Silent, and Now Subtle Too - Greenfleet Scotland 2017 Roundup

Rather embarrassingly, I haven’t managed to write up my roundup from GreenFleet Scotland 2017 at the Royal Highland Centre. The last couple of months have been hectic, with the house move taking up a lot of my time (and energy), meaning things like this have taken a back seat. No excuse, I know, and I’ll try to be more diligent in future.

Anyone looking for more of my witterings, both motoring and otherwise, follow me on Twitter, or check out these articles I’ve produced for the site Supercars.net.

I’m a big fan of what GreenFleet are doing. Their annual events break down the anxieties of electric and hybrid powertrain sceptics by allowing fleet managers and the general public to get up close and hands on with these vehicles, helping to encourage uptake in a fleet sector that put 1.38 million vehicles on UK roads in 2016.

What Range Anxiety? EV Adventurers take on Longest Challenge Yet

Rarely are electric cars brought up in conversation without the phrase "range anxiety" following close behind. Two EV enthusiasts have come a long way to silently leaving that old stigma behind.

Chris Ramsey of Plug In Adventures has a history of breaking new ground for electric vehicles on Scottish soil, becoming the first person to complete the North Coast 500 in a electric car whilst racking up fuel costs of absolutely zilch thanks to his frugal choice of powertrain.

i3 Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside - BMW i3 Range Extender Road Test

The BMW i3 is the Munich marque's interpretation the future of urban motoring will look. It's packed with clever little details and impressive tech, as highlighted in my previous post on the i3, BMW's city car for the future aims to be compact, quiet and sustainable, all while still retaining the driving dynamics their customers have come to expect. Powered by an electric motor driving the rear wheels, supplemented by an optional 2-cylinder petrol range-extender engine, it straddles the divide between the past and the future.

Thanks to this, the i3 has the snappy, instant power response you'd expect from a pure EV. Combined with the range extender, it has a comfortable quoted range of 150 miles. Around town, you'd have to neglect charging the thing for a couple of days before needing the extra capacity afforded by the petrol motor, so that extra range opens up the possibility of venturing beyond the city walls.

The i3 - breaking the barrier between then and now.

The Green R-EVOLUTION Is Upon Us - EVOLUTION Scotland 2016 Round Up

Visitors to the RHC were greeted by hindsight in the
form of the original Honda Insight.

This year’s EVOLUTION Motor Show, the third held at Ingliston, drew in more people than ever before – and it’s not difficult to see why, with the wealth of progressive metal on show from mainstream manufacturers and smaller-scale independent companies alike. All were focused on breaking down outdated stereotypes about so-called ‘eco-cars’, EVs, and other progressive powertrains, in the pursuit of ultimate efficiency. 

Fiat group impressed once again with their offering, bringing a wide range of cars, each of which with it’s own green tech. Their Fiat 500 and Panda both sported different flavours of TwinAir engine, a small capacity petrol unit turbocharged to increase both power and efficiency in different driving scenarios.  Supremely characterful, this is an engine that loves to be revved. 

Also on show and available to drive, was the Alfa Romeo Giulietta with the company’s JTDM engine, putting out 120hp and returning impressive economy figures of up to 74mpg. Figures like these may not entirely stir the soul the way Alfa Romeos should, but if ever there’s a place where red leather should be fitted in a steely grey car, as in the case of this one, then it’s in a Giulietta. ‘Nuff said.

The mighty Panda Cross was more character than car.

From Fiat’s American wing, Chrysler, came the Jeep Renegade and Grand Cherokee, the later proving a stout and refined contender in the luxury SUV sector, with comfortable leather teamed excellently with rugged useability throughout the cabin and a smooth, 200bhp 2.2 Diesel engine providing waves of power and torque.

Renault arguably had the most varied selection of cars on show, drawing crowds with the nifty Twizy electric car. Closer to a motorbike than a car in a lot of ways (with a notable exception being the two extra wheels), the Twizy aims to solve the issue of inner-city streets clogged with swollen diesels all vying for the same limited parking spaces by being as minimalist as possible. Keep an eye out for our review of this head-turner.

'Look at me, look at me!'
-Twizy, 2016

 

At the other end of the scale, the company’s recently launched Kadjar crossover was on show, which draws on the company’s relationship with Nissan, yet manages to retain a character all of it’s own, adding some French flair to the tough-yet-sleek lines of it’s Japanese counterpart, the Qashqai.

Not to be outdone on the greener side of things, Renault also brought along Zoe, sister car to the popular Nissan Leaf EV. With a serene cabin and near-silent running, it demonstrates the levels of refinement on offer to the EV motorist whilst providing the practicality of a mid-sized hatchback car. 

Toyota had a raft of hybrids on show, alongside their Mirai concept, which shows off their idea of what a mass-produced, hydrogen powered car would be like. Clearly building upon the familiar lines of the Prius, the Miraii shows that hydrogen motoring isn’t as far away as we think.

The absence of diesels from the Toyota lineup is notable, with the Japanese manufacturer and their premium brand, Lexus choosing to focus on petrol/hybrid drivetrains as they aim to drop the average emissions across all their cars to under 70g/km.

The Miraii hints that a Hydrogen future
may not be as far away as we think

This meant that everything they borught to the Royal Highland Centre at the weekend, from Prius and Rav 4, to the littlest Lexus CT 200h, and the big luxo-barges of the IS 300 h and RX series SUVs that were on show was endowed with some kind of hybrid technology. An interesting direction to take, for sure, and we’ll be keeping a close eye on how things progress. 

Jaguar brought along their XE and XF (the preview of the former can be found here) for eager drivers to get behind the wheel of, both sporting the company’s new Ingenium 2.0 diesel engine, presented here in its 160bhp, 280 lb-ft form. Impressively, CO2 emissions for this power point in the XE come in below the 100g/km-mark, and a still-quite-remarkable 104g/km in the larger XF. 

The JLR stand, in 'stealth mode'

On display at the JLR stand was a heavily blacked-out F-Pace, presented alongside a similarly stealthy Range Rover Evoque in the show hall. I wasn’t sure how the F-Pace SUV would wear the family lines of the F-Type in the metal, but I’m pleased to report it’s an altogether handsome, sleek beast, easily comparable to the Porsche Cayenne - and I mean that in a good way.

The baby Range Rover was joined by its cousin, the Land Rover Discovery Sport, which proved itself to be a commanding vehicle, and very smooth on tarmac. Plenty of glass lends a light air to the cabin, something the more upmarket Evoque has to do without.

A Kouple of the Kias at Ingliston on Saturday

Keen to impress were Kia, who brought along a cross-section of their range, spanning the terrified-looking Sportage, the nifty Pro-Cee'd, the Optima -which has the Mondeo firmly in it’s sights - and their own interpretation of what an EV should be, the Soul EV. I was very impressed with the electric Soul, it’s useful, quoted 130-mile-plus range lending it perfect to commuting, while the wide apertures and vast tailgate tick many practicality boxes.

We can’t talk about EVOLUTION without mentioning the stunning BMW i8, which once again proved itself the darling of the show, with queues for drives just about out the door and tensions running high between excited plug-in fans waiting their turn. This purified expression of what a plug-in-hybrid sportscar can be has its sharp and focussed nose pointed straight at the future. McMotors took a closer look at the i8 and it's sister, the i3, after they delighted the crowds at last year's EVOLUTION. Check that out here.

The ever popular i8 in a brief moment of rest at the show

BMW also took the opportunity to show off its hybrid tech in the X5, bringing PHEV ability to it’s op of the range SUV. This may seem like a strange choice of vehicle for pioneering green technology, but when you take into account that it has a CO2 figure of just 77g/km, you realise this may not be such an odd thing after all.

Ludicrous mode proved ludicrously popular

The car which seemed to do the most laps of the track, though, was the remarkable Tesla Model S, which I experienced not long before the EVOLUTION show. You can read about my experience of Elon Musk's super-EV, not to mention what it did to my spine, here.

All of this, and a lot more besides (too much to fit into one post!) was available for the all to see and try up-close, at the EVOLUTION Motor Show at Ingliston this year, and, if things carry on this way, there’ll be a lot more again next year. Record interest in the cars on show, plus the amount of effort and enthusiasm put in by car manufacturers across the globe prove that the wheels of the green revolution are very much in motion.

  
We’ll have more in-depth features and reviews of some of the cars from the  show in the coming weeks. 

Let us know what your highlights of EVOLUTION 2016 were @Jack_McMotors on Twitter.

Spring Clean Motoring Part 3: The Future's Bright With Tesla Lighting The Way

It’s not long to go until the EVOLUTION Motor Show charges once more to Ingliston, whisking countless delighted patrons around the Royal Highland Centre’s on-site test track in all manner of eco-themed vehicles. One of this year’s most exciting cars on display comes from a company that, up until 8 years ago, didn’t even build cars.

Tesla have just taken over 325,000 pre-orders for their newest offering, even though right now it’s little more than a concept. The Model 3 aims to bring technology from Tesla’s current lineup of uber-futuristic swish-mobiles, which includes the Model S and the soon-to-hit-UK-roads Model X SUV, and deliver on a platform closer in size to a BMW 3-series.

The Model 3 brings high-end leccy-tech to a wider market

That’s dangerous territory. The 3-series has been the undisputed king of its segment for 41 years, pretty much carving the template for all mid-size sports saloons since. Buoyed along by the public’s near-absolute trust of German build quality and virtually unwavering brand loyalty, how will the Tesla fare when put up against the distilled and refined Ultimate Driving Machine?

To get a feel for where the company was at just before it’s biggest launch to date, I dropped in to Tesla’s new showroom on Multrees Walk in Edinburgh. Appearing right at home nestled amongst the fashion boutiques and single-brand jewellery stores either side of it, Tesla have shirked the traditional car dealership model of out-of-town industrial estates, instead opting for eyes-on visibility, building a brand in a similar way to Apple, where product exposure is everything.

New approach: Tesla's dealership looks like it might sell shoes

Taking pride of place in the showroom is a bare-bones chassis from the Model S, showing off the innovative, twin-motor drivetrain and battery packs, all very low to the floor. With Elon Musk having declared Tesla’s technology free to the world to use and learn from, secrecy is not an issue here. Also on display are the car’s mighty adaptive air suspension arms,, which help maintain a level ride and pitch the car into corners, or lift the nose – not quite west coast rapper style – to clear bumps.

Seated behind the wheel (of a fully dressed car) the Model S feels like it was designed from the ground-up as a product seated firmly for the 21^st century – and I suppose it was. From little details like the door handles doubling as a pocket for your mobile phone, to the giant, iPad-dwarfing central control screen, incorporating clever sat-nav to help you navigate the car's useful 250 mile range between charges on longer journeys, the interface for which mimics the ease of use of modern smartphones. This car has the future in its sights – and that's all besides the sheer connectivity of the thing.  

 

Tesla have nothing to hide, flaunting their twin-motor setup

Another feature shared by the Model S and today’s raft of super-sleek smartphones is the ability to receive updates and fixes over the air. Using it’s own internet connection, the car feeds data back to Tesla HQ in California, where information from cars all round the world is compiled to see how the various systems, including the car’s auto-pilot mega-brain – more on that later - are coping in real world conditions. From here, system updates can be released, which the car will download and install entirely by itself.

On the road, the mighty tesla feels ethereal.  I’ve felt smoothness in big, executive Jags, Mercs, Audis and BMWs before, but nothing comes close to the way the Tesla glides from place to place. The self-levelling suspension adds an air of floating, untroubled by ancient constructs like the ground. In fact, the only thing that demonstrated the limits of the air suspension’s capabilities on my passenger run in a full-fat P90D was the car’s incredible surge of power, as the combined 762bhp output from the twin-motor set up silently bullys the horizon closer.

It’s not so much the power itself that surprises, rather the delivery – the way it erupts all of a sudden, without noise or any of that calamity. It simply goes. One minute you’re quietly cruising along, the next you’re bending physics. 0-62mph in 2.7 seconds surprises in a car that makes next to no noise at all. You could buy a P90D and offer a sideline as a chiropractor, using the G-forces this car develops off the mark to realign your passengers spine.

 

Sleek lines hint at the Model S's sporting prowess

Power is split between the front and rear electric motors – the front 259bhp for efficiency through the front wheels, with the 503bhp rear motor focused more towards high performance. This gives a rear power bias, the two motors working together to give the Model S astounding levels of grip whilst still handling in a sporty manner.

By no stretch of the imagination is the Model S a stripped-out sports car. Its weight is masked well by the suspension trickery, but it still tips the scales at 2,200kg. Most of this weight is down to the battery pack, an issue faced by all electric cars. Tesla do well to pack the batteries into the floor, keeping the centre of gravity as low as possible, but all that weight is still there, and centrifugal force is a harsh mistress.

Another two tricks up the Tesla's sleeve are it's hidden extra row
of seats in the boot - passengers' noses will take a bashing

That being said, you’d be hard pressed to find a more comprehensive car package than a well-specced Model S P90D. All at once it manages to be, a supercar, a sports saloon, a comfortable limousine, a tablet computer, a fashion item, a 7-seat people mover, a twin-booted grand tourer, a personal chauffeur - all whilst still saving the world, one charge at a time.

With the lack of any kind of noise, it would be easy to rest ones foot on the throttle and not register the car gently accelerating until you arrive at a traffic light doing 155mph, but that’s where features like Tesla’s auto-pilot system come in. This combines radar-guided cruise control with lane recognition technology, aided by a whole host of sensors and processors, to effectively allow the car to drive itself. The driver becomes accessory as the computers take over to gently guide you to your destination.

The Model S's giant centre screen serves all manner of purposes

Initial doubts about trusting the system fall by the wayside when you actually try it, as if the sensors latch on to a manual car, the system is so precise that you can feel every little gear change from the leading driver. Of course, the option is always there to take the helm and breeze along some B-roads, but for everyday trips and the tedium of creeping through traffic, the Tesla can pick up the slack.

  

The Model S is the only model Tesla currently sell in the UK, with the Model X joining it later this year. Tesla are bringing it along to the Royal Highland Centre this weekend, where car fans will be able to get up close with this high-end embodiment of what an electric car can be. It’s fascinating to think that, if Tesla sticks to it’s current trajectory, within the decade we could be seeing similar levels of connectivity and electric drivetrain technology in B- and C-segment cars.

The Model 3 is nothing if not a clear statement of intent from Tesla to make this technology more and more available in mass-produced cars. Whilst BMW won't quite be shaking in it's boots yet, Tesla have definitely given them something to think seriously about over the next few years.

It's popularity proves, as Elon Musk elucidates here, that Tesla's business model is working and it's only a matter of time before we're all quietly swooshing around, being excellently productive as our dashboard butlers find and navigate the best route through rush hour traffic, all whilst producing no emissions whatsoever. Come and discover the future of electric car tech at the Evolution motor show, on Saturday 16^th April at the Royal Highland Centre, Ingliston.

The Model S - showing there can be a bright, green future
in electric motoring that doesn't have to mean comprimise

Some Things To Be Excited About At Geneva 2016 If You Can't Afford A Bugatti Chiron

If you haven't already heard about it, the new Bugatti Chiron has been unveiled ahead of it's official launch at the Geneva Motor Show this week. Its astronomical power figure of 1,478 horsepower is surpassed only by the £1.9 million price tag, and that's all just fine.

If you can afford to buy the Chiron you probably already have access to somewhere with enough room to enjoy all of that power, and maybe even get it up to it's top speed which is claimed to be around 261mph. But what about the rest of us mere mortals? What is there for us to enjoy?

The Opel GT Concept, with its boss.

Oddly, the first thing that caught my eye at Geneva was Vauxhall / Opel's GT Concept. This tiny coupe may not have reached the realms of reality yet, but fingers crossed some of the ideas will trickle through from the matrix to our dimension. The concept, a two-seater could see production as a front-drive car with a 1 litre, 3-cylinder engine putting out around 143bhp. This should keep running costs nice and low, whilst also delivering punchy performance. It's early days yet, but this fairly un-Vauxhall car could put the company into competition with sports car stalwarts like the Mazda MX-5, which is very dangerous territory indeed.

Bedroom walls across the land should be sorted, with Lamborghini unveiling their bonkers new Centenario LP770-4 poster child. Produced as a 100th birthday present to honour the company's late founder Ferruccio Lamborghini, the Centenario will see very limited production at just 20 coupes and 20 roadsters. At the heart of it's carbon fibre body sits a higher-revving version of Lambo's legendary V12 engine, with power output upped to 759bhp. It runs the Bugatti very close for price, but this car is built as much to dwell in the imagination of children, spitting flames and spinning wheels in a very exciting manner, as it is to hide under covers in the ultra-secure garages of the super rich.

Interesting headlamp arrangement adds to asymmetry and alliteration.

At a very different end of the spectrum, Morgan will be bringing along their EV3, showcasing a 'pre-production phase' of their take on what an electric vehicle should be. Sticking to form, the EV3 is a super light three-wheeled two-seat roadster, using a combination of carbon fibre and aluminium body panels built around an ash frame to give a weight of less than 500kg. Up front, the 1983cc V-Twin of the current car is replaced with cooling fins for the 20KWh lithium battery, which combine with a liquid-cooled 46kW electric motor to zip the whole thing from 0-60 in under 9 seconds. The range, thanks no doubt in part to the car's tiny weight, is slated to be up to 150 miles.

Pininfarina have also brought their idea for a performance car with a progressive drivetrain: the H2 Speed utilises hydrogen fuel cell technology which has been track-tested by GreenGT, a company focussed on bringing hydrogen fuel tech to motorsport. The H2 produces 503 horsepower and is capable of 0-60 in 3.4 seconds, and with the only exhaust being water vapour, this makes it the world's fastest steam cleaner. Having been draped in Pininfarina magic, the H2 Speed is also the world's prettiest steam cleaner, with sleek lines and a paintjob that harks back to the 1969 Ferrari Sigma Formula One show car, presented to the public by the Italian design house at the Geneva show that year. If this is a showcase of what a hydrogen powered sports car could be, then I for one can't wait for a Formula H racing series.

Speaking of sleek lines, how could we ignore the new Aston Martin DB11, which sneaked its way into the public eye at the start of the week. The successor to the DB9 shows off heavy styling influence from the bespoke DB10, wielded by James Bond in Spectre, with added aggression from the limited-run One-77. The aluminium body incorporates aerodynamic elements, including a special AeroBlade system, consisting of cleverly hidden ducts beneath the C-pillars which channel air over the back end, helping to reduce rear lift. Under the bonnet sits a new 5.2 litre, twin-turbo V12 pushing out 600bhp. Whilst the Aston may not be within most peoples budget (including mine!), it'll certainly drop a few jaws as it barrels along the motorway.

Thought I'd treat you to a nice big picture of the DB11, for obvious reasons.

Spring Clean Motoring Part 1: Jealous Green 'i's

GreenFleet Scotland has released a sneak preview of some of the eco-flavoured vehicles that will be showcased at this year's Evolution motor show.

The two day event, held at the Royal Highland Centre at Ingliston, focuses on innovations in green technology, and aims to educate companies and individuals alike in the virtues and reality of environmentally conscious motoring. But, unlike most motor shows where the cars are precious objects held high on a plinth, visitors to Evolution get the chance to get seriously hands-on with the cars - and there's even the opportunity to get behind the wheel on Inglistons 1.03 mile long circuit.

Over the next few weeks in the run up to the show, McMotors will be bringing you a preview of each of the cars that will be available to sample at the show. If you're near Edinburgh on the 16th April you can come along and try them for yourself!

An i3 from last year's Evolution motor show

The first car we'll be looking at is one of the stars of last year's show. The BMW i3 is a prime example of one of the giants of the car world taking green technology and injecting a bit of experience and know-how to produce something that packs a punch whilst still managing to help protect the environment.

It may look a tad high up and humdrum, but with an electric motor pushing out 125kW (roughly equal to 170hp) and 184lb/ft of torque it's no slouch, managing 0-60mph in just 7.2 seconds. It can (briefly) show the previous generation V8 M3 a clean pair of heels off the line, and though it may only have a top speed of 93mph, in pure EV mode it can do all this whilst producing no carbon dioxide whatsoever.

Suicide doors prove the i3's innovation isn't limited to its powertrain

The car comes off-the-shelf as a standalone EV or with a petrol range extender, essentially an engine that isn't connected to the wheels in the traditional sense, but which instead charges the batteries, giving an impressive and useful range of 185 miles.

And, being an electric vehicle, all of that power is available from a standstill. No turbo lag, no powerband to chase up the rev range, and this low down grunt helps make the i3 perfect for gap-hunting inner-city driving.

BMW have shared a lot of technology between the i3 and it's bigger, sportier brother, the i8. This includes a carbon fibre passenger compartment - both strong, making it incredibly safe in an accident; and light by keeping the centre of gravity in the floor of the car with the batteries. It's strength isn't the only thing keeping occupants safe, as BMW's Driving Assistant system is available as an option which keeps a constant lookout to try and prevent potential collisions even happening.

The somewhat flasher i8, poaching attention from its wee brother

The car is connected too, with an app for smartphones, which allows the owner to check where they parked their i3, and what range is left in it. You can even lock your i3 from anywhere remotely, as long as you have your phone, helping put to rest those feelings of 'did I lock it' anxiety.

Having driven an i3 at last year's Evolution show, I'm very much looking forward to getting my hands on another one this year to see how it stacks up against newer rivals to the eco-car market.

GreenFleet is hosting events at Ingliston for companies and fleet owners on the 15th April, with the show being open to the general public on the 16th April.