FIRSTDRIVE PEUGEOT 3008 hybrid dieselEurope dips its toe in the hybrid market with Peugeot's latest offering, writes Michael McAleer, Motoring Editor
AFTER YEARS of hype, it seems the diesel hybrid engine is nearly ready to enter production. It’s going to be another two years before you see it on Irish forecourts but we got the chance to test what is being billed as the European generation of hybrid at proving grounds north of Paris.
Thanks to Toyota and Lexus, hybrids are practically mainstream. They have been a huge success in the US, where diesel is reserved for trucks. In Europe things are slightly different.
For a start, on the continent, the average annual drive includes large stretches of motorway at speeds of up to 120km/h and higher. In those conditions, the hybrid powertrains usually revert to simple combustion engine power, with very little input from the battery pack. It’s only in towns or suburban areas that the electric element gets to play its part.
The end result has been a less than stellar welcome for the hybrid systems and a preference by some Europeans for diesel power. After all, with a good mix of motorway driving, some diesel cars are still more efficient than their petrol-electric counterparts.
But what if you were to match the diesel engine’s frugal motorway ability with electric power in the towns? It seems a logical next step in hybrid technology. The problem has been the cost of development and sales.
Diesel engines have always been slightly more expensive than petrol and to add in the cost of the battery packs meant that for many cars such a system was simply not commercially viable.
It now seems Peugeot, long a specialist in diesel technology, has finally overcome not only the technological hurdles but the commercial ones as well. From 2011, the new 3008 range will also feature a diesel hybrid version as the range-topping model.
While prices have not yet been announced, expect it to be at the upper end of the price range, close to around €40,000.
The 3008 is Peugeot’s latest offering and is arguably one of the sharpest challengers to the popularity of the Nissan Qashqai to be seen for some time. It’s well-equipped, stylish and not as aggressive in its looks – or as divisive – as the 4007. The French firm is hoping to attract smaller family motorists who want to avoid the people carrier market.
So what is the diesel hybrid like? Well, it’s a smart powertrain set-up. The front wheels are driven by a potent 2-litre 200bhp diesel engine while the rear wheels are powered by the battery pack.
Like other hybrids the pack can be recharged from the engine and from regenerative braking, but the format allows for the addition of petrol engines and it can be rejigged to work with other models in the range, costs permitting.
For now Peugeot is saying the 3008 is the smallest car they plan to offer with diesel hybrid. The belief is that the price margins for other smaller models are simply too tight to allow the addition of the battery pack while still being price competitive in their segments.
As to the future addition of fuel-cell or plug-in technology, the seemingly flexible format and system is also open to such developments.
On the test track in the northern suburbs of Paris, we put the 3008 hybrid through some light testing. It currently claims a fuel consumption of 4.1L/100km and an emissions figure of 109g/km. These are pretty impressive for a car of this size and class, and equals the figures achieved by the much smaller 107.
Toyota’s new Prius delivers better figures (3.8L/100km and 89 g/km) and Peugeot engineers are working to lower these figures substantially before the car finally goes on sale in 2011. Certainly an emissions target of below 100g/km seems very likely.
The car is designed to travel for up to 4km on battery power alone, provided speeds are kept low. At present that seems to be below 40km/h, as every time we exceeded that speed it slipped back into diesel eco-mode.
A large dial allows the driver to choose which mode they desire, but invariably the car will decide if it is feasible and if not will slip back into eco mode at every opportunity.
This being an early prototype and two years from the final forecourt version, we have to hold our fire on its overall driving characteristics, but suffice to say it runs just like every other hybrid we’ve driven: silent in battery mode and a regular car when you kick down.
The added benefit of the battery power is also on offer when you kick down as it supports the engine with an extra surge of power: in this case to the rear wheels. From behind the wheel, there’s little in the way of a motoring revolution on offer.
Yet this is an important arrival, for it is a European response to the Japanese hybrid flag-bearers and not a moment too soon.
The principles of linking diesel to hybrid are obvious for European driving styles and – while all the hype may be about electric plug-in cars – the lack of any support infrastructure for recharging, the excessively high cost of lithium-ion batteries and issues over their range will mean there is plenty of room for hybrids on European markets.