German luxury car manufacturer Mercedes Benz has received its fair share of critics among green car enthusiasts having recently been fined heavily for failing to meet CAFE criteria established back in 1990. However, now the company is fighting to boost its tarnished image with a range of more economical vehicles.
At the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Mercedes introduced its E-Class vehicles comprising of four-, six- and eight-cylinder units with outputs ranging from 100kW/136hp to 386kW/525hp. The four-cylinder engines are particularly noteworthy as they utilise a newly developed direct-injection unit that develops a higher output than the comparable V6 engines. However, all the new E-Class models boast fuel consumption reductions compared to their predecessors – in some cases by as much as 23 per cent.
For Mercedes customers with a truly environmental eye however, it is the BlueEFFICIENCY package which steals the show. According to Mercedes, engineers from every department have worked together to save fuel with features such as reduced weight, improved functioning, efficient energy management and a new form.
Thanks to work in the wind tunnel the drag coefficient has been reduced to 0.25 – making it the world’s most aerodynamically efficient saloon. The vehicles also boast newly developed tyres with up to 17 per cent lower rolling resistance.
It’s not just on the E-Class models that Mercedes has taken a green approach however. It also took the opportunity to present a production-ready version of the BlueZERO concept with battery-electric drive and a range of up to 124 miles, along with a fuel cell version with a range of more than 249 miles. There is also an electric cell plus version of the vehicle with an overall range of 373 miles that is capable of travelling up to 62 miles on electric drive alone.
