Tata eMO is a $20,000 EV Concept Car displayed at 2012 Delhi Auto Expo

Tata eMO EV Concept Car

Tata is working on another electric vehicle. Like the Indica Vista EV from Tata Motors from a few years ago, the all-electric eMO from Tata Technologies (another part of the much larger Tata Group) shows off Tata's global efforts to move vehicles off of gasoline.

With a 100-mile range and a top speed of 65 miles per hour, the electric MObility (eMO) concept looks good on paper, most importantly the idea that it could be sold for $20,000 before incentives, as Tata Technologies' Nigel Giddons told The New York Times. Even though the concept is not intended for production, Tata thought thorugh ways to save money throughout the manufacturing process. The way this low number was achieved was through a minimalistic attitude of the interior (á la the low-cost Nano) and by allowing the electric powertrain to dictate some unusual design choices. There's no traditional b-pillar, for example, since the rear doors are suicide-style to create a large opening for getting in and out and for putting cargo in the back seats. You have to used the side doors, since there is also no rear hatch, which reduces weight. In a statement, Warren Harris, Tata Technologies President and Global COO, said the, "eMO project symbolizes the coming of age of Indian automotive engineering."

We'll see more of the eMO at the Michelin Challenge Design during the 2012 Detroit Auto Show next week. This year, the MCD's theme is, "City 2046: Art, Life and Ingenuity – Transforming Personal Mobility." An EV with a 100-mile range for just $20,000 may sound good in 2012, but by 2046, we assume this won't be enough.



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Source: Green Autoblog

Tata Manza Electric Hybrid concept to be showcased at the 2012 Indian Auto Expo!

Tata Manza Sedan

It seems like Indian car makers are jumping on to the electric car bandwagon in a big way. The latest buzz in Motown is about Tata Motors being all set to pull the wraps off an electric hybrid version of the Tata Manza sedan. Joining the likes of the Mahindra Verito Electric will be the Manza Hybrid, which seeks to wow showgoers at the 2012 Indian Auto Expo. Tata Motors has been bullish about electric cars for some time now.

We had the Indica Electric Concept and the Vista Electric Concept being displayed at various auto shows across the globe, both cars running on lithium ion batteries. The Manza Electric too could follow in these cars’ footsteps to be another offering from Tata Motors which might have an electric future. Other details about this car remain unknown at the moment and we’ll have to wait for the Expo to find out more about this exciting new concept from Tata.

Also, the Manza might see a styling makeover to go with its latest avatar as a hybrid car. Expect this styling makeover to filter down to the next generation Manza sedan as and when it sees a facelift. So, in essence, the Manza Hybrid could be a glimpse of things to come from Tata Motors. All in all, it is quite heartening to see Indian car makers making progress on the electric car front and we hope that these concepts will actually see mass production in the years to come.



In 2012, the Tata Manza will see a compact sedan variant as the latest edition to its line up. The Tata Manza Compact Sedan will be positioned between the Vista Hatchback and the full size Manza Sedan. This car will take on the likes of the Maruti Dzire Compact Sedan and the Mahindra Verito Compact Sedan, two other cars which are set to see a 2012 debut.

Source: ICB

Jaguar Land Rover's RANGE_E Crowned SMMT 2011’S Best Automotive Innovation

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has won SMMT’s 2011 Award for Automotive Innovation for its prototype Range_e – the world’s first luxury Plug-in Hybrid Electric 4×4 with integrated V6 diesel engine.

Land Rover Range_e Concept

The award, sponsored by GKN Driveline, was presented to JLR’s Chief Engineer, Hybrids, Peter Richings at SMMT’s Annual Dinner by Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport, Norman Baker and Rob Rickell, Global Engineering Director, GKN.

The Range_e beat off stiff competition from companies across the car, commercial vehicle and supply chain sectors to win SMMT’s second annual award designed to showcase the importance of R&D and the role the UK plays in developing global automotive products.

Commenting on the announcement, Paul Everitt, SMMT Chief Executive and chair of the five-strong judging panel said, “JLR has engineered and manufactured a highly-efficient and technologically advanced prototype vehicle that clearly demonstrates industry’s commitment to lowering vehicle emissions and creating exciting products for demanding consumers. This award champions industry innovation – promoting cutting-edge automotive engineering and design that the UK is famed for around the world.”

Receiving the Award, Peter Richings, Chief Engineer, Hybrids, JLR said, “Innovation and technology are the lifeblood of our business and we are delighted that our work has earned this recognition from our industry peers. Range_e demonstrates the advances we are making in cleaner and more fuel-efficient performance without compromising the performance and all-wheel-drive capabilities that are at the heart of our brand and we look forward to bringing its benefits to the market in the near future. The award for the Range_e project is testament to the range of skills, excellence and enthusiasm of not just our own engineers and designers, but the people in the research and academic organisations in the UK that have supported them.”



Sponsor of this year’s Award, GKN Driveline’s Engineering Director, Rob Rickell said, “GKN Driveline is once again proud to sponsor the award. As a UK company, we recognise that research and development of technology will result in innovative solutions satisfying our society’s demanding and ever evolving needs. By doing this successfully, we and others will have a positive impact on the environment, the communities and the economies in which we all operate. The finalists tonight demonstrate fine examples of developments that embody that spirit.”

The Range_e, which was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show this year, impressed judges with its four different modes of operation, ability to deliver emissions of 89g/km CO₂ and driving range of more than 20 miles in a pure EV mode.

On presenting the Award, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport, Norman Baker, spoke about the importance of recognising innovation within the UK’s automotive sector, adding that a collaborative approach across the commercial, business and government sectors was essential in encouraging new technologies and products to market.

This year’s Award was judged by a panel of senior industry figures, including Dave Salt, Chief Engineer, GKN Driveline, Ralph Hosier, Engineer and Motoring Journalist and Jon Beasley, Group Technology Officer,GKN. UK engineering of the Range_e has been undertaken at JLR’s Gaydon engineering site and UK fleet trials began in December 2010. Earlier this year, Land Rover announced its plans to launch the first diesel-electric hybrid in 2013.

Source: 3D Car Shows

Range Rover Sport range_e Diesel Hybrid Prototype spotted!

Range Rover Sport range_e Diesel Hybrid Prototype

Sometimes, the staff of Green Car Reports has to travel hundreds, even thousands, of miles to bring you first drive reports, auto show highlights and exclusive green-car coverage.

Other times, we just have to visit the local shopping mall. That's where we took these exclusive photographs of a completely undisguised Range Rover Sport diesel plug-in hybrid prototype, plugged in at a convenient public charging station.

Hide in plain sight?

Spotted on Saturday in an underground parking lot at a shopping mall in Bristol, U.K., the prototype looks on first glance like a standard white Range Rover Sport.


But the "Hybrid Electric Plug-In" lettering on the front bumper and the side graphics give it away. The test car bears identical markings to the Land Rover range_e concept shown at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show this past March.


Remarkably, though, this one wears none of the camouflage panels usually seen on prototypes when venturing onto public roads. Perhaps--channeling Edgar Allen Poe's The Purloined Letter--the makers thought it would be entirely hidden in plain sight?

Diesel electric plug-in hybrid

The range_e concept shown in Geneva shared its body with the 2012 Range Rover Sport, but the equipment under its hood had several new components compared to its fuel-guzzling cousin.

That concept--and surely this prototype too--was powered by a high-efficiency, turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6 clean diesel engine, with a 69-kilowatt (93-hp) electric motor sandwiched between the engine and an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission. All-wheel drive is fitted, of course--it is a Land Rover.

With a 14.2-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack, the range_e was said to offer an all-electric range of up to 20 miles, a combined diesel-electric range of 690 miles, and a range-sapping top speed of 120 mph.

Three "fuel doors"

The diesel plug-in hybrid Range Rover we photographed is clearly a pre-production prototype, complete with various obligatory warning decals. It also has a string of lights that looked like a temporary state-of-charge indicator in the right rear window, above the J-1772 charging socket.

Altogether there are three "fuel door" openings on the prototype, two on the left and one on the right. The front left one obviously contains a J-1772 charging socket, since the car was plugged in to the garage's charging station. We expect the one on the right covers the standard diesel fuel filler.

The left rear door, we surmise, could contain a quick-charge socket--or perhaps a charging port of a different format.
 
Two interesting details: First, the center of the rear seat is marked with a "Not A Seating Position!" sign, noting that no restraints were fitted to that position. And second, there was a big bag of different cables, converters perhaps, in the load bay.

One-third the emissions

Our prototype's number plate indicates that the car we saw is a 2010 model, first registered on March 5 of that year. The CO2 emissions of the standard vehicle with a 3.0-liter diesel are given in the registration data as 243 g/km.

The "89 g/km" sticker on our car represents an emissions level almost two-thirds lower, meaning a significant proportion of the test cycle is likely spent in all-electric mode.

These appear to be the first published photos of this undisguised prototype, although the range_e demonstrated in Geneva is a sister car--also white--that was registered on the very same day.

Just for the record, this vehicle is clearly a genuine factory Land Rover prototype. It has nothing to do with the Liberty E-Range battery electric Range Rover conversion we managed to drive--barely--earlier this year.

As for our photos, we suspect a high-ranking development engineer at Land Rover was simply testing a running prototype in real-world use over the weekend--and happened to stop by for a bit of charge at our local mall.

Bristol is less than 100 miles away from Jaguar Land Rover's headquarters in Gaydon, Warwickshire. Coincidence? We think not.

Source: Green Car Reports