Geely provides backing for Bloodhound

Geely Automotive, through Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, is to be the prime automotive sponsor (and will provide technical assistance) to the British Bloodhound world land speed record attempt in 2017.

Parts maker with an eye to the future

DPE-Automotive Ltd of Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, UK, expects turnover to increase by 30 per cent next year.

Volvo reveals next generation platform

Volvo Car has revealed first details of the platform which will underpin its next-generation mid-sized and large cars and allow the integration of its latest safety technology.

Scaleable Product Architecture (SPA) will appear for the first time on the next XC90 SUV at the end of 2014, but will be used also for the replacement 60 and 70 series models.

It allows petrol, diesel, hybrid and all-electric powertrains to be mounted identically in a fixed location, leaving engineers with flexibility in the shape and size of the rest of the car.

Flybrid and a very secret client

Next year will be particularly busy for Flybrid Automotive Ltd, the Silverstone-based company that has pioneered flywheel-based kinetic energy recovery systems (KERS) for use in road vehicles.

The first production application of a KERS-based hybrid is likely to appear in the Wrightbus StreetLite product range that appears in 2014.

This activity will mark a breakthrough for Flybrid Automotive Ltd of Silverstone which has developed mechanical flywheel kinetic energy recovery systems (KERS) using either clutched flywheel transmissions (CFT) or continuously variable transmissions (CVT) of the type designed and developed by Torotrak Ltd.

KERS in Volvos by 2017?

According to MSN Cars, which has published the first official report on the driving experience of a flywheel hybrid car, kinetic energy recovery systems (KERS) could feature in a Volvo car by 2017.

Driving the Volvo S60 demonstrator car (below) on a test track in Sweden, contributor Sean Carson gives his appraisal of the vehicle performance and concludes with the following verdict:

‘The Swedish firm’s flywheel KERS system is not the saviour of the automobile, but it is another form of technology that will prolong the life of the combustion-engined car. It’s not too far from being production ready, either – expect to see it on road-going Volvo’s as early as 2017.’

Volvo: KERS gives economy, performance gains

Volvo Cars has achieved an acceleration of 0 to 60 mile/h in 5.5 seconds with an S60 passenger car fitted with a downsized 2-litre engine - in place of the conventional V6 engine - and a KERS unit developed by Flybrid Automotive Ltd of Silverstone, UK.

According to Jon Hilton, managing director of Flybrid Automotive Ltd, Volvo Cars in Sweden has been working with the British company on the development for over two years.

“We have been working with Volvo Cars for more than two years," admitted Hilton. “They have had the vehicle both for test and for demonstration. They have had the car, based on an S60 saloon, on test for over a year. They have been working on calibration and control of the vehicle at their test centre in Gothenburg.”

Volvo Car starts new engine family

Volvo Car Group has begun production of the first engine variants in the new, high-efficiency four-cylinder engine family.

The development and production take place in-house at Volvo Car Group and form a vital part of the company's strategy for independence.

The strategy of four-cylinder petrol and diesel engines and driveline electrification is the path that Volvo Cars has chosen for the future. With its ability to control the development and production of engines and drivelines and by reducing the number of engine variants, Volvo Cars claims the result is increased flexibility.