Quite apart from range, ease-of-access to charging facilities and comparative running costs, most of us looking at possible future purchases of electric-hybrid or all-electric cars are likely to be more concerned about the purchase price. There’s no disguising the fact that iconic electric-hybrid vehicles such as the Toyota Prius – excellent as it is – is an expensive alternative (in terms of initial investment) to more conventionally propelled - and thus less environmentally friendly - vehicles of similar class.
While there have been some notable developments lately on the all-electric vehicle front, and lots of promises about ‘affordability’, the cost of energy storage is showing no signs of easing, particularly as consumers demand greater distances between charges. This places considerable pressure on manufacturers to develop super-efficient drive trains and make significant investments in energy storage and cell technology. Not so surprising, then, that manufacturers are rather coy about putting a price on new models that have a while to go before they hit the showrooms.
Case in point is the new Nissan Leaf, launched in Japan at the end of the summer and heralded as the world’s first truly mass-market electric car. Due to go on sale by the end of next year, Nissan has yet to put a price tag on this vehicle. And while market estimates range from a tempting £10,000 to £15,000, this excludes the cost of the all-important battery pack, which is likely to be leased to purchasers of the vehicle.
At the beginning of the year, the government pledged £1bn for the UK automotive industry (backed by a similar sum from the European Investment Bank). At the time, Lord Mandelson was quick to point out that this was no bail-out for lame-ducks, but rather a spur to those companies willing to embrace new technologies – and green technologies, at that.
In similar vein, there is increasing evidence of the government’s willingness to ‘subsidise’ automotive technology projects that it sees as having a viable future. Only last week, the Technology Strategy Board (TSB) announced public funding for a project to develop a new all-electric urban car, that its developer claims will be affordable for many consumers when it reaches the market.
The ‘T.27’ is the brainchild of Gordon Murray Design and Zytek Automotive Technology, and has been made possible thanks to the £4.5m TSB investment. At a total cost of £9m, a new research and development project will allow the consortium to develop four prototypes of the vehicle by February 2011. But how is the consortium to achieve this elusive ‘affordability’?
Gordon Murray, chief executive and technical director at Gordon Murray Design says it’s all about sustainability – sustainability of design and manufacture. The T.27 will be designed in a way that minimises the use of materials and keeps the embedded carbon of the vehicle as low as possible, ensuring that the environmental impact of the materials and energy that are used are as low as can be.
The consortium will use a manufacturing process called ‘iStream’ - a development of Gordon Murray Design that is all about sustainable, low energy process by design. According to Mr Murray, the T.27 programme is a great opportunity for the project partners to create what he believes will be the world’s most efficient electric vehicle. Both partner companies view it as a rare opportunity to start from a ‘clean sheet of paper’ - where the whole drive train (comprising battery, gearbox, motor and power electronics) will be developed from scratch, and combined with Gordon Murray’s innovative lightweight vehicle body concept and assembly process. Zytek’s Steve Tremble is confident that the T.27 will offer a ‘step-change’ in overall vehicle efficiency.
The holistic approach proposed by the partnership will result in a car slightly smaller than a Smart, but with more interior space. A similar approach was adopted by Gordon Murray Design for its 3-seater, petrol-driven car, the T.25, and the T.27 is also expected to set new standards in environmental sustainability. Indeed, high-level life-cycle analysis derived from T.25 data predicts life-cycle emissions 63% less than the average car and for the T.27, life-cycle emissions 27% less than the nearest electric vehicle rival.
According to Gordon Murray, this is due in no small part to iStream, a simplified assembly process that takes up a mere fifth of the space required for a more conventional assembly operation – representing an overall 80% reduction in capital investment without compromise to manufacturing flexibility. The iStream design process is a complete re-think on high volume materials, as well as the manufacturing process and, in Mr Murray’s view, this will lead to a significant reduction in CO2 emissions over the lifecycle of the vehicles produced via the new concept.
Les Hunt
Editor