New BYD F1 ~= Toyota Aygo

BYD Co Ltd presented the F1, its smallest model slated for debut in the second quarter of 2008 in China, at the 78th Geneva International Motor Show.
It plans to release the car in Europe sometime in the next 2-3 years, the company said. It was the first time BYD Auto Co Ltd revealed the model outside China.

The trapezoidal body and the lower part of the side windows that pop up look quite similar to Toyota Motor Corp's Aygo. The interior, with its instrument panel accentuating the repetition of circular design, looks just like that of Aygo.

The F1 has a body length and width that are slightly longer and wider compared to the Aygo, but its height is exactly the same. The only part real differences between the two models are the front and rear lamps.

In spite of being a four-door car, the rear windows are not rolled down but are pushed open to the outside. Again, this is similar to the Aygo. With such a layout, recessed areas are formed under the windows inside the car. The areas can serve as elbow rests, which makes the interior width wider.

Setting aside whether this is similar to Aygo's layout, the car should be appreciated more now that air conditioning is common.

The F1 measures 3,460 (L) x 1,618 (W) x 1,465mm (H) and weighs 870kg. The wheelbase is 2,340mm. The front and rear treads are 1,420 and 1,410mm long, respectively. The turning radius is 5m. The minimum ground clearance without load is 120mm, while that with full load is 90mm. The car is shod with 165/60 R14 tires.

The F1 mounts BYD's proprietary engine, the BYD371QA. It is a 0.998L three-cylinder 12-valve SOHC engine with a compression ratio of 10.5, the maximum output of 50kW/6,000rpm and the maximum torque of 90Nm/4,000-4,500rpm (3,500-4,500rpm, according to some sources). The engine is compliant with the ChinaIV emission standard. The maximum speed is 151km/h. The fuel consumption is 4.2L/100km. The car is equipped with a 30L fuel tank.

Volkswagen Golf - Hybrid that combines TDI & electriс motors

To get even more fuel efficient, to get even more environmentally-friendly, Volkswagen has combined two technologies into the appropriately named Golf TDI Hybrid concept car. As you can imagine, this hot hatchback makes use of the company's famous turbodiesel technologies but it also combines it with an electric motor for optimal fuel efficiency and minimal environmental impact.

On the one hand, you've got a tiny 1.2L inline-3 diesel engine (TDI). On the other hand, you've got a 220V electric motor. These are mated to Volkswagen's newest 7-speed DSG transmission. According to the reps in Geneva, the Golf TDI Hybrid puts out a mere 89g/kg of CO2 emissions while offering an affordable 69 miles on the gallon.

The 73hp diesel engine only kicks in when the throttle is "generously applied or at highway speeds." Otherwise, the 27hp electric motor does the brunt of the work. Yeah, it's not the fastest or most powerful thing on the road, but you'll appreciate it during your rare trips to the pump.

Morgan Aero-8 roadster - hydrogen-powered Lifecar

A "zero-emission" sports car with a top speed of nearly 100mph is set to be unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show.

The hydrogen-powered Lifecar, based on the design of the Morgan Aero-8 roadster, produces little noise and only water vapour from its exhaust.

The lightweight model packs advanced fuel cells and an energy storage system that gives the car a range of 250 miles (400km) per tank of hydrogen.

It has been developed by a consortium of UK companies and universities.

However, the exact acceleration will not be known until the complete car is taken for its first test drive.

"It's nearly there and the plan is to drive it when the show is over," said Mr Parkin.

Clever power

The £1.9m project to build the Lifecar, part funded by the UK government, has taken nearly three years.


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"The basic concept was to build an entertaining and fun sports car that would act as a showcase for the technology and would deliver 150 miles to the gallon," said Mr Parkin.

"Everything else has tumbled out from that."

The car is powered by a bank of lightweight hydrogen fuel-cells developed by UK defence firm Qinetiq.

"If you took a typical internal combustion engine and replaced it with a fuel cell, the fuel cell would be very large," explained Ian Whiting of Qinetiq. "That's not an efficient way to do things."

The fuel cells in the Lifecar produce about 22 kilowatts - roughly one fifth of the amount of power of a typical combustion engine.

"With that we can provide all of the cruise capability we need to," he said.

When the car needs to accelerate or climb a hill it draws extra power from a bank of ultra-capacitors aligned down the centre of the car.

These are primarily charged by a regenerative braking system which slows the car by converting the vehicle's kinetic energy into useful electrical energy using a motor.

"Hybrid cars already use regenerative braking - normally it restores about 10% of the energy," said Mr Parkin. "Lifecar is aiming for 50%."

Quiet runner

The car has a range of about 250 miles (400km) and has a top speed of around 90mph (145km/h).

"The whole thing has to be built around efficiency which comes down to weight at the end of the day," explained Mr Parkin.
As a result, the car has an aluminium chassis and a lightweight wooden interior, including seats.

It also doesn't have any of the "luxuries" such as a stereo, central locking or even airbags, found on many modern cars.

"The objective is to get the weight down to 700kg."

There are also other notable omissions such as a gearbox and - as the fuels cells produce little noise - the roar of an engine.

"We may have to supply headphones with the sounds of a five litre V8 linked to the throttle pedal," said Mr Parkin.

Other car manufacturers have shown off hydrogen-powered sports cars, although many have been conversions of existing models or hybrid cars that can also run on petrol.

For example, Japanese manufacturer Mazda has unveiled a modified version of its RX-8, known as the Hydrogen RE, which uses a dual-fuel system.

Honda has also announced that its petrol hybrid CR-Z sports car concept would launch in 2009.

Critics point out that to produce hydrogen by splitting water uses a large amount of electricity. At present, the majority of this electricity comes power stations burning fossil fuels and therefore brings no environmental benefit.
In addition, there is little infrastructure for refuelling the vehicles.

"There's a whole range of questions about how you [could roll out a hydrogen infrastructure] and when you could do that," said Mr Whiting.

"For vehicles which have a central base you can readily install a system to refuel those."

For example, hydrogen buses that return to a central depot already operate in many cities.

An infrastructure to refuel personal hydrogen vehicles would take longer, he said.

However, interim solutions do exist, such as so-called "reformer technology".

"It allows you to take the existing fuel infrastructure - diesel for instance - and convert it into hydrogen on the vehicle," said Mr Whiting.

The car is a concept at this stage but Morgan does not rule out going into production at some point in the future.

"We will gauge reaction when we show it," said Mr Parkin. "If there is an enormous response we will have to look at the project, the pricing and how it will function."

The car will be on display at the Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland between 6 and 16 March.

Other collaborators on the project were Oscar Automotive, Cranfield University, Oxford University and Linde AG.

Acabion GTBO - is there faster vehicle?

These days there is no limit for being labeled as the fastest on the road. Just hang on to the tag of being the fastest in a specific category till some other creation zooms past and grabs it! Well as of yet the honor goes to Acabion GTBO for being the world’s fastest-ever road vehicle, taking just 30 seconds to reach 300mph before hitting a maximum 340.

Considered to be a fusion of a four wheeler and a two wheeler, this two (with two-mini wheels) wheeler is described as a “road streamliner” by its creator. Based on the cockpit of a jet fighter and using aerodynamic techniques used in aerospace design, the GTBO is a full 90mph quicker than its nearest rival, the Bugatti Veyron, which takes 55 seconds to reach its 250mph top speed. It packs an astonishing 800 brake horsepower in its 1,300cc turbo-charged engine. What’s more astonishing is that it weighs just 700lb, half the weight of the original Mini. The Acabion GTBO minimizes weight and maximizes power and aerodynamic efficiency.

Being developed in Britain and Switzerland by German Dr Peter Maskus, an ex-Porsche engineer, it is believed to hit the roads of UK and USA within three years. But for an estimated price of £1.5million ($3 million)!