Mercedes-Benz to introduce new Citan urban delivery van; electric drive version being planned
03 February 2012
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| Sketch of the Citan. Click to enlarge. |
Mercedes-Benz will introduce a new urban delivery van called Citan later this year. The name Citan combines the words “city” and “titan,” indicating that the vehicle is designed for city logistics, the company said during a symposium on brand competence and city logistics held at the Mercedes-Benz Design Center in Sindelfingen.
The drive concept encompasses a broad range of low-emission, fuel-efficient diesel and gasoline engines and includes a BlueEFFICIENCY package. An electric drive version is also being planned.
The Citan will be launched on the market in fall 2012. The vehicle will be unveiled to the general public for the first time at the IAA Commercial Vehicle Show in Hanover in September.
With the introduction of the new urban delivery vehicle, Mercedes-Benz is adding another production series to its family of vans. The Citan is supplementing the Vario (6.0 to 8.2 tons), Sprinter (3.0 to 5.0 tons), and Vito (2.77 to 3.2 tons) to broaden the range of products in the lower weight classes of the van market.
Whereas the small vans segment was still a niche market in the mid-1990s, it has now grown to around 700,000 units in Europe. Mercedes-Benz Vans plans to gain a market share of 4-5% in this segment.
Due to its large number of variants, the new urban delivery van will be suited for a broad range of commercial applications, the company said. Not only will the Citan be offered as a panel van, a crewbus, and a mixed-use vehicle; it will also be available in a variety of lengths and weights.
Mercedes-Benz has greatly expanded its vans business in recent years; the brand is not only manufacturing vans in Düsseldorf (Sprinters), Ludwigsfelde (Sprinters and Varios), and Vitoria, Spain (Vitos), but also in the US, Argentina, and China.
It is also planning to strengthen its presence in the Russian market through a partnership with GAZ, the leading manufacturer of commercial vehicles in Russia. Over the medium-term, the GAZ factory near Nizhny Novgorod will produce 25,000 Sprinters each year.
Looks like a slightly updated Chevy HHR.
Posted by: sd | 03 February 2012 at 11:01 AM
Toyota claims that it has increased fuel economy from 87 MPGe to 96 MPGe for its built in USA Prius PHEV. The next improvement will certainly take it over 100 MPGe.
Posted by: HarveyD | 03 February 2012 at 02:45 PM
Honda Civic hybrid has gone from 41 mpg to 44 mpg for 2012 even with a 1.5l up from a 1.3l engine. They have a lithium battery that can supply the current and a bit more powerful motor.
The Ford Fusion hybrid is rated at 40 mpg even though the drive design is licensed from Toyota like the Escape was. This is a bit embarrassing because the Camry hybrid was rated at 33 mpg. In 2012 the Camry hybrid is rated higher.
It is amazing what you can do when you use the motor more aggressively and you have the battery and motor to do it. They had the motor in the Prius/Escape/Camry/Fusion design, they just did not have the battery and did not enable it with the software quite as much. Now that they are starting to use lithium batteries, we could see more zoom with higher mileage.
Posted by: SJC | 03 February 2012 at 04:35 PM