The shape of things to come for Mercedes, the F800 Style gives a hint of the maker's new design theme...and its green powertrain technology.
To get a sense of where Mercedes-Benz will be heading, in the years ahead, take a close look at the F800, which the automaker introduced at this year’s Geneva Motor Show.
The coupe-like concept vehicle gives a good hint of what’s being developed by designers and engineers down in Stuttgart, both in terms of styling and powertrain technology. And the environmentally-friendly drivetrain, hinted the maker’s CEO, could show up “in the next-generation S-Class.”
“This gives a good indication of (Mercedes’) overall strategy, going forward,” said Dieter Zetsche, during a media roundtable following the automaker’s news conference, at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show. The mustachioed executive noted that until now, Mercedes, “did not have comprehensive styling strategy for all of its steadily-increasing line-up. The F800 Style will help correct that, though Zetsche quickly cautioned that, “This doesn’t mean there will be a fewer design that will be the same for all.”
There are two versions of the Mercedes-Benz F800 Style, one using electric propulsion, the other a hydrogen fuel-cell.
The version of the Mercedes F800 Style put on display at Geneva’s PALExpo features a plug-in hybrid powertrain capable of operating on battery power at speeds up to 75 mph, and for distances of up to about 20 miles per charge, using an 80 kWh pack of lithium-ion batteries, Zetsche noted, adding that this is about twice as much range as the older Mercedes F400 concept car.
An alternate version of the new concept vehicle is the tongue-twisting Mercedes-Benz F800 Style with F-Cell. As the name implies, the vehicle used a hydrogen-powered fuel cell that can achieve up to nearly 400 miles range on a single tank of the lightweight gas. The F-Cell is, Mercedes cylaims, the first rear-wheel-drive application of fuel cell technology, its electric motor mounted above the rear axle,
The challenge for a maker like Mercedes, emphasized Zetsche, is finding a way to unite “efficiency” with “elegance.”
Among other steps at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show, Mercedes introduced its E300 BlueTec Hybrid, which takes gas-electric technology into its most popular model segment.
Meanwhile, Mercedes announced it has formed a groundbreaking joint venture with the ambitious Chinese carmaker, BYD. Together, they plan to develop not only a new line of electric vehicles, but also to market them under a new brand name.
“If there is any market where developing electric cars is absolutely essential,” said Zetsche, “it is China.”
The Daimler AG Chairman stressed that electric propulsion will be the only effective way for the giant Asian nation to put its 1.5 billion people on wheels. “It is just not do-able,” asserted Zetsche, “based on fossil fuels.”