Making its U.S debut at the 2010 North American International Auto Show in Detroit is Hyundai’s Blue-Will Plug-In Hybrid. It is Hyundai’s fourth concept vehicle and it is promising 2.35 litres per 100km fuel economy.
The concept Blue-Will is a test bed for new ideas including roof mounted solar panels, drive by wire steering, lithium polymer batteries and touch screen controls. Promising an electric only driving distance of up to 64.4 kilometres on a single charge with the fuel economy of 2.35 litres per 100km, that works out to be 42.5 km per litre.
“Blue-Will’s bold character lines and fluidic sculpture design language give the perfect expression to the advanced eco-friendly technologies found beneath the skin,” said Oh Suk-Geun, executive vice president of design, Hyundai Motor Company.”At a time of rising concern about the environment and our energy future, Blue-Will demonstrates to eco-conscious car buyers everywhere that Hyundai has practical hybrid solutions destined to appear on the next generation of vehicles.”
On the inside the dash has been designed to be simple and clean, a high-tech touch screen control with a focal point being the ‘Eco-Coach’, which encourages fuel-saving habits by providing continuous feedback on fuel consumption.
The petrol engine is an all aluminium 113.3 kW Direct Injected (GDI) 1.6 litre engine with a Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT), a 100kW electric motor works parallel with the petrol engine. The wheels are driven by the petrol engine or electric motor or both as conditions demand. This Hybrid drive architecture will be the foundation of Hyundai’s future hybrids.
Lithium polymer batteries are able to be recharged using household electricity, Hyundai were the first manufacturer to use this technology in a mass produced car when the Elantra LPI Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) went on sale in South Korea mid 2009.
A thermal generator energy saving device converts energy from hot exhaust gas which is captured by an exhaust manifold fitted to the thermal generator. This converts the heat into electrical energy and assists by helping to power auxiliary systems.
There would have to be a few safety systems to keep those LiPo batteries under control during charging etc! Even a small 3 cell as used in RC Helicopters etc can create a huge fire/explosion if the appropriate care and supervision are not adhered to. Not to mention you can easily damage the cell/s permanently if you discharge it too much.
$12,990 driveaway?
Not sure why car markers time and time again, shower us with these stunning figures and then it never makes production, just a big pat-on-the-back flag wave PR exercise
Whats the point to buy this if its going to be $40k?
The difference between then, ~$27k buys a lot of fuel and the Getz aint a big drinker either.
Go on Hyundai, MAKE IT!
When I first saw this car, I thought it had HUGE brake discs! I feel like a fool…
Hopefully the fuel economy isn’t calculated the same way as for the Volt (1.02L/100km) !
Mass produced……..MMMMM. Think it will be a while before we see it,”mass produced”, especially here in Australia.
Well all i can say is good for Hyundai. They are showing the rest of the world that they can compete and that they have the money brains and the tech to back up their newfound push for world automotive domination.
Id be pretty suss about the fuel economy claims…..
I bet the electric cycle is formulated into it quite heavily.
How big is the fuel tank?? that will tell us how they calculated it.
I also disagree that not very often is power consumption spoken about when talking these plugins.
Apparently the plug-in charge is done with thin air……
When are they going to rate electricity consumption and related pollution to give a true image????
Re the pollution concerns of recharging these plugins:
Hopefully & more than likely most plug ins will be charged overnight on base load
power when most of us are about to hit the pillow after 11PM till 5AM or later.
This base load power is needed to keep the grid running regardless of the power source be it coal,hydro,or renewable sources.
Electricity networks are unable to be switched off & an overnight recharge of these vehicles has no extra impact.
It could be argued that our growing addiction to household air conditioning cancels out the benefit of these vehicles by a huge up margin.
A recharge overnight or at any other time is nothing compared to running the split system.We have become soft in my opinion & wont put up with the heat & sweat.
Off MY soapbox.
Yeah, I get your point, but it is still a consumer of electricity hence some emissions must be blamed upon it appropriately.
I dont see what the A/C example has to do with it, I could also use the same theory to say having a car that consumes 15L is nothing purely because in comparison to a Kenworth truck its nothing.
Its all relative, and Im not saying one is more acceptable than the other, Im just asking for the full story to be told. Stop this zero emission BS because its false.
I hear what your saying Andrew, but we don’t do this with cars anyway. We only ever look at tail pipe emissions. If we started comparing the emissions from producing a litre of Petrol + tail pipe then we would have a fair argument for comparing electricity emissions per KW. But electricity is always going to win simply because you can produce it yourself Co2 free, unlike petrol.
Point taken, but what im getting at is if we are meant to be green conscious when selecting a car, how come the emissions shifting doesnt register.
Thats all it is in my book, simply passing the blame and making it the power plants problem to make it green
Yes, the concept of true emissions free motoring is total BS. But then again you can’t walk, run, ride a bike with-out emitting Co2 anyway.
The difference with electriciy is you have the option to buy 100% green energy if you want or even make your own via PV solar and offset. No other power source gives you that option currently.
how poor can you be to need to get 2.35 litres per 100km?
and these over-exaggerated futuristic cars make me sick
For any enthusiast the promise of massive reductions in fuel use should be viewed with delight. It means that petrol cars will be with us a lot longer.