DaimlerChrysler Pushes Sustainable Mobility at Shanghai 2005 Show

22 April 2005

At the Auto Shanghai 2005 show, DaimlerChrysler is emphasizing its entire range of approaches to sustainable mobility for Asia as a whole, and China in particular.

Making their Asian debuts at the show are the Mercedes-Benz S-Class Hybrid (earlier post) and a cutaway model of the fuel-cell version of the new B-Class F-Cell (earlier post).

China is the fastest growing car market in the world, up some 80% in the last four years, and is overtaking Germany as the number three manufacturer of vehicles behind the US and Japan. According to estimates by J. D. Power, the number of automobiles in China will nearly triple from the current 20 million to almost 60 million by 2010. In 15 years, the number of cars in the country is estimated at up to 140 million.

With the rising need for mobility and the continuing high demand for cars and commercial vehicles, the biggest challenges for our industry in China and the rest of Asia are the environment-friendly use of energy and other resources.

In addition to alternative drive systems such as hybrid drive and fuel cells, DaimlerChrysler is also working on optimizing the internal-combustion engine, which still has enormous potential also in China.

Dr. Thomas Weber, DaimlerChrysler

DaimlerChrysler’s diesel work is key in that regard. Natural gas and synthetic fuels factor in there as well, and DaimlerChrysler supplies bifuel gasoline/natural gas versions of the E-Class and the Sprinter as options.

The company is also emphasizing its work with synthetic liquid fuel in the Fischer-Tropsch Gas-to-Liquid (GTL), Biomass-to-Liquid (BTL) or Coal-to-Liquid (CTL) processes.