- A + A print
Home > Motoring > Motoring News > 2011 News >  

Electric Shock! Mercedes Benz B-Class


Electric Shock! Mercedes Benz B-Class

Author: Trent NikolicDate: 15 September 2011
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3

Called B-Class E-Cell Plus, yes that is a mouthful, Mercedes-Benz pulled the wraps off the new B-Class model at Frankfurt yesterday. The highlight is definitely the plug-in hybrid version, which features a petrol engine as well as an battery-driven electric motor for optimised coverage of longer distance driving. Mercedes-Benz hopes that offering the driving range of conventional cars will make this new hybrid B-Class a winner.

The B-Class hybrid can drive on electric power alone, and owners can recharge the lithium-ion batteries from a conventional household power outlet. These facts should see the B-Class gain some popularity as a city run-around that can also cover longer distances if need be.

If battery power drops below a certain point, a three-cylinder turbo charge petrol engine is kicked into life, which both runs the car and recharges the batteries until they ave enough power to run the vehicle again. That petrol engine only churns out 50kW. However, the fact that it can add up to 500km more to the driving range is impressive enough regardless of its power output. Running on electricity alone will see you cover 100km.

We don’t have confirmation as to whether we will see the B-Class hybrid here for sure or not, but Mercedes-Benz is looking at it. Given the unique challenges for driver in Australia – distances being one – it might not sell in huge numbers. That won’t stop Mercedes-Benz from bringing it Down Under though if they believe there is a market for it.

 

Tags:

News, B-Class, News

Car Reviews

Make
Model
Year
Review type

Join thousands of others following NRMA

  • rss

    RSS

  • rss

    Twitter