Overseas News

Forward Vision from Mercedes-Benz

The VISION EQXX from Mercedes-Benz has taken to the roads of Europe and demonstrated its outstanding range and efficiency.

Travelling from Sindelfingen across the Swiss Alps and Northern Italy, to its destination of Cassis on the Côte d’Azur, it covered more than 1,000 km in everyday traffic, on a single battery charge. The journey was undertaken at regular road speeds, including prolonged fast-lane cruising at up to 140 km/h on the German autobahn and near the speed limit elsewhere. The battery’s state of charge on arrival was around 15 percent, amounting to a remaining range of around 140 kilometres, and the average consumption was a record-breaking low of 8.7 kWh per 100 kilometres. This new blueprint for automotive engineering has delivered a new benchmark for electric vehicle efficiency and range, and the technology in the VISION EQXX will be deployed in upcoming series-production Mercedes vehicles. Important facts at a glance • Mission Accomplished: more than 1,000 km with a single battery charge in real everyday traffic allows for relaxed long-distance journeys.

Energy Wizard: efficiency-enhancing measures lead to an outstandingly low consumption of 8.7 kWh per 100 km. • Aero Champ: outstanding work in aerodynamics and exterior design enables a benchmark drag coefficient of 0.17, which has a particularly positive effect on fuel consumption at high speeds on the motorway. • Rolling Efficiency: tyres with a significantly lower rolling resistance than the class A

required by the EU tyre label and improved aerodynamic geometry, combined with lightweight magnesium wheels, provide more range. • Electric Drive: the radically new drive concept developed by Mercedes-Benz achieves a benchmark efficiency of 95 percent from battery to wheels. • Passive Cooling: passive drivetrain cooling via a cooling plate in the underbody. • Bionic Engineering: advanced digital tools enable innovative lightweight designs that increase efficiency and range. • Solar Power: ultra-thin roof panels feed the battery system and provide up to 25 km of additional range. • Software Driven: software-driven approach is the key to success in achieving efficiency targets and a fast development process, including a sophisticated battery management system. • Global Responsible Leadership: with the

VISION EQXX, Mercedes-Benz is stepping up the pace to “Lead in Electric” and “Lead in Car Software” and to set standards for sustainable mobility.

what3words for Jaguar navigation

Jaguar Land Rover is offering customers accurate and precise navigation even in the most remote locations, by becoming the first automotive manufacturer to integrate what3words global location technology into vehicles already on the road through a software-over-the-air (SOTA) update.

what3words has divided the globe into a grid of 3m x 3m squares and given each one a unique combination of three words: a what3words address. Through the ‘always-on’ technology, which works without the need for mobile connectivity, new and existing customers will be able to navigate to any precise location in the world using just three words.

Prodrive’s home racing simulator

Prodrive has created a new concept in home racing simulators; one that will set new standards in design and which is as much a piece of art as it is technically advanced.

The striking styling has been created by CALLUM headed by renowned automotive designer, Ian Callum, and uses a mixture of natural materials and carbon composites to create a piece of designer furniture that would take pride of place in any home or venue. The simulator is the idea of Prodrive chairman, David Richards. “Most racing simulators on the market today are very functional but not particularly attractive. What I wanted was something that was more like a piece of modern art; something you would be proud to have on display in your home like a grand piano or sculpture, indeed something that would not look out of place in a gallery of contemporary art,” he said. Last year, Mr Richards approached CALLUM, who were closely involved in the Prodrive Dakar project, to create some concepts. “Designing the simulator was a great opportunity to create something technically stimulating as well as visually abstract,” Mr Callum said. The first Prodrive motorsport simulators will be manufactured at the company’s headquarters in Banbury, UK and will be available in the Summer. Once updated, the system allows customers to input what3words addresses directly into the navigation bar on the Pivi Pro Infotainment system. The integration has been delivered by HERE Technologies. What makes this system so different is its ability to direct you not only to a location within a few metres but to locations with no street addresses. As an example, stadiums and industrial parks are usually assigned a single address and yet have multiple entrances and car parks, while some pop-up venues may have no address at all. You can even be directed within metres to a location in outback Australia. Subaru has also integrated this technology into its Outback models with additional vehicles to also have the technology. what3words can be downloaded and used as an app on smart phones or visit https:// what3words.com/about for a rundown on what this new app can offer.