Published September 5, 2012
By Philippe Crowe
Jaguar Land Rover is demonstrating the company’s ultra-low carbon XJ_e plug-in hybrid engineering research vehicle at the 2012 CENEX Low Carbon Vehicle Event today.
The XJ_e project is said to form part of JLR’s strategy to develop best-in-class low-carbon premium products, and follows other successful hybrid research demonstrators including the Range_e project.
Partially funded by the UK Government’s Technology Strategy Board through the REEVolution project, this advanced research vehicle has been engineered in partnership with leading UK technology companies to help develop expertise for ultra-low carbon vehicles within the supply chain.
According to Jaguar, the XJ_e demonstrates how an advanced parallel plug-in hybrid design can deliver reductions in CO2 emissions of over 70 per cent, without compromising vehicle performance.
Capable of 0-62 mph (0-100 kph) in under 6.5 seconds and with a limited top speed of 150 mph (250 kph), the XJ_e achieves CO2 emissions of less than 75g/km and a zero-emission range of 25 miles (40 km) on electric power.
The XJ_e combines the lightweight aluminium vehicle structure from the Jaguar XJ with an advanced plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) system, featuring the 2.0-litre turbocharged direct-injection petrol engine which powers the Range Rover Evoque and a hybridized 8-speed automatic transmission.
The hybrid system uses a 69-kw motor/generator and a 12.3-kwh Lithium Ion battery pack, which can be fully charged by an external 240V domestic supply in around four hours.
The parallel hybrid design means that the XJ_e can run on petrol power, electric power, or a combination of the two, optimized by the car’s intelligent energy management system which selects the most efficient mode.
According to Jaguar, the XJ_e is capable of exceptional performance while the improved fuel economy of 87 mpg (3.2l/100 km) translates into a maximum range of 679 miles (1,092 km) on a full tank of fuel.
