AutoCar is reporting that the Duster concept introduced by Dacia at the Geneva Motor Show a couple of weeks ago will hit the streets in 2010. The four-door compact crossover concept was powered by Renault's 1.5-liter 103 hp diesel engine for a claimed 44.4 mpg (U.S.). That engine is expected to be joined by a similarly powerful gas engine for launch. The styling will likely be toned down quite a bit from the concept, including discarding the rear hinged back doors. Given that Dacia is Renault's budget priced brand, the Duster will be probably be pretty affordable when it debuts at the 2010 Geneva Show.


[Source: AutoCar]

Fiat's not planning to give up its title as the lowest CO₂-producing line in Europe any time soon. While diesel engines remain the best choice when carbon emissions are the main concern, the Italian automaker has invested plenty of research and development into its Multiair technology for gasoline powerplants. The latest engines using this tech were unveiled earlier this week at the Geneva Motor Show, as expected.

Nearly all automakers have some form of variable valve technology. Fiat's system is unique in that it uses an electro-hydraulic system to actuate the valves as opposed to the more common electro-mechanical setup. This relatively simple system can alter the timing of the valve's opening and closing in relation to how much power or efficiency is required at any specific moment.

Fiat claims its Multiair technology allows for a 10 percent improvement in horsepower, a 15 percent improvement in low-rpm torque and a 10 percent improvement in fuel efficiency and carbon emissions. Since the powerplant can be made smaller for a given power requirement, further gains are possible over a conventional engine. For a more detailed explanation of how all of this works, click past the break. Thanks for the tip, Jules!

[Source: Fiat]

The Chevrolet Spark was one of the first cars our Geneva team saw when they arrived in town to cover the show. We got some nice shots of the interior of the vehicle (see 1, 2, 3), but we've now got some more info on the thoughts that went into stretching the two-door Beat concept into the Spark thanks to a video interview with David Lyon, Chevrolet's executive director of interior design. Lyon says that the Spark's five-door style looks like the three-door concept, but is much more functional, and that the Spark heralds what he hopes will be Chevy's new domination of the mini-segment. You can watch the interview after the jump.


[Source: Newspress]

Prominently featured in the center of Peugeot's stand at the Geneva Motor Show this week was the 908 HY. This experimental prototype was first unveiled last September as a test-bed for the next generation of Peugeot's Le Mans racers. Based on the extremely fast 908 HDi LMP1 car, this one adds a hybrid electric drive to the mix. Peugeot hasn't committed to a race debut for the car yet, but 2010 seems a likely time frame. On the other hand, if the new Audi R15 TDI proves to be a big jump ahead of the 908, the hybrid could appear sooner.


Photos Copyright ©2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

Nissan is getting into the light commercial vehicle market in the U.S. next year with its new NV2500 and, possibly, with the NV200 that debuted in Geneva this week. The NV200 is a compact van based on Nissan's European B-segment platform used for the Micra. It can be configured as a seven-passenger van or a cargo van with up to 145 cubic feet of cargo room. In Europe, it's powered by gas or diesel engines of 1.5L or 1.6L capacities.

However, if we get the NV200 here there is a distinct possibility that it could come with electric drive. While we were running around in Switzerland, our good friend Mike Levine from PickupTrucks.com was at the NTEA work truck show in Chicago. There he caught up with Joe Castelli, Nissan's vice president of light commercial vehicles and fleet, and they discussed alternative drive possibilities. Castelli told Mike that, "dA hybrid or electric vehicle has to be considered for commercial vehicles."

Just as Ford has concluded with its upcoming Transit Connect EV, Castelli admits, "Electric vehicles aren't going to work if you're driving 300 miles a day on the road. But if I'm at a construction site all day or I'm a florist making lots of stops a quarter-mile apart than I can get away with an electric vehicle."

Given Nissan's major emphasis on electric vehicles in the coming years, it makes perfect sense to electrify a vehicle like the NV200. Packaging a battery under the flat load floor would be relatively straightforward and the short range duty cycle for commercial applications would play to the electric's strengths. Castelli even acknowledged that electric or hybrid drive is not out of the question for the larger NV2500.


[Source: PickupTrucks.com]
Photos Copyright ©2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

One of the first things you notice when you start wandering around the Geneva Motor Show is that virtually every major automaker offers diesel engines. Lots of them. Many of them are even in cars that we can get in the U.S. market but only with gasoline engines. As our regular readers know, I'm a fan of modern diesel engines. Being in Geneva gives me a chance to present, in no particular order, 10 examples of cars available in the U.S. (or available soon) that could really benefit from having a diesel option. All the mileage figures have been converted to U.S. mpg. No need to use glowplugs, let's just get started.

"The same technology that makes a lightweight car a high performer also makes it efficient – how many cars have performance figures of 0 - 100 km/h in 4.77 secs but produce only 199 g/km CO2?" That question was posed by Mike Kimberley, Chief Executive of Group Lotus plc, and he's got a point. As part of its ongoing quest to shave weight, Lotus has blessed us with what are undoubtedly the most efficient fossil fuel-burning sportscars the world has ever seen. Of course, Lotus vehicles have also proven rather adept at accepting EV conversions for this same reason.

For the 2010 model year, Lotus has upped the ante yet again by incrementally improving the aerodynamics of its Exige S, nudging up the fuel efficiency and lowering the carbon emissions in the process. A revised fascia lets more air in to cool the radiator and twin oil coolers and a new rear wing reduces drag and still puts down 42 kilograms (93 pounds) of downforce at 160 km/h (about 100 mph). Add it all up, and the new Exige S emits 199 g/km CO₂ and achieves European Combined Cycle ratings of 8.5 litres/100 km (33.2 mpg). Read the full press release after the break.


[Source: Lotus]

Ford is preparing to make a major shift to smaller cars over the next few years, starting with the new Fiesta at the end of this year and the new European-based Focus next year. When that next-generation Focus lands in the U.S., it is expected to look a lot like the concept that Ford is showing in Geneva this week. The shape and styling details of the iosis Max give a preview of next years Focus five door hatch although the head-light clusters and doors will surely be more conventional. The sliding rear doors are unlikely to make it to production either.

What will make it through is the drivetrain. This is the third Ford concept this year (along with the Lincoln Concept C and Volvo S60 concepts in Detroit) powered by the new 1.6L EcoBoost four cylinder along with the PowerShift dual clutch transmission. With the automatic start stop system, this combination is expected to top 40 mpg with ease when it arrives.



Photos Copyright ©2009 Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.

The Toyota iQ has been doing the show (and museum) circuit for over a year now, but we've only seen the car in white. I mean, just look what happens in Google Image Search when you type in "Toyota iQ." Therefore, as excited as one might be about the new 1.33l Dual VVT-i engine that Toyota has announced for the new iQ3 (iQ cubed) version in Geneva, I'm just glad to see the car in another color.

The 1.33 iQ also gets Toyota's Optimal Drive (aka stop-start) technology, which can reduce fuel consumption up to three percent, if you drive smart. Right now, Toyota is talking about mpg numbers of 49 mpg (U.S.) on the European combined cycle and CO₂ emissions of 113 grams per kilometer for the manual-drive iQ. The first production iQs went on sale in Japan last November. The 1.33-liter iQs will be available in the UK starting in late July. Oh, and you can get it in Pearl White, Astral Black (above) or Deep Amethyst.


[Source: Toyota]

The cars created by Christian von Koenigsegg are not renowned for being environmentally friendly. The car unveiled by Koenigsegg today in Geneva is in many ways diametrically opposed to the CCX and its variants. Rather than burning fuel to produce prodigious quantities of horsepower, the Quant is designed to run silently on electrons. The Quant that was revealed on the show floor is a styling buck of a four passenger, gull-winged coupe with an electric motor driving each rear wheel. The combined output of the powertrain is expected to be 512 hp and 527 lb-ft of twist.

Koenigsegg has partnered with NLV Solar AG for the energy storage system of this electric coupe. As the name implies NLV's main line of business is solar panels and those have been incorporated into the hood and roof of the Quant. Christian von Koenigsegg and Nunzio La Vecchia of NLV acknowledged that the solar cells will only provide enough power for accessories such as the radio or ventilation and won't be able to do any significant battery charging. That battery system is the big unknown for the Quant. Learn more about that after the jump.



Live Photos Copyright ©2009 Chris Paukert/Sam Abuelsamid / Weblogs, Inc.