With the universal imperative of addressing the problem of climate change, Ricardo and its research partners have been actively engaged in the development of technologies that will enable the vehicles of tomorrow to emit significantly less tail-pipe pollutants and CO₂.  Following successful development, demonstration and prove-out, the potential take-up of next-generation vehicle technologies is typically linked to practical considerations of production implementation and commercial viability; in essence, is the customer willing to pay for the new technology.  As CO₂ emissions generally correlate with fuel consumption however, these new technologies also hold the potential to dramatically improve fuel economy – a particularly attractive quality in the context of spiralling pump prices.  As crude oil prices continue to climb therefore, the balance is tipping in favour of low CO₂ – and hence higher fuel economy – technologies.

“Our research tells us that while consumers are not typically willing to pay a significant premium in the purchase price of a new vehicle in order to achieve lower regulated exhaust emissions or the green badge of lower CO₂, they are strongly influenced by hard facts such as running costs and performance”, explains Dr. Raul Meyer, Ricardo marketing & business development director.  “Many of the low CO₂ technologies we have demonstrated at Ricardo such as full diesel hybrids and advanced gasoline combustion systems, have a cost associated with them, and this is factored into our projections of the timing and extent of their probable take-up by the market.  The report of a recent study of the US market by Ricardo and UBS predicted an almost five-fold increase in sales of hybrid vehicles by 2012. Furthermore it also presented historical data that demonstrates the correlation between the pump price of fuel and the purchase decisions of customers.  With crude oil now approaching $100/barrel, consequent hikes in pump prices are likely to make high fuel-efficiency technologies significantly more attractive to consumers.”

Key research programmes recently completed by Ricardo include the Efficient-C hybrid diesel developed with QinetiQ and PSA Peugeot-Citroën.  Revealed in 2006, Efficient-C is based on a Citroën Berlingo Multispace and out-performs its conventional diesel equivalent product while delivering combined-cycle fuel consumption of 75mpg – a full 30 per cent improvement in fuel economy. The project partners estimated that its incremental manufacturing cost of this product was approximately €4,000, of which the battery system represents a significant proportion. In a follow-on project known as RED-LION and announced on 7 November, Ricardo and QinetiQ have stated their intention to demonstrate commercially viable, reduced cost Lithium-Ion battery technologies which will considerably strengthen the attractiveness to consumers – and hence the commercial case for automakers – for the diesel hybrid.