The 600,000 visitors to Brussels Motor Show this week will have some surprises if they look at the electric vehicles on display. World number one in electric vehicles, and specifically electric cars, Toyota, should be challenged by Honda, Ford and others in the pecking order but, on this evidence, it is pulling ahead. There are many plug-in hybrid Toyota cars, SUVs and so on displayed including many under its luxury Lexus brand. Toyota knows that this is the decade of the hybrid - particularly the plug-in hybrid, with five time more expenditure on them than on pure electric cars and it acts accordingly. Pure electric may take over in the decade after that. By contrast, the others showed a small number of mild hybrids and the odd pure electric car, usually of inadequate range and typically not yet available for sale.
Honda had a sober Insight again and a CRZ mild hybrid along with a Jazz pure electric, whilst Peugeot also showed a mild hybrid in the form of the 508RSH.
Audi showed the E-Tron. A contrast was the ebullient Renault stand with many actual electric cars and concept vehicles a plenty, though the emphasis is on pure electric vehicles. Contrary to popular opinion, these are not rebadged Nissan products obtained under the alliance but impressive vehicles introducing new forms of electric motor, electronics and the like, many on completely new platforms. One can see why the Renault Fluence on display is reviewed, by those testing it, as a "real car", for example.
In addressing the lesser part of the market, that for pure electric cars with their as yet poor range, both Renault and Nissan are impressive. When will someone offer pure electric vehicles with drop in range extenders as an optional extra that you clip in when you think you may need to go some distance?
Mitsubishi MiEVs were there but no evidence at this show that Mitsubishi, having been first to sell a pure electric car in volume, is doing anything other than lose its leadership . The reality may, of course, be very different for this huge company that also makes hybrid and pure electric forklifts. Nissan had the inevitable Leaf plus a dream variant. Fiat had a pure EV car of no particular merit.
In hybrids, BMW has its huge promotion of concept EVs "born electric" but the attendant on the stand told us they are unlikely to enter manufacture. The message seems to be, "Please don't buy too much from others until we catch up and hopefully overtake."
The BMW "active hybrid" - a mild hybrid - was shown and, when we asked what active meant, they said "still nippy" or words to that effect. BMW is, of course, doing a huge amount of work on both hybrid and pure electric vehicles.
The BMW Mini-E is not displayed "because it won't be on the market very soon".
We stand to be corrected, but it was not evident that the Opel Ampera added much to the Chevrolet Volt on which it is based but it certainly faces a much larger addressable market than any pure electric car over the next decade. Interestingly the Ampera plug-in hybrid and the Renault pure EVs have slow chargers in them whereas many other electric cars only have external chargers. For faster charging they all need external chargers.
The Volvo V60 plug-in hybrid showed how the Chinese are also addressing the main demand, in some cases. Volvo is testing high speed lightweight flywheels and many other next generation technologies for electric cars but it was not in evidence.
Of course, the whole of the German car industry was caught wrong footed by the runaway success of the Toyota Prius and the huge government and industrial backing for electric on-road vehicles in the last three years. They are all racing to catch up and preferably overtake. The Volkswagen stand seemed to say, "We're not there yet but look but how we are doing lots of things".
As currently specified, the pure electric Volkswagen Golf for 2013 is no more impressive than the planned pure electric Ford Fiesta on display: no leadership here yet.
Mercedes was very low key, though there was a pure EV and a mild hybrid. The 4-cylinder diesel engine of the E 300 BlueTEC HYBRID delivers 150 kW (204 hp) and 500 Nm. Combined with a 20kW 250 Nm electric motor , this makes the E 300 BlueTEC HYBRID is the most economical luxury-class vehicle in the world, according to earlier claims.Mercedes has a huge program of electrification extending to commercial vehicles as well.
Ford and Mercedes must surely realise that mild hybrids are not what is primarily needed. Citroen had its DS5 mild hybrid, unusual in being a parallel hybrid and on diesel and one of two companies showing diesel hybrids. It showed the rebadged Mitsubishi MiEV.
SsungYong, Suzuki, Mazda and others chose to show no electric cars, hybrid or pure electric, as if their brief to the designers of their stands was, "Portray us as being in the last century". Bottom line - do not expect more than a few percent of cars bought to be electric when no more than a few percent of cars in car shows and advertised in the press are electric. This is an industry that wants to sell the old stuff for quite a while longer.
For more attend Electric Vehicles Land Sea Air USA 2012,where Phoenix International - A John Deere Company (leader in agricultural vehicles), BMW (cars etc), Mitsubishi Motors (small commercial vehicles and cars), Daimler AG (commercial and military vehicles and cars) and Toyota (leader in electric forklifts, cars, buses) will present. Uniquely, a large number of electric vehicle manufacturers not seen in conventional EV events will present including WheelTug airliner electrification on the ground, Pipistrel manned electric aircraft, University of Michigan unmanned solar aircraft, SolTrac electric farm tractors, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute Autonomous Underwater Vehicles AUVs. Many manufacturers of industrial, commercial, military, e-bike, cars and other EVs will be there. At last you can meet those responsible for the majority of the hybrid and pure electric vehicle market and they all need components!! Most are prosperous growing businesses not reliant on government support that can be withdrawn at any time.
Also read Hybrid and Pure Electric Cars 2012-2022 and Electric Vehicles 2012-2022 .
