The Autobahn goes electric - Electric car Special - Elektor Magazine
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
Electric car Special The Autobahn goes electric Car-crazy Germany has been lagging behind when it comes to making hybrid and electric cars. German car makers have focused too long on protecting their vested interests and the government did too little to make them change their mind. But times are changing. Fahren auf der Autobahn is about to become an electrifying experience. September / October 2009 European Energy Review 20
Electric car Special
| by Stefan Nicola
‘We would like to connect with hybrid and electric vehicles, have over the past years focused Critics say the carmakers have
people through their normal, and about exciting mobility on making gasoline and been pushed too little by the
everyday occurrences. And we concepts of the future. But does diesel engines more efficient. government. As an example,
aim to inspire our visitors to start this forward-looking attitude Admittedly, they are world a government plan to colour-
thinking about where they could really enter the research leaders in this now. Some 120 code cars according to their
maybe change their behaviour and production facilities of of the 170 models offered by level of “sustainability” was
to live more sustainably,’ says Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW? the Volkswagen group (which blocked by conservatives
Maria Schneider. Not really, critics say. includes Audi) have a carbon acting at the behest of the car
Schneider is creative director ‘The German car industry has dioxide footprint of less than companies. ‘You can’t really
of Autostadt, Volkswagen’s slept through the trend toward 140g per kilometer – a pretty expect the car makers to bring
huge mobility theme park electric mobility,’ Ferdinand impressive efficiency track about this transition to EVs,’
located right next to its Dudenhöffer, Germany’s premier record. However, the company says Tomi Engel, a sustainable
production factories in automobile expert, tells EER. He has not yet serially produced mobility expert at the German
Wolfsburg. Autostadt currently says car companies in Asia and and sold a modern hybrid or section of the International
runs an exhibition called “Level even the US have a head start electric car. Solar Energy Society. ‘Why
Green”. On 1,000 square meters when it comes to hybrid and Volkswagen head Martin invest in new products and
designed by architect Jürgen electric cars. It took Daimler, a Winterkorn said earlier this strategies when it’s simpler to
Mayer-Hahn in a futuristic lime- world-leading car giant and the month his company would offer prevent laws and make money
green, visitors can learn about owner of Mercedes-Benz, until its first all-electric vehicle (EV) with the old products? It’s up
the size of their ecological late June to launch the German in 2013 – at least two years after to the government to change
footprint, discover how much car industry’s first hybrid competitors in Europe, Asia and the rules so that a market can
carbon dioxide emissions they vehicle, almost a decade after the US. BMW and Daimler are develop.’ According to Engel,
can save per year by eating market leader Toyota introduced expected to launch all-electric the German motor vehicle
less meat (6.7 tons of CO2), or the Prius. Mini and Smart cars in late 2011 tax needs to be altered to
learn how Volkswagen tries to or early 2012. help introduce EVs. ‘With the
produce cars more sustainably. Volkswagen is not out in front, current tax, you pay less for a
Given that roughly 2 million either. Dudenhöffer ranks Mitsubishi launched its electric very efficient gasoline car than
people visit Autostadt each BMW and Daimler ahead of vehicle, the €34,000 i-MiEV in for an EV. How can you penalize
year, Level Green might even Volkswagen when it comes to July of this year. It will start someone for saving significant
make a difference. building tomorrow’s green selling in 2010. In August, Japan’s amounts of CO2?’
cars. ‘Of the world’s large car Nissan unveiled a mass-market
But of course a sustainability companies, Volkswagen has battery-powered car called the Dudenhöffer agrees: ‘The
exhibition at Europe’s largest the smallest offering of hybrid Leaf. The Chevrolet Volt, a plug- German government has been
carmaker cannot avoid the cars and they are also behind in hybrid whose combustion too hesitant and slow when it
subject of mobility. Some of the in producing an electric car,’ engine generates additional comes to supporting electric
sleek-looking touch screens tell he says. electricity to power the car, is to mobility.’ He believes Berlin
visitors the latest about biofuels, The German car companies be sold by early 2011. Toyota will should pour more money into
soon release a plug-in version of research and development.
the Prius. Its latest Prius model is Germany’s most recent
selling like crazy in Asia. economic aid package includes
€500 million earmarked for
German consumers are R&D in sustainable mobility,
similarly eager to go electric. including €115 million
According to a recent poll, for eight model regions
every fifth German interested which are expected to look
in buying an automobile is at infrastructure systems,
delaying the purchase to wait driver behaviour and the
for the introduction of electric integration of the EVs into
cars. That means being a year a renewable energy-based
or even two years late could electricity network.
hurt Germany’s car industry Not an insignificant sum,
Volkswagen Autostadt in Wolfsburg, Germany
Photos: Paul Langrock/Hollandse Hoogte
significantly. but much less than the US
European Energy Review September / October 2009
21
Electric car Special
and China are investing. ‘That means we will have to ‘Electric mobility,’ says cities. BMW has announced
Washington has earmarked $2 meet Germany’s ambitious Wolfgang Müller-Pietralla, who it would scrap its Formula 1
billion for the development climate protection targets heads Volkswagen’s future racing team in a bid to focus on
of next-generation battery mainly through efficiency research department and is new engine technologies and
technologies for EVs and funds improvements of engines in a big supporter of electric sustainability.
infrastructure test projects conventional cars,’ Tobias mobility, ‘will motivate Daimler has invested $50
with an additional $400 Lösche-ter Horst, who heads engineers to even higher million in Tesla, the California-
million. China will soon launch Volkswagen’s propulsion efficiency levels and we will based maker of long-range
test projects with more than research department, tells EER. soon see that traditional electric vehicles. It initially
10,000 EVs for a total amount ‘Of course electric mobility has engines will become more bought a stake of 10 percent in
of $2 billion, and funds electric a huge potential, and we are sustainable.’ the company, but later resold
mobility research with another researching that with many Both Lösche-ter Horst and 4 percent to an Abu Dhabi-
$1 billion. Moreover, because resources. But it will take some Müller-Pietralla say an average based investor. Thomas Weber,
of Germany’s bureaucratic time before EVs can provide consumption of 3 liters per 100 head of R&D from Daimler,
system, the money spent in long-distance mobility.’ km is realistic for a compact is convinced: ‘The cards are
Germany takes longer to make car with future technologies. being re-dealt now and green
an impact, Dudenhöffer says. Lösche-ter Horst heads a Similar to the other car makers technologies will be trumps.’
team of 200 engineers and in Germany, Volkswagen also
However, the German scientists. Half of them banks on biogas (Germany There is one problem. The
government now seems to have research gasoline and diesel has an excellent biogas heart of an EV is its battery,
woken up to the challenge. engines, the other half infrastructure and VW has and Germany has almost no
On 19 August, it unveiled a electric mobility, hydrogen several biogas models on offer) domestic battery production
strategy to reach its target of 1 fuel cells and biofuels. He says as well as biofuels that don’t or expertise. That has moved
million EVs by 2020. The plan Volkswagen’s most efficient compete with food production. to Asia – Japan and China
does not allocate new money, diesel cars are already better are today’s battery giants.
but it includes funding pledges than the best hybrids when That doesn’t mean the likes of Nowadays, EVs are powered
for battery research and it comes to greenhouse gas Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW by huge lithium-ion battery
a proposal to pay buyers of EVs emissions. The Blue Motion are neglecting electric vehicles packs that are heavy, expensive
up to €5,000 starting in 2012. 2 version of its Polo compact altogether. Most experts agree and some say unsafe. A battery
‘It is our aim to make Germany car, to be launched next year, that German companies are pack for an EV costs between
into the market leader for will emit just 87 g of CO2 starting to catch up. Daimler €10,000 and €15,000 and its
electric mobility,’ Economy per km – that’s less than the and BMW are about to launch range usually doesn’t extend
Minister Karl-Theodor zu newest Prius. EV test trials in several German beyond 150 km. It’s clear that
Guttenberg said at the plan’s
presentation in Berlin.
The politicians did not hesitate
to remind the car makers
that they had to do their part
to help sustainable mobility
succeed in Germany. ‘We
politicians are ready to support
this,’ said Wolfgang Tiefensee,
the German transport
minister. ‘But it is the German
automobile industry that now
needs to accelerate its efforts
if Germany really wants to be a
lead market when it comes to
electric mobility.’
One million EVs sounds like a
lot, but with 45 million cars on
the road right now, the market
share would be less than 2%. Exhibition "Level Green" at Autostadt Photo: Kai Senf
September / October 2009 European Energy Review
22
Electric car Special
there is room for significant production capability. Together
improvement, and Germany with German energy company
would like to participate in Evonik, it founded li-Tec, which
that technology race. combines both groups’ expertise
to produce lithium-ion batteries
No wonder German car makers for Mercedes-Benz EVs.
are scrambling to enter into
cooperations with Asian battery All those recent activities
giants. Volkswagen has teamed leave the German car industry
up with Chinese battery and optimistic that it can get
EV maker BYD. Earlier the a significant share of the
company had reached a deal growing sustainable mobility
with Japan's Sanyo and Toshiba. market. ‘Sometimes people
BMW has teamed up with auto behave and talk as if the
parts supplier Bosch and its race for the electric car is
Korean partner Samsung to already over,’ Lösche-ter Horst
supply lithium-ion batteries says. ‘But that’s not true. No
for a future EV. Daimler is company has a big head start
even trying to support the or is far behind. The race is
creation of a domestic battery only beginning.’ Wolfgang Müller-Pietralla and Tobias Lösche-ter Horst. Photo: Kai Senf
Utilities team up with car makers
Germany’s energy utilities support electric mobility because they hope it will increase the demand for electricity.
They are involved in several EV test projects with German car makers.
Daimler and RWE: E-mobility Berlin
Energy giant RWE and Daimler have teamed up for Germany’s biggest EV test project in Berlin. It will feature 100 electric Smart cars
handed out to selected customers, starting in late 2009. Daimler will at a later phase also provide Mercedes-Benz EVs. RWE plans to
install some 400 electric charging stations all over the city. The company said it wants to open its charging infrastructure at a later
date also for Daimler’s competitors. RWE plans to install up to 10,000 charging stations over the coming years, the company said.
BMW and Vattenfall: Mini-E powered by Vattenfall
Fifty Mini-E cars have been driving through Berlin for the past weeks, in Germany’s first EV test project. Vattenfall is providing the
charging stations and scientists from Technical University Chemnitz are analyzing driving patterns and grid stability. Funded by the
German Environment Ministry, the project is special in a way that Vattenfall has vowed that only electricity from renewable sources
will be available at its charging stations. BMW runs similar test projects in Britain and California. In February 2010, another 50 cars
will join the project.
BMW and Eon: E-mobility in Munich
German energy giant Eon has built 15 charging stations for 15 Mini-E cars that have been handed out to selected drivers. The small
project features test drivers who are commuting into Munich from the city’s outskirts. A fully-charged battery takes the Mini-E
roughly 150 km.
Volkswagen and Eon: Fleet Test Electric Drive
Volkswagen in June 2008 announced a fleet test of its plug-in hybrid Golf Twin Drive. So far, only 2 vehicles have actually made it
onto the roads in and around Berlin. More cars are to be added until the end of the year, but Volkswagen has given no details. The
company initially said last year it wanted to test up to 20 vehicles. Eon was due to provide the electrical refueling stations.
European Energy Review September / October 2009
23You can also read
