reduced fuel consumption.
* DaimlerChrysler's GEM is the largest producer in the United States of
electric vehicles that can be licensed for use on public roads. With
GEM, DaimlerChrysler became the first major automaker to sell
Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEVs) in the U.S.
* In Europe and Asia, DaimlerChrysler currently markets two unique fuel-
efficient vehicles -- the Mercedes-Benz A-Class and the smart car --
particularly appropriate for busy urban areas with hard-to-find parking
and high fuel prices.
* The Chrysler Group is developing Through-The-Road hybrid electric
vehicles and has announced its plans to bring to market in 2004 the
Dodge Ram Hybrid pickup truck. The Dodge Ram Hybrid exemplifies two
attributes DaimlerChrysler feels is critical for long term acceptance
of hybrid vehicles: Unique market appeal and significant fuel
efficiency improvement.
* The Dodge Ram Hybrid features an integrated starter-generator hybrid
powertrain that achieves up to 20 percent better fuel efficiency on the
road and converts to a clean electric generator when parked. Up to
four typical households can be powered from the drop-down electric
outlet box.
The Chrysler Group is testing other hybrid-powered vehicles -- Chrysler Sebring, Dodge Durango, and Jeep Liberty -- to determine the technical and marketing feasibility of bringing them to market. The Liberty, Sebring and Durango hybrid-electric vehicles feature a Through-The-Road system that utilizes a rear-mounted electric motor to provide additional power to the rear wheels, allowing for a smaller gasoline engine to power the front wheels. This system results in a 20-30% improvement in fuel efficiency, without loss of performance, and the benefit of all-wheel drive.
LONG TERM ENERGY ALTERNATIVES
While new diesel technology, new small vehicle segments and hybrid-powered cars and trucks will all contribute to reducing fuel consumption and emissions, the greatest long term opportunity lies in promising fuel cell technology.
DaimlerChrysler has developed a number of fuel cell vehicles that are each powered by different fuels.
"The most important unresolved issue with fuel cell vehicles is not the fuel cell, it's the fuel," said Thomas Moore, Vice President and head of DaimlerChrysler's Liberty & Technical Affairs advanced technology development group.
DaimlerChrysler is a key participant in FreedomCAR, the United States Department of Energy's research partnership with the American automotive industry. FreedomCAR pools resources from the Department of Energy research labs and the industry to speed development of fuel cells and fuel cell infrastructure.
Another key group in the drive to develop fuel cell vehicles is the California Fuel Cell Partnership, a collaboration of automotive and energy companies and government agencies that is demonstrating and testing fuel cell vehicle technologies. DaimlerChrysler has been testing passenger cars and buses at the CFCP facility in Sacramento since 2000.
"The initiative we are taking in the California Fuel Cell Partnership plainly demonstrates DaimlerChrysler's firm resolve to maintain and further extend its lead in the development of new technologies," said Prof. Klaus- Dieter Vuehringer, member of the Board of Management of DaimlerChrysler AG responsible for research and technology.
Prof. Dr. Ferdinand Panik, head of DaimlerChrysler's fuel cell project group and chairman of the Partnership, added, "We have now overcome the major technological obstacles facing the development of the fuel cell drive system. The task at hand is now to reduce the costs of the drive system even further and to pave the way for rapid introduction of these automobiles by 2004, for instance by establishing a fuel infrastructure."
Within the California project, DaimlerChrysler is testing the viability of fuel cells with four on-road vehicles:
* Chrysler Town & Country Natrium, which is fueled with sodium
boro-hydride, a compound related to borax.
* NECAR 4, which operates on liquid hydrogen.
* NECAR 4a, fueled by compressed gaseous hydrogen.
* NECAR 5, which operates on methanol.
The three NECAR vehicles are based on the Mercedes-Benz A-Class passenger car. In addition to passenger car applications, DaimlerChrysler has been a leader in technologically advanced vans, trucks and buses. The company will market the first fuel cell city buses in 2003 and plans to market fuel cell- powered passenger cars in 2004.
To meet these ambitious goals, DaimlerChrysler is investing more than $1.4 billion in fuel cell technology research and development during the period 2001-2004. These electric vehicles are the most promising of all alternative drive systems, combining the benefits of an internal combustion engine with lower fuel consumption, minimal pollutant emissions and lower noise levels.
ENERGY FOR THE FUTURE
DaimlerChrysler is committed to the concepts of sustainable mobility and energy for the future. The company aspires to continually give consumers more choices to drive vehicles that meet their needs and minimize the impact on the environment. In the coming years DaimlerChrysler will improve the fuel economy and emissions performance of its fleet through the introduction of ongoing technology improvements, new vehicle choices and eventually all-new automotive transportation concepts.
