Automakers Flexing Their Green Thumbs
March 10, 2008

By Pál Négyesi

With the European Union trying to compel automobile manufacturers to reduce their products' carbon-dioxide emissions to an average of 120 grams per kilometer by 2012 it is no wonder the halls at the Geneva International Motor Show were echoing with announcements of new technologies to help companies achieve this ambitious target.

When word first spread that the current level of 160 g/km will be lowered to 130 g/km by 2012 in order to achieve an overall rate of 120 g/km, European carmakers, especially upmarket Porsche, BMW and Audi, went on the offense. They argued these targets are absurd, expensive and unrealistic.

But at the Geneva show it was evident a new era has begun. If Bentley executives can be heard outlining a road map to achieve 120 g/km by 2012 instead of pointing out how many hides of leather were applied to the interior of the latest Brooklands, it's clear change is taking place. Bentley will use flex-fuel engines, capable of running on gas and/or ethanol. Bentley is also planning a new powertrain capable of 40 percent better fuel economy.

Volume carmakers are also scrambling to come up with innovative ways to reduce emissions without costly investment. Such models as Volkswagen's BlueMotion or Ford's ECOnetic usually comprise such approaches as improved aerodynamics, low-resistance tires, diesel engines with particulate filters and revised gearings. Many companies are busily developing new, smaller engines that will use turbocharging technology to reduce fuel consumption. Even Porsche is considering adding a diesel engine to its portfolio in 2009. And this is in addition to all the hybrids on display.

The undoubted star of the show? The tiny Tata Nano, which was mobbed all day long by journalists and industry executives alike — Volkswagen Group CEO Martin Winterkorn studied the car thoroughly. It will produce just 30 g/km, but environmentalists already fear hundreds of thousands of these tiny cars will result in as many harmful gases as a year's production of all Porsche cars. The debate goes on.

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