The UK’s iconic maker of four-wheel-drives is to fit automatic engine stop-start systems to cut urban fuel consumption

Price: £32,345
Manufacturer: Land Rover
Lem Bingley, BusinessGreen, 15 Dec 2008
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Four-wheel-drive vehicles are routinely criticised – and often singled out – for the size of their carbon footprint compared to other forms of transport. Land Rover, which makes nothing but 4x4s, is understandably keen to amend this negative connotation.

And while driving a heavy 4×4 will never be the greenest way to take the kids to school, Land Rover is at least tackling its environmental impact head on. It says it has shrunk the CO2 footprint of its assembly plant by 30 per cent since 1997, and it currently offsets all the CO2 arising from manufacture as well as the first 72,000km of use for each vehicle, in what it believes is the world’s largest carbon offsetting programme.

The company also sells some of the heaviest cars on the road, so it is working on lighter structures for future models, borrowing expertise in aluminium construction from its sister company Jaguar. Further innovations in the pipeline include smaller models, electric drive and kinetic-energy recovery systems to store and release the energy otherwise wasted each time the driver uses the brake pedal.

From spring 2009, a more immediate improvement will appear in the shape of the Freelander TD4_e, which will replace the existing diesel Freelander TD4 manual – one of Land Rover’s best-selling models.

The “e” presumably stands for economy, because the new model boasts a set of changes designed to reduce fuel consumption when the car is used on-road. According to Land Rover’s engineers, the benefit can be as much as 20 per cent on the congested urban routes where 4x4s attract such opposition.

The most noticeable change is an engine cut-off or “stop/start” system, which halts the engine whenever the Freelander is in neutral with the clutch up, and either stationary or coasting at less than walking pace. Halting the engine of course means that the car burns no fuel at all while sitting in traffic jams or waiting at lights.

A prominent green “upshift” arrow has also been added to the dashboard, which illuminates when the car’s computer works out that a higher gear would be more economical.

We drove the TD4_e on central London roads and found the stop/start system very easy to live with, requiring almost no change in driving style. Land Rover says it has aimed for a “soft stop and smooth start” for the 2.2-litre diesel engine, and this does seem to be the case. The engine restarts promptly when the clutch pedal is pressed to select first gear, with an audible burst from the starter motor the only real sign that anything unusual has happened.

The engine will not halt if a gear is selected, even if the car is held stationary on the brake and clutch, so there is no unwanted pause when joining a busy roundabout, for example.

The driver can manually switch the stop/start function on or off by pressing a dashboard button. If left off, the function will reactivate at the start of the next journey, maximising the chance that the system will succeed in cutting consumption.

Cutting the engine could be dangerous off-road, so if the driver has selected one of the four off-road modes offered by Land Rover’s Terrain Response controller, the engine will no longer switch off of its own accord. This means the Freelander’s considerable off-road capability is unaffected, as we learned while negotiating a rough course of steep climbs and descents laid out in and around the disused Battersea power station.

A fringe benefit of the stop/start package is that a stalled engine can be restarted simply by pressing the clutch within five seconds of stalling. This handy feature continues to function in off-road mode, as we proved repeatedly while bogged down in axle-deep gravel during our off-road tests. The engine will also restart automatically if the car starts to roll at more than walking pace when in neutral. Making demands on the air-conditioning system will also trigger a restart.

The technique of saving fuel by stopping and starting the engine automatically dates back to the 1980s, but has only recently become a viable option with engines that can be relied upon to restart promptly and electronic control systems to monitor power usage. The engines of certain BMWs, Minis and Smarts currently perform the feat, and even budget brand Kia has said it will offer a “Stop&Go” model from January. Hybrids from Honda and Toyota also cut and restart the engine automatically.

Uprated starter motors and batteries are required, of course, as these components suffer greater wear and tear through increased use.

Under the standard EU4 Cycle, the CO2 emissions of the Freelander 2 TD4_e are reduced by eight per cent compared with the current model. The official CO2 emissions fall from 194g/km to 179g/km. Under the new UK tax bands in effect from April 2009, this means the Freelander drops from Band J to Band I, saving £125 in first-year tax and £35 the following year. Fuel savings will vary according to use, but on the standard test cycle they amount to one litre every 77 miles, or about 130 litres saved every 10,000 miles.

Land Rover adds that the Freelander already complies with upcoming EU rules on how recyclable the car and its components must be. From 15 December 2008, 85 per cent of any newly introduced vehicle must be reusable or recyclable, and 95 per cent must be reusable or recoverable. The rules will apply to existing models from 15 July 2010.

Overall we found the Freelander TD4_e very easy to live with and unsurprisingly capable off-road, and we applaud Land Rover’s efforts to cut the car’s considerable carbon footprint down to size.

Cost: £32,345
On sale: April 2009
Engine: 2179cc 4-cylinder turbodiesel
Output: 160bhp at 4000rpm; 295lbft at 2000rpm
Transmission: Six-speed manual, four-wheel drive
Performance: 0-62mph 10.9sec, 112mph,
Economy: 42.2mpg; 179g/km CO2
Weight: 1770kg
Dimensions in mm (length/width/height): 4500/2005/1765

This article was taken from: Business Green

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Land Rover is going green…honest. The first of its CO2-reducing technologies – the Freelander TD4_e featuring stop/start technology – launches in April 2009 and promises to be the most fuel-efficient Land Rover ever offering 42.2mpg and 179g/km of CO2. The authentic 4×4 brand also claims the Freelander TD4_e is the world’s first SUV to sport an intelligent stop/start system.

A Land Rover Freelander that does 40-plus mpg? Am I dreaming?
Of course that’s the official combined figure so probably yes, but the fuel-sipping technology is still great news for drivers wanting all the ability and authenticity Land Rover is famed for, wrapped up in a greener package that will genuinely improve day-to-day economy. The stop/start tech – married to the existing 2.2-litre TD4 diesel manual – boosts official mpg by 12% (37.7 to 42.2mpg) and reduces emissions by 8% (from 194 to 179g/km) and could, says Land Rover, improve economy by 20% in heavy stop/start conditions. Land Rover’s stop/start specialist boffin Phil Whiffin believes savings could equate to £13 per tank or £680 every year.

Which engines get the technology and how much will it cost?
For now Land Rover’s launching only on the Freelander diesel manual – automatics are trickier to engineer with stop/start technology and the Freelander’s 3.2-litre petrol sales are minuscule in the UK – but stop/start systems will be rolled out to other diesel manual models in the range in time. Expect the Discovery to be next. Stop/start will be standard on the Freelander TD4 manual and incur no extra cost over the current model.

Is the driving experience affected?
When stationary, yes. Put the gear lever into neutral, release the clutch and the engine cuts out – with the reassuring confirmation that you haven’t stalled registered in the driver display with the message ‘eco stop/start on’. Otherwise no. Re-starting is just as easy – touch the clutch pedal, select a gear and accelerate. All round there’s no diesel cut-out or start-up shudder or rattle, something Land Rover’s engineers have specifically worked to mitigate. The system can be disabled too – manually at the touch of a button and automatically by the car’s computer when certain all-terrain settings are turned on – so you don’t get caught out off-road, something amply demonstrated on our London test route via the inside of Battersea Power station.

Is anything else new on the TD4_e?
Yes, the eco-focused car also has low-rolling resistance tyres and a beefed-up starter motor to help achieve its stop/start mpg excellence, plus an optimum gear selector indicator in the dash to nudge drivers into the most frugal gear for their speed. Prices for the TD4_e range from £21,325 for the S to £32,345 for the HSE model.

Verdict
This is an important variant for Land Rover that signals the start of a much more eco-aware range – from stop-start in 2009 to diesel hybrid by 2012 – and crucially without sacrificing the brand’s off-road credentials. They can’t come soon enough.

This article was taken from: Car Magazine Online

IT’S the off-roader with an eco-conscience, it’s a world beater and it’s made in Britain by Land Rover.

The latest Land Rover Freelander is about to become the first 4×4 to offer stop/start technology, slashing CO2 emissions and improving fuel economy.

Part of a five year, £800million programme, the new Freelander paves the way for Land Rover to kick into touch the gas-guzzling image of four-wheel-drive vehicles.

The stop/start technology will be available initially on manual versions of the 2.2-litre diesel Freelander at no extra cost from May next year.

To put it to the test we have just run a rush-hour experiment in the middle of London driving two stop/start models and a conventional Freelander in convoy.

Over a six-mile route which took the best part of an hour on the capital’s congested roads the stop/start version clocked 25.7mpg compared to 24.1 from the regular model which followed in its tracks.

The second stop/start Freelander escaped some of the congestion and clocked up a creditable 29.3mpg.

Prior to the rush-hour exercise we had run stop/start models through the centre of London throughout the day and managed to achieve close on 31mpg overall – a fraction more than the official urban cycle figure of 30.6.

Land Rover is claiming the Freelander TD4-e offers an eight per cent reduction in emissions – from 194 to 179g/km – and an overall fuel benefit of 4.5mpg taking the average consumption up from 37.7 to 42.2mpg.

Do the sums and it equates to potential fuel cost saving of almost £700 a year – that’s £13 on every full tank.

Stop/start technology is not new – it’s a common feature on the new MINI and on BMW models – but in the 4×4 world it’s groundbreaking.

The Land Rover system is good. Unlike some others it’s smooth, rapid and feels quite natural.

Come to rest in traffic, select neutral and take your foot off the clutch and the engine switches off. It fires back into life the moment you depress the clutch to begin moving away.

During our six mile test in London the engine on the stop/start Freelander was off for 12 of the 40 minutes the journey took.

The benefits are obvious but Land Rover has made sure there is no compromise in performance – on and off-road.

The stop/start system can be switched off manually if necessary but it is smart enough to know when to operate.

Off-road it would be ineffective so as soon as the car’s Terrain Response system is activated, stop/start is neutralised.

Unlike other models with such technology, Land Rover has made sure that when everyday going gets tough the car will still do the necessary.

If power is needed to run the air conditioning or other systems an over-ride kicks in and the engine comes back into life.

As a further economy aid there are tell-tale indicators on the dash prompting the driver to select the correct gear.

Land Rover is so confident of the benefits of the system it will not be an option. As of May, all diesel manual Freelanders will be stop/start.

Research is already under way to improve 4×4 green credentials with diesel hybrid models slated for production in the near future.

The LRX baby Land Rover concept could translate into a 4×4 with CO2 emissions as low as a Ford Fiesta and fuel consumption of around 60mpg.

Land Rover is even working on an advanced hybrid with a three cylinder engine driving a generator which could result in a Range Rover with emissions of just 140g/km compared to the 299g/km the current V8 diesel emits.

It’s fascinating stuff which Land Rover is committed to making reality within the next ten years – so what’s next to moan about on the school run!

This article was taken from: D & G Standard