Electric Car New York

Social status in the 21st century is increasingly measured by the amount of interaction we engage in on social media websites. Various sites, plus any number of blogs and forums and an inevitable avalanche of e-mails are now our constant companions since the advent of mobile networking (thanks to tablets and smart phones) and being cut off from updates on these can often cause something tantamount to panic. For drivers, however, talking on cell phones, texting and surfing the net are hazardous activities, as confirmed by the ever harsher penalties dished out by the law to those who do so.

However, the answer to this dilemma may have arrived in the shape of the Rinspeed BamBoo (from the Swiss Company founded by Frank Rinderknecht) which was unveiled at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. The Rinspeed BamBoo can keep you connected while driving, without tearing your attention away from the road to fiddle with touch screens and buttons or attempt to read messages. This concept car, made using Harman technology, has a plug-in charger that takes smart-phones or other devices, connecting you to the Web instantly and relaying back any messages in voice format. Passengers can also benefit from this technology as the car has built-in Wi-Fi.

The 4-seater Bamboo is an electrically powered car, designed by New York pop artist Frank Rizzi, and its hi-tech connectivity makes for an interesting blend, with its distinctly retro 70s St. Tropez styling. As the manufacturers themselves have described it, the car has the look of a “grown-up golf cart”, intended for summer fun (although it does have a heater for chillier climes), the inflatable canopy top doubles as a beach lilo and there is even room in the back for a bike, further enhancing the car’s green credentials. The car takes its name from the fact that the interior, complete with inflatable rear seats, is finished in bamboo fibre.

Where traditional cars once had a dashboard, the BamBoo has what looks like an elongated breadbin, housing all that internet gadgetry and, instead of the now redundant radiator grill, there is the “Identiface”, a screen that displays messages if you are near but not actually in the car. The hands-off communications technology means that you can surf the internet using simple voice commands and the in-car entertainment includes the Aha Radio application, also driven by voice commands.

As you drive along free of distractions, the Rinspeed Bamboo can act as your social secretary, while your eyes are firmly fixed on the road. However, it’s important not to get too carried away with all of these distractions, or you’ll find that you might need windscreen repairs at best, or you could be facing a court appearance at the very worst. Stay safe and keep your eyes on the road.

Isla Campbell writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.

Originally published here.

Imagine a world where you don’t have to pay $3 to drive twenty or thirty miles, where trucks belching diesel smoke are unheard of, where you can walk down the road without inhaling the fumes of a thousand vehicles, where thousands of cars pass you and you hear nothing but a gentle hum and whoosh, and you have an idea of where hydrogen fuel cells will be taking us.

Fuel cells were invented in 1839 by Sir William Grove, who figured out that you could separate hydrogen and oxygen from water through hydrolysis, and suggested that the procedure could be reversed to create clean energy, with a by-product of water. Back then, it was called the gas voltaic battery; only in 1889 did it get the name fuel cell.

How Hydrogen Fuel Cells Work

Like batteries, fuel cells use chemical processes without combustion to create energy with a clean by-product. Because they do not work with the process of combustion, fuel cells never have partly used components, and therefore do not produce poisonous by-products (combustion engines produce carbon monoxide and a wide variety of other poisons, in contrast.)

They are very different from batteries in that they are not self-contained. Instead of counting on an enclosed chemical process that ends when all the components are used up, fuel cells have a constant inward flow of their fuel, usually but not always hydrogen and oxygen. In the case of automobile fuel cells, this means you need a storage tank for water or a hydrocarbon fuel and a place where hydrogen can be separated (this place, called a reformer, has its own technological development problems), as well as an exhaust system that directs used water out of the car or back to the original storage tank.

There are several types of fuel cells right now, but currently the most favored model is the polymer exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). This cell uses precious metals like platinum to create atom-thin layers of oxygen and hydrogen. The hydrogen gas, at this time H2, is split into two protons and two electrons at an anode. The electrons are conducted along a path to do useful work – in this case, run your car – before returning to a cathode where they are recombined with their protons and with oxygen, producing water as a by-product. Right now, the typical fuel cell produces less than a single volt of electricity, so several cells must be piled into a stack in order to produce enough energy to do useful work. Currently, the cost of creating each of these volts is prohibitively high, and technology is focused on making fuel cells more cost effective.

The big problem with the fuel cell is separating water into its constituent components to begin with. Elementary physics dictate that you cannot create or destroy energy, and entropy will cause energy to be lost. In addition, you’re using up some of the energy from the fuel cell to run the car. So where does the initial energy to split the water molecules come from?

Currently, instead of using water as a base fuel, we have to use other technologies to produce hydrogen, which is then transferred to the car’s storage tank. This is costly, and we have no infrastructure for delivering hydrogen the way we can deliver gasoline. It’s also dangerous to handle flammable hydrogen in large quantities; remember the Hindenburg?

Freezing and boiling are also problems. Most forms of fuel cells, including the PEMFC, require water to function properly, but if your fuel cell is frozen or heated above 80 degrees Celsius, it may be destroyed.

Who Is Working On Fuel Cells

Researchers all over the world are working on fuel cell technology; it is potentially a very lucrative field. The United States Department of Energy supports many different fuel cell initiatives with block grants, and it also supports work at its own Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York. Most car companies that have a reasonably forward-looking research and development arm are also working to create fuel cells for their own vehicles; this includes companies like Daimler AG, Honda, Ford, and General Motors.

Governments are also becoming increasingly sensitive to the need to have alternative fuel cars. Leading politicians like Newt Gingrich, who is rarely considered a leader in green technology, has spoken out for years about the need for government to support alternative fuel initiatives. Look for this to become the norm in the political future.

When Hydrogen Fuel Cell Cars Will Be Available

We currently have several fuel cell cars in production as prototypes, including the DaimlerChrysler Necar, which drove cross country in 2002 from San Francisco to Washington DC. The trip was beautifully successful despite the extremes in temperature the car had to endure. At that time, Chrysler predicted no fuel cell cars would be available commercially before about 2010.

However, the Honda FXC Clarity is scheduled to be available in limited quantities in late summer 2008, leasing for about $600 a month (they will not be available for sale at all, only lease). It will not use gasoline at all, but instead fill up at hydrogen stations; these stations will be available primarily in Southern California at first. Honda is working on developing home fueling stations that will allow you to generate your own hydrogen at home using electricity.

Originally published here.

The new ML 450 HYBRID is the first full hybrid from a European manufacturer and was specifically developed for the North American market. Other debuts at the Mercedes-Benz press conference at the NYIAS include the facelifted U.S. version of the GL-Class, the sedan and the coupe versions of the new Mercedes-Benz E-Class, which are celebrating a double U.S. premiere in New York, and the latest high-performance sedan to come from the Mercedes-AMG performance brand – the E 63 AMG.

All of these new models offer safety, comfort and driving pleasure at the very highest levels and are distinguished by their exceptional efficiency. The ML 450 HYBRID consumes almost 50 percent less than the ML550, although it boasts over 90 percent of the maximum power generated by the V8 model.

“It is our clear objective to make every model generation better in every respect. We pay particularly close attention to safety, comfort, efficiency and environmental compatibility – something clearly demonstrated by every single one of the models we are presenting in New York,” says Dr. Klaus Maier, Head of Marketing and Sales for Mercedes-Benz Cars.

One clear example of this is the new E-Class, which was launched very successfully onto the European market at the end of March.

“At its market introduction, we already had over 50,000 orders – a fantastic result in such tough times as these,” continues Dr. Maier. “This proves that it is possible for an automaker to overcome a crisis when it offers attractive and desirable products – and Mercedes has plenty of those.”

With the new four-cylinder engines offered in the European line-up, the ninth generation of the E-Class is up to 23 percent more fuel efficient than its successful predecessor, which commanded a market share of up to 30 percent within the business sedan segment. That this is also possible on the U.S. market is demonstrated by the Vision E 250 BlueTEC presented by Dr. Maier.

Vision E 250 BlueTEC – the most fuel-efficient and cleanest diesel technology
For this concept, Mercedes engineers have combined the all-new four-cylinder diesel engine with BlueTEC, the technology of the world’s cleanest diesels. The outcome is the most fuel-efficient and cleanest diesel model in this vehicle class.

With a range of up to 18.86 km/l, it achieves a fuel efficiency that is better than most hybrid vehicles on the U.S. market. Thanks to highly effective exhaust gas treatment, the E 250 BlueTEC fulfills the U.S. Bin 5 and ULEV emissions standards, which are among the toughest in the world. At the same time, the four-cylinder offers a level of engine refinement and performance on a par with that of a six-cylinder, thanks to its high torque 500 Nm, seven-speed automatic transmission and Lanchester balancing shafts.

The new E-Class arrives on the U.S. market with the latest V6 and V8 gasoline engines – the E 350 (268 hp, 350 Nm) and the E 550 (382 hp, 530 Nm). These are complemented by the ground-breaking, 50-State compliant E 350 BlueTEC (210 hp, 542 Nm). All three engines are fitted as standard to the 7G-TRONIC 7-speed automatic transmission and boast further improvements in fuel efficiency.

New E-Class Coupe – powerful elegance and dynamic performance

The new E-Class Coupe boasts the same technology as the sedan version. Mercedes-Benz has created a special highlight its model range with the powerfully elegant design of the two-door coupe, while continuing a tradition that has repeatedly aroused enormous passion throughout the history of the E-Class.

The new E-Class Coupe is a very special combination of emotion and efficiency. With the classic coupe profile unhindered by a B-pillar and with fully retractable side windows, the new two-door provides a particularly sporty interpretation of the dynamic design of the new E-Class. At the same time, the most aerodynamic variant sets a new record in wind resistance. With a Cd value of 0.24, the coupe is the world most aerodynamic series production car.

ML 450 HYBRID – four-cylinder fuel consumption with eight-cylinder power

The ML 450 HYBRID is equipped with the latest in hybrid technology, which offers exceptional efficiency in both urban stop-and-go traffic and unhindered highway driving at increased engine loads and higher speeds.

Ernst Lieb, CEO and President of Mercedes-Benz USA says, “The intelligent control of the hybrid driveline automatically selects the optimum drive configuration. Depending on conditions, the ML 450 HYBRID can operate entirely on electric power or on the combustion engine alone or on a combination of both drives.”

The performance figures for the ML 450 HYBRID (335 hp, 516 Nm) are at the level of a classic eight-cylinder SUV with permanent all-wheel drive. “Yet, its fuel consumption and its emissions are up to 60 percent lower,” continues Ernst Lieb. Conceived specifically for the North American market, the ML 450 HYBRID achieves highway gas mileage of 10.2 km/l, making it the most efficient vehicle in its segment.

Classified as a SULEV (Super Ultra Low Emission Vehicle), the SUV complies with the strictest current U.S.emissions standard. At the same time, the ML 450 HYBRID guarantees a refined driving experience combined with increased driveline comfort with a system output of 335 hp and an overall torque of 516 Nm. The powertrain is controlled fully automatically, meaning that the driver can concentrate on the traffic and enjoy the driving experience of the ML 450 HYBRID without additional operational effort.

Originally published here.