It turns out Jaguar Land Rover wasn’t the only one showcasing its green luxury car concept at the recent Goodwind Festival of Speed in the United Kingdom.
Infiniti, Nissan’s upper crust brand, was also on hand with an actual fully functional version of its concept Emerg-E hybrid design it first unveiled earlier this year at the Geneva Motor Show.
The Infiniti Emerg-E, under the hood, sports 402bhp (300kW) mid-engined, twin motor, electric motors capable of accelerating from 0-60mph in just four seconds – and from zero to 130 mph in what is said to be a single 30 second burst. It also operates as a “zero emission urban transport over a 30-mile range,” and when the range-extender gas engine functions in concert with its twin electric motors, it produces a CO2 output of only 55g/km (NEDC cycle).
The concept vehicle’s lithium ion battery can be recharged from a mains power supply (domestic and fast-charge) and stores sufficient energy for the EV mode only operation. The gas engine, purpose designed for its role in range extending, is a Lotus Engineered three-cylinder 1.2-liter 35kW offering.
The car is considered lightweight on the road, with an aluminum chassis and carbon fiber body that provides for greater frame strength in conjunction with what is said to be a 50 percent weight drop compared to that of materials used in traditional sports car design. Weight of the Emerg-E comes in at 3523 pounds.
The Emerg-E is Infiniti’s answer to a mandate from the UK government for the the development of innovative power trains to reduce CO2 emissions. It has been working with the government’s Technology Strategy Board (TSB), as well as partners Lotus Engineering, NTCE, CGI, EVO, Xtrac and a number of UK-based specialist technology companies, on the creation of this concept.
A financial component from the TSB was also involved, helping to, in the automaker’s words, significantly have “widened the resource that Infiniti can draw upon in the development of Emerg-E and use technology relevant for the future of the automobile.”
There’s no mention at this time if the Emerg-E would actually even become a production model from Infiniti, though it is likely technologies developed from it will find their way into future vehicles actually for sale in dealerships.
