Author Topic: Four-Cylinder Bluetec Diesel Debuts in Vision C-Class Concept  (Read 3543 times)

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Exceeds European 2015 Standards

Canadian Auto Press
Mercedes-Benz is acting quickly to expand its Bluetec technology. It started with the ?320? model V6, which was followed up by a ?420? model V8 engine in a concept version of the GL-Class large sport utility vehicle. It also announced a partnership with Volkswagen Auto Group to share the Bluetec technology. Now the three-pointed star is going to shrink its application of Bluetec to an engine that will be within greater reach of the buying public, first shown here in Vision C 220 Bluetec concept.
This is the smallest engine that Mercedes-Benz has appointed its Bluetec technology, as it features only four cylinders and presumably a 2.2-litre displacement. Featuring the latest third-generation common-rail diesel technology and a variable nozzle turbocharger, the engine still produces an impressive 170 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque, which is more than enough to quickly propel the compact C-Class.
The primary goal of adapting Bluetec to the C-Class is to show exactly how far Mercedes-Benz has improved the technology within the short time it?s been on the market. Already, integrating Bluetec produces the cleanest diesels around, meeting the stringent US Tier II Bin V emissions standards as well as the Euro 4 standards, but this new C-Class is a whole new ball game. The Vision C 220 was designed to meet future emissions standards not one, but two generations from now in Europe. It surpasses the Euro 5 standards that will come into effect on January 1, 2011, which will require the cutback of tailpipe emissions by five times, as well as the Euro 6 standards which will start on September 1, 2015 and regulate NOx (nitrogen oxide) emissions to be a mere 30-percent of what the current Euro 4 regulations require.
Mercedes-Benz says this particular diesel C-Class, equipped with a six-speed manual transmission, can deliver a fuel economy figure of 5.5 L/100 km (42.8 mpg), an astonishing value given the power of the vehicle and its size. By comparison, the E320 CDI Bluetec production vehicle uses 6.7 L/100 km (35.1 mpg). Because the C-Class? four-cylinder engine is smaller than the V6 or V8, it does not require the ?AdBlue? injection. Rather, it relies solely on the ?DeNOx? system, which uses two special catalytic converters and a particulate filter in order to reduce tailpipe emissions. It's the ?DeNOx? system that will be featured in the 2008, US-bound Volkswagen Jetta TDI.
It?s easy for technology, environmental and diesel enthusiasts to get excited about vehicles like the Vision C 220 Bluetec concept, but it may be awhile before we see this particular technology hit the road. This isn?t to say that the all-new C-Class hasn?t made any groundbreaking leaps in efficiency. In an assessment done by the German technical inspection authorities (T?V), it revealed that over its life the new C-Class has a total energy requirement of the equivalent of 3,800 litres (1,000 gal.) of fuel, reducing CO2 output by 15-percent on average and reducing NOx output by 20-percent. That?s a lot of energy and emissions saved, any way you look at it. Something along the Vision C 220 Bluetec concept, will only improve things further.