Vans for the Environment - PART I

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

Stuttgart, Germany, Jul 14, 2008

Mercedes-Benz Vans: clean and economical - new technology combines ecology and economy

• Modern forms of distribution require smaller cargo volumes
• Low CO2 emissions are in the interests of transport operators
• New Sprinter ECO Start: low cost, major effect
• New Sprinter NGT spares the environment and the wallet
• New Sprinter Plug-In Hybrid: clean and quiet as a whisper
• Vans of tomorrow: features with great potential savings
• The end of the oil age: from diesel to BTL and hydrogen
• Summer 2008: start of customer trials with 11 hybrid Sprinters in the USA

The challenge of combining ecology with economy is one that Mercedes-Benz Vans is happy to accept. As the technological leader, the business unit develops both environmentally compatible and economical vehicles for its customers. Now Mercedes-Benz Vans is set to capture attention yet again with its newly developed Sprinter ECO Start, Sprinter NGT and Hybrid Sprinter as test vehicle.

Deep-frozen pizzas and books cannot be sent by broadband

The unrivalled flexibility of road goods transport and the particular manoeuvrability of vans are ideally suited to modern forms of distribution. e-commerce with Internet-based ordering and services such as doorstep delivery require small cargo volumes. Whether a book or an item of office equipment, both private and commercial customers expect the goods to be there within 24 hours. Business to Customer, or B2C for short, is the watchword. And transport is the indispensable precondition: food and deep-frozen pizzas, books and office materials cannot be sent through a broadband cable.

At the same time society is changing: the size of households is decreasing, while the number of single-occupant households is increasing. This has an effect on day-to-day requirements, i.e. shopping in smaller quantities and delivery in smaller packs. The daily volume of parcels is set to double to around 14 million in Europe between 1996 and 2015. In Germany alone, courier and express services handle more than two billion consignments per year.

The downside is increasing fuel prices, a likely scarcity of raw materials and access restrictions to cities and municipalities. The debate about emissions of fine particles, CO2 and other exhaust constituents is forcing the transport sector onto the defensive. In fact e-commerce can even help to reduce traffic volumes if intelligent solutions are applied: while delivery traffic will increase, this will be accompanied by a drastic reduction in individual, motorised shopping traffic.

Low CO2 emissions are in the interests of transport operators

Low fuel consumption, and therefore low CO2 emissions, are in the interests of the transport sector. Recent developments in diesel prices make the requirement for economical and therefore environmentally friendly vans all the more urgent: the current retail price of around 1.50 Euro per litre in Germany represents an increase of more than 25 percent within just twelve months.

New Sprinter ECO Start: low cost, major effect

How major effects can be achieved at little cost is demonstrated by the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter with the ECO Start system. Especially in densely populated areas with a high proportion of stop-and-go traffic, this enables considerable savings to be achieved. Mercedes-Benz engineers quote a reduction in fuel consumption by five to eight percent, and in individual cases even 20 percent. As an added bonus, the additional investment is low and pays off within a very short time in inner-city operation. ECO Start is available for all Sprinter CDI models with a four-cylinder diesel engine and manual transmission.

New Sprinter 316 NGT: spares the environment and the wallet

The situation is similar with the new Sprinter 316 NGT, the natural gas powered Sprinter (NGT = Natural Gas Technology). Despite a high engine output of 115 kW (156 hp), its operating costs are around 30 percent lower than those of a diesel engine. The great benefit is economy combined with environmentally compatible operation by virtue of considerably lower exhaust and noise emissions. With numerous model variants available, the Sprinter 316 NGT is highly adaptable in meeting the needs of transport operators.

New Sprinter Plug-In Hybrid: clean and quiet as a whisper

Mercedes-Benz is opening up a new chapter with the Sprinter Plug-In Hybrid. After successful customer trials with hybrid variants based on diesel models in France and the USA, a large-scale customer trial with the Sprinter Plug-In Hybrid based on a petrol engine is due to begin. This combination is an option for countries whose priority is on petrol-powered vehicles. From summer this year, eleven vehicles will commence these trials in four major American cities.

The Sprinter Plug-In Hybrid is able to cover up to 30 km at a stretch under electric power alone, almost silently and with no emissions. Its new-type lithium-ion batteries are recharged by the engine, during braking (recuperation) and from the mains overnight or during breaks (plug-in). An intelligent operating strategy controls the alternate or simultaneous use of the internal combustion engine and electric motor.

Vans of tomorrow: features with great potential savings

Developers at Mercedes-Benz are working at full speed on further projects. One of the major areas is energy management, i.e. the need-related control of ancillary units. In future the steering servo pump, air conditioning system and generator will only be in operation when necessary. Like tyres with a reduced rolling resistance, controlled fuel, oil and coolant pumps use less energy, and the driver will be assisted by a display showing the most fuel-efficient gearshifting points.

The coming generation of diesel engines will feature common-rail direct injection with injection pressures of up to 2000 bar - a maximum of 1600 bar is possible at present. Directly driven piezo-electric injectors will allow even faster and more precise injection control, saving fuel and improving engine responsiveness. All in all, the diesel engine still has enormous potential, whether as a stand-alone unit or as part of a hybrid drive system.

The end of the oil age: from diesel to BTL and hydrogen

Daimler is among the pioneers in alternative fuel development: as early as 2003 the company presented the world's first biomass fuel produced from renewable resources - Biomass-to-Liquid (BTL) could be the watchword for the future. BTL can be mixed with normal diesel fuel in practically unlimited proportions. This fuel has the brand name SunDiesel, and is synthesised from renewable raw materials and waste products. It does not compete with the production of food.

As the entire plant are used to produce the fuel, as well as waste materials such as wood chips, the annual yield of roughly 4000 litres per hectare is around three times as high for BTL than for biodiesel. In the future even ten times the yield may be possible. BTL (SunDiesel) has a greenhouse reduction �potential of 92 - 95 % - the highest figure of any currently available alter�native fuel.

With hydrogen and the fuel cell to the Zero Emission Vehicle

The next stage will take us to hydrogen as the fuel of the future. While hydrogen is still mainly obtained from natural gas and crude oil at present, it will be produced with the help of renewable energy sources in the future, i.e. water, wind and solar energy. This still requires large investments in a corresponding infrastructure, with a network of production facilities and filling stations. The environmentally friendly production of hydrogen as the energy source for fuel cell powered vehicles will make the vision of the Zero Emission Vehicle a reality.

The world's first fuel cell powered car was a van

In 1994 the world's first fuel cell powered car was a van, the Mercedes-Benz NECAR 1 (New Electric Car) based on the MB 100 D. Just a few years later the fuel cell powered Mercedes-Benz Sprinter impressively demonstrated its potential during customer trials in Europe and the USA. The hybrid drive Sprinter from Mercedes-Benz Vans now represents the ideal bridging technology on the road to fuel cell drive systems.

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