that the fuel-cell drive is suitable for daily use. Firstly, it is being used by customers on a daily basis, and, secondly, 8 F o c u s the technology was applied on more than 30,000 kilometers at the “Mercedes-Benz F-Cell World Drive” all around the globe. One of the main tasks in further advancing this technology is to find ways to reduce the costs substantially. But an extensive market penetration depends on other factors, too. Very crucial factors in this respect are the political framework conditions and the availability of an extensive infrastructure – in other words hydrogen filling stations. Other factors include the development of a competitive component-supplier landscape. ‹F›: How can synthetic fuels – biomass to-liquid (BTL) or gas-to- liquid (GTL) fuels – contribute toward reducing fuel consumption and emissions? Will natural gas eventually play a bigger role in this respect? ‹Dr. Weber›: Alternative, regenerative fuels are also part of our strategy. Where this is concerned, we are focusing mainly on 2nd-generation fuels, in other words socalled BTL (biomass-to-liquid) fuels which can be made out of waste materials. This has a lot of advantages in terms of sustainability and CO2 savings. This is because, with BTL fuels, higher yields per hectare can be generated and various kinds of biomass and bio waste materials can be used, which rules out any competition between food and fuel. With natural-gas powered vehicles, we do still see plenty of potential. Already today, we have the Mercedes-Benz E-200 NGT BlueEFFICIENCY and the Mercedes Benz B 200 Natural Gas Drive in our range, which are two highly appealing products. The advantages of natural gas are the low specific carbon content and the low-emission combustion. But to make it even more appealing to our customers, we first need the appropriate political framework conditions along with an extensive infrastructure suitable ›› Our mission is to provide high-efficiency, low-emission combustion engines, particularly sustainable hybrid vehicles and electric vehicles powered by fuel cell or battery. ‹‹ for this type of fuel. The challenge is a collective one! ‹F›: The connectedness of cars, to the driving environment as well as to other vehicles, is steadily increasing. Can this kind of connectedness – based on driver assistance systems, navigation devices and other new systems – also be used to increase the efficiency of the drive? ‹Dr. Weber›: It certainly can. The best example for this would be car-2-x communication – in other words, the exchange of information between different vehicles or between vehicles and the traffic infrastructure. Equipped with this technology, drivers are not only warned of any danger well in advance. At the same time, it provides for optimum flow of traffic. In the EU research project PRE-DRIVE C2X, a study revealed that up to 5 percent of fuel could be saved if all vehicles were equipped with the appropriate technology. Another very recent example for this is real-time traffic data. By the end of this year, we intend to equip most of our vehicle models with this technology. This particular service informs drivers early on about traffic disruptions along their route so that they can adapt the route according to the latest traffic situation. Our customers not only save valuable time, they also curb the vehicle’s fuel consumption. ‹F›: Alongside powertrain optimization, where to you see the greatest potential for savings? And how important is the vehicle architecture, in other words what roles do light-weight construction measures and materials like composite carbon fiber play? ‹Dr. Weber›: We pull all the levers we have to make our cars even more economical and efficient. This cover story
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