14.05.2008

Lightweight aluminium body structures - essential environmental technologies

Jaguar Land Rover warmly welcomed the announcement of British government funding to help speed up the development of technologies that will significantly reduce CO2 emissions. Lightweight aluminium body structures will play a major role. The Technology Strategy Board (TSB) and the Department for Transport, through the Low Carbon Vehicles Innovation Platform, have announced that 16 innovative development projects, worth over £52 million, will receive £23 million government investment through the Low Carbon Vehicles Innovation Platform.

Jaguar Land Rover is involved in a number of the projects through partnerships with suppliers, government agencies, and universities. Among the projects identified today is Limo-Green. This includes the use of Jaguar's class leading lightweight aluminium body structures as a basis for testing the concept of a large luxury vehicle with an advanced hybrid electric driveline, consisting of an advanced drive motor, small battery pack and a small auxilliary power generator for sustained cruising. The project aim is to demonstrate a vehicle with sub 120g/km CO2 whilst maintaining the premium quality of the vehicle.

Jaguar and Land Rover are also working to demonstrate, within five years, the feasibility of a mass producible, lightweight car based on a body structure built using sustainable aluminium sheet derived in part from low cost energy efficient recycled, post consumer scrap. This will be a key enabler for the mass production in the UK of low CO2 premium cars.

In addition, Jaguar Land Rover is involved in a project led by Ricardo to deliver a global premium vehicle demonstrating a 25-30% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions with no loss of performance using an innovative, highly-downsized petrol engine with two-stroke/four-stroke switching technology.




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