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Peugeot Unveils Hybrid Le Mans Racer

By Ben Whitworth Motor Industry 07 October 2008 13:03 Peugeot used the final round of this season’s Le Mans Series at Silverstone this weekend to show off its new hybrid-powered 908 HDi FAP racer, which features a similar kinetic energy recovery setup to next year’s Formula 1 system.The 908’s ‘HY’ undertook a number of demonstration laps in front of the packed grandstands and showed how Peugeot’s passenger car technology is filtering through to its motorsport activities.Over the weekend, the Automobile Club de l’Ouest – the company that runs the Le Mans series – announced a raft of aerodynamic and air-intake changes to next year’s regulations to even out the advantages of diesel over petrol. But rather frustratingly for Peugeot, there were no moves to incorporate hybrid powertrains in the 2009 season.But Peugeot claims that it will enter the 908 HY into next year’s Le Mans Series as a ‘Double Oh’ non-competitor to further evaluate the car’s hybrid technology.The HY’s layout comprises three key components - an 80bhp gear-driven electric motor-generator which replaces the conventional starter motor, 10 lithium-ion battery stacks to store the recovered power (six in the cockpit instead of the conventional battery and four on the left-hand side of the floor pan) and an electronic power converter, located in the rear part of the front left wing, which controls the flow of energy between batteries and motor.The result is a 3-5% mechanical energy recovery – and the associated economy and performance benefits. Over a single lap of Le Mans, for example, the system will recoup lost energy for up to 30seconds.This is then converted into a 20second 80bhp kick can either be meted out automatically by the car’s electronics to bolster acceleration throughout the lap or be selectively used by the driver using a ‘push to pass’ boost button.The additional and modified components add a further 65kg to the car’s weight, but Peugeot’s engineers claim the racecar will still easily meet the minimum regulated weight. “As a car manufacturer we can use motor sport as a research and development tool for the Peugeot brand as a whole,” said Michel Barge, Peugeot Sport’s director.

New 2014 Corvette Stingray gets 29 mpg highway

Chevrolet has been dropping stats about its new Corvette every so often, and the latest to come down the pike are its fuel economy ratings. The Corvette Stingray's EPA estimated rating of 17 mpg in the city and 29 mpg on the highway makes it 11 percent more fuel efficient than the previous Corvette. These ratings are for the Corvette equipped with the all new seven-speed manual transmission.

Volkswagen XL1 priced at £98,515 - 30 coming to UK

By Nikolai Attard Motor Industry 30 June 2014 15:16 Volkswagen has announced the price for the energy-efficient XL1, which has now gone on sale in the UK. Only 200 VW XL1s will be built, with up to 30 making their way to deep-pocketed early adopters in the UK. The XL1 was on show at last weekend’s 2014 Goodwood Festival of Speed where it silently whirred up the hill in front of 50,000 spectators on Sunday.