Mercedes-Benz will present three BlueZERO concept in Detroit

Concept cars can do two things: show people the immediate future and a longer term future as well. This is exactly the case for BlueZERO concepts, from Mercedes-Benz. Created to present future electric propulsion systems from the German carmaker, they also anticipate how the future generation of A-Class and B-Class cars will look like.



Since these new cars will possibly be presented by 2010, and electric propulsion systems from Mercedes-Benz will only be offered to the public by 2015 (we hope they can shorten this deadline), the style of BlueZERO cars will reach the market before their emission-free technologies.

There will be three versions of BlueZERO. The first one, BlueZERO E-Cell, uses only lithium-ion batteries to power the car, allowing it to run up to 200 km. Able to produce up to 320 Nm of torque, batteries will ensure vigorous accelerations. Recharging takes only half an hour to run 50 km.

For longer distance needs there will be BlueZERO E-Cell Plus, which uses a 1-litre three cylinder engine from smart fortwo to recharge the lithium-ion batteries, able to run up to 100 km only with their common charge. When this charge starts to end, the engine starts to operate and can make the car run 500 km more, what increases total range to 600 km.

The last one is BlueZERO F-Cell, which uses fuel cell technology to run. This system still needs to be better developed, especially due to its high costs and to the problem that exists in storing hydrogen, its only fuel. F-Cell is said to be able to run 400 km.

All BlueZERO cars use the same body, 4.22 m long, can carry five people (including the driver) and have a 500 l boot compartment, or else, they are day-to-day vehicles. The first fuel cell cars from Mercedes-Benz will reach the market, in small scale, such as Honda FCX Clarity, in 2009. All electric vehicles, on the other hand, will be offered, also as experimental cars, by 2010.






Source: Mercedes-Benz