TransporT
Jaguar land Rover has been awarded £27m of government funding towards the development of its green lRX concept car.
This found its way in to appease those Vehicles Directive, but it does only tackle one retained in a smaller, lighter model. If they
who wanted much lower limits sooner. area of emissions. are successful in this, the manufacturers who
Although this is subject to a review in The interesting feature here is that CO2 should be worried might be the likes of VW
2013, it is increasingly clear that by then - i.e. can be regarded as a proxy for the wider and Toyota rather than the traditional makers
four years from now - the industry will be on environmental impact of a car. Crucial here of large cars and SUVs.
a trajectory towards lower CO2 emitting cars. is resource use and making this as efficient as So, what of the Americans?
Carmakers in Europe have already possible by minimising the resources needed Unlike the Europeans, GM and Chrysler
committed considerable R&D resources to to drive a particular distance at a particular were already weak when the crisis hit;
lower carbon technologies and by 2013 will speed; CO2 reduction measures work well Chrysler is reeling from its separation from
be fully committed to these. They are helped in this respect. Options for reducing carbon Daimler, but could still provide a nice entry
by consumers are responding to the recession emissions include improved powertrain into North America for an aspiring car maker
by buying lower carbon-emitting cars. efficiency, weight reduction, improved from anywhere in the world. In the GM case,
it would be unfortunate if its technological
‘
Such low carbon cars were
expertise was lost. Also, its European and
Asian operations have been doing fine and
some form of consolidation around these
unheard of a few years ago
is feasible. GM is already offloading Saab,
while in North America, only Cadillac has
Although 95g/km is a tight limit by aerodynamics, reduced rolling resistance ’ been profitable. It has shifted much of its
current standards, it may well look a lot more and switching to alternative, low carbon fuel portfolio into a range of internationally
achievable by 2013. At present, very few types. competitive cars.
cars manage to emit less than 95g/km on However, in reality this is as much a While still making a few bucks from the
the EU test cycle. These include the Smart challenge of marketing as it is of engineering. odd Escalade SUV, Cadillac's new products
diesel, new VW Polo, and the latest version The key for those manufacturers are attracting former truck buyers back into
of Toyota's Prius. Such low carbon cars were traditionally known for larger cars is clearly cars. CO2 reduction is also hitting the US, so
unheard of a few years ago, emphasising more efficient engines. However, at the same North American factories could start making
the fact that the industry is moving in the time there is a clear case to be made for European designed cars with lower carbon
right direction. This is particularly needed shifting from their traditionally larger cars to emissions, badged as Chevrolets, Pontiacs,
for manufacturers traditionally known for smaller cars with the same levels of comfort, etc. Or perhaps that is just a very European
making larger and heavier cars, such as performance and luxury. This is a feat BMW perspective.
Jaguar, Land Rover, BMW or Volvo. The has managed with its MINI, a small car that In any case, the seeds for a new, more
latter two now make cars below 130g/km. commands a premium in the market. sustainable car industry may well be planted
Carbon dioxide is only one measure of Fiat also appears to be managing this with in the next few years.
the environmental impact of cars and to that its 500. This shows it is potentially possible.
extent the legislation takes a narrow view. The challenge is for manufacturers such as Paul Nieuwenhuis is the assistant director at
Admittedly it adds to existing legislation Jaguar or Land Rover to convince the public the Centre of Automotive Industry Research
on toxic emissions and the End-of-Life that Jaguar or Land Rover qualities can be at Cardiff University
SuStainable SolutionS april 2009 47
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