Green car enthusiasts are already counting the days to the Frankfurt Motor Show, and now their appetites have been whetted further as BMW releases more details of its so-called CO2 champion.
Dr Norbert Reithofer, the chairman of the board of management of BMW AG has already claimed that the vehicle will demonstrate “a whole new dimension of driving pleasure with regards to efficiency with performance” and now we can see what he is talking about in the form of the plug-in hybrid BMW EfficientDynamics all-wheel drive concept car.
The vehicle is powered by a 1.5 litre, three-cylinder turbo-diesel with two electric motors and a 10.8kWh lithium-polymer battery pack. The overall system output is 262kW and the maximum torque is 800Nm. It can run for up to 31 miles on electric power alone and, depending on the driving conditions, the two electric motors can be used for both accelerating and for regenerating energy.
In a bid to reduce energy loss even further, the car features a water-cooled thermo-electrical generator that converts a lot of the thermal energy into electric power. It also benefits from what is described as ‘forward-looking energy management’ where the individual system components on board the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics are networked with each other. This allows the on-board computer to forecast driving conditions on the road ahead to make efficient use of the energy available - so for example if the car is about to join a stretch of motorway, the cooling system is reduced for a period on the assumption that it will be offset by the higher speeds.
Aerodynamics also plays its role with a sweeping, arch-like roofline and the air flap control that is already used in a number of BMW EfficientDynamics vehicles. The chassis and suspension are made completely of aluminium and the roof and outer skin on the large doors use a special polycarbonate glass.
All this, results in a vehicle that can race from 0-62mph in 4.8 seconds and reach a top speed of 155mph and yet still produce remarkable fuel efficiency and CO2 emission levels - of 62.6mpg and 99g/km respectively.
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