“I don’t think this generation of battery electric cars will be successful. In five years, the next generation of battery electric cars have the chance to be much more successful”
PARIS – As the growth rate of battery-only electric car sales in Europe slows, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) grabbed the limelight at the Paris Car Show.
Car manufacturers continue to spend huge sums on alternatives to the internal combustion engine, spurred on by tougher fuel economy regulations in the U.S., Europe and China. Some industry leaders though were starting to protest at the show that the industry has gone about as far as it can go down this road, particularly in Europe where sales appear to be in retreat again.
“There is a limit to what the industry can take and I think we’re at the limit right now,” Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Sergio Marchionne said, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Meanwhile new PHEVs were in abundance at the show. From the Volkswagen stable, the Porsche Cayenne and Lamborghini Asterion unveiled PHEV versions, while VW itself showed the new Passat plug-in. The VW group already has PHEV versions of the Golf, Audi A3, and Porsche Panamera, which join Volvo, Toyota, Mitsubishi, BMW and the Mercedes S500 in this arena.
Toyota of Japan presented a three-pronged approach to low carbon emissions, with its electric vehicle (EV) i-Road, a two-seat concept being used in a car sharing trial in Grenoble, France, the Prius PHEV, and the European debut of its FCV fuel cell hydrogen car which goes on sale in Germany, Britain and Denmark next year.
Renault of France showed its Eolab concept, a 1 liter 75-hp 3-cylinder plug-in hybrid gasoline electric four-seater concept which relies on lower weight and active aerodynamics to produce fuel economy of 235 miles per U.S. gallon. Ironic that Renault, which has pledged to spend $5.8 billion building EVs to meet its global target of 10 per cent of the market by 2020, should now scramble to produce a PHEV, now that global electric vehicle sales will likely be closer to one per cent of the market then.
Latest data on EV sales in Western Europe showed that in August sales slowed for the third month in a row to 4,045 from 4,381 the previous month and 5,350 in June, according to Automotive Industry Data (AID). In the first eight months of 2014 sales jumped to 35,228 from 20,052 in the same period of 2013, but the growth was slowing, AID said, in a report entitled “Electric car sales pace, far from growing, is slowing”. The numbers include sales of the Nissan Leaf, Renault Zoe, Tesla Model S, VW eUp, eGolf, and BMWi3. They also include the Chevrolet Volt/Opel Ampera, which are extended range electric vehicles.
Peugeot of France had a couple of concept cars too at the show, including the 208 Hybrid Air Demonstrator, which uses an innovative compressed air/gasoline hybrid.
According to Professor Stefan Bratzel of the Center of Automotive Management in Bergisch Gladbach, Germany, the rapid adoption of PHEVs shows that this technology will be the transition choice on the way to emission free cars.
“I don’t think this generation of battery electric cars will be successful. I think they will stay in a niche. The Golf e and BMW i3 are nice cars. but the problem of the range and very high costs limits this generation of electric cars. The next generation will have ranges of 300 kms (180 miles) and more and also be much less expensive than the ones today. In five years, the next generation of battery electric cars have the chance to be much more successful,” Bratzel said.
IHS Automotive analyst Tim Urquhart also sees PHEVs as a stepping stone to the future.
“I think plug-in hybrids, of which we are seeing an increasing number going forward, I see them as a bridging technology for pure EVs or fuel cells,” Urquhart said.
The biennial Paris Car Show runs through October 19, at the Porte de Versailles.
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