Hyundai Fuel Cell
Pictured here is Secretary Moniz looking at the fuel cell and motor used to power Hyundai’s Tucson fuel cell vehicle. Fuel cell vehicles use hydrogen to produce electricity, which powers an electric motor to make the vehicle and its accessories work.
Image: Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 11:14
Under the hood of the Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell Vehicle
Secretary Moniz looks under the hood of the Hyundai Tucson fuel cell vehicle, which will be available in California in spring 2014. The Energy Department has significantly contributed to the foundational technology for transportation fuel cells, helping reduce the cost by 50 percent since 2006. The Tucson fuel cell vehicle will be the first mass-market hydrogen vehicle available in the U.S.
Image: Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 11:19
Chevy Spark EV
The Spark EV is the first all-electric vehicle that General Motors has produced since the EV1 in the late 1990s. Available to drivers in California and Oregon, the car uses an electric motor that is produced at a factory in White Marsh, Maryland. Through the Recovery Act, the Energy Department supported this plant, making it the first time a domestic automaker is building electric motors in the U.S.
Image: Photo by Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 10:35
Nissan and FedEx Express Put EVs to the Test
Nissan and FedEx Express announced at the Washington Auto Show that the two companies will partner to test the Nissan e-NV200 -- an all-electric compact cargo vehicle -- in real-world conditions in the Washington, D.C. area.
Image: Photo by Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 10:12
Secretary Moniz at the 2014 Washington Auto Show
Secretary Moniz visited the 2014 Washington Auto Show and met with automakers to learn how they are building on the Energy Department’s vehicle and fuel cell research to develop more efficient conventional vehicles and ones that run on alternative fuels.
Image: Photo by Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 10:49
Audi TDI Clean Diesel
An increasing number of automakers are releasing light duty clean diesel vehicles that have excellent fuel economy, especially for highway driving. In the late 1990s, the Energy Department supported research projects that reduced the emissions of diesel engines and helped bring them to American roads.
Image: Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 10:35
Ford F-150
Secretary Moniz talks with a Ford representative about the company’s F-150, its best-selling vehicle. The new 2015 F-150 uses aluminum alloys throughout its body, helping to shave more than 500 pounds off the vehicle and leading to better fuel economy. Ford’s work on lightweight material builds on research the Energy Department supported in this area in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Image: Photo by Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 11:00
Ford Ecoboost Engine
Ford’s Ecoboost Engine technology builds on the Energy Department’s research to improve fuel economy and lower emissions of combustion engines. The Energy Department’s research has helped lead to many technologies used in vehicles to improve efficiency, such as turbocharging and engine downsizing. Based on results from laboratory tests, the Energy Department predicts that the fuel economy for internal combustion engine passenger vehicles can be further improved by more than up to 50 percent.
Image: Photo by Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 11:02
Ford C-Max Solar Energi
Ford displayed its solar-powered concept car -- the C-Max Solar Energi -- at the Washington Auto Show. The electric car is fitted with solar panels on the roof and includes a concentrating lens that charges the car’s battery, allowing it to run off just the energy of the sun.
Image: Photo by Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 11:06
Toyota Fuel Cell Concept Vehicle
Secretary Moniz checks out Toyota’s fuel cell concept vehicle at the Washington Auto Show. The vehicle will be able to cover about 310 miles in a single hydrogen fill-up and will be available in 2015. The Energy Department’s work to reduce the costs of fuel cells and components like catalysts has helped lay the foundation for fuel cell vehicles like Toyota’s.
Image: Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 10:35
Toyota Fuel Cell Concept Energy System Display
To help consumers understand how fuel cell vehicles work, Toyota displayed the chaissis and power systems of its fuel cell concept car. This display demonstrates how energy flows through a vehicle, from the hydrogen fuel tank (the yellow cylinders) in the back to the fuel cell in the middle and then to the power electronics before being transported to the electric motor at the front of the car. Because there is no combustion in a fuel cell, efficiencies can be twice as high as gasoline vehicles.
Image: Photo by Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 10:58
Toyota i-Road
On display at the Washington Auto Show was Toyota’s i-Road personal mobility concept car. Less than 34 inches wide and 93 inches long, the i-Road is an ultra compact, two-seater electric vehicle that is estimated to have a driving range of 31 miles on a single charge.
Image: Photo by Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 12:23
Electric Vehicle Association of Greater Washington, D.C.
At the Washington Auto Show, the Electric Vehicle Association of Greater Washington, D.C. displayed some of its members’ vehicles, including this Porsche that is fitted with solar panels.
Image: Photo by Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 10:15
Secretary Moniz at the Washington Auto Show
Secretary Moniz toured the Washington Auto Show before giving a keynote speech, highlighting the Energy Department’s role in developing the next generation of fuel-efficient and electric vehicles. During Secretary Moniz’s remarks, he announced nearly $50 million to support advanced vehicle technologies that will provide drivers with more transportation options while helping them save money at the pump.
Image: Sarah Gerrity, Energy Department.
Date taken: 2014-01-22 10:36
Today at the Washington Auto Show, Secretary Moniz highlighted the Energy Department’s role in developing the next generation of fuel-efficient and electric vehicles and announced nearly $50 million to support advanced vehicle technologies that will provide drivers with more transportation options while helping them save money at the pump. While at the auto show, the Secretary also had a chance to visit a number of automakers to see the latest models of fuel-efficient and alternative fuel vehicles.
The photo gallery above shows highlights of the Secretary’s tour, where he had the opportunity to see cars and trucks that have benefitted from the Energy Department’s vehicle research in everything from lightweight materials and advanced combustion to electric vehicles and fuel cells. For example, the new Ford F-150 uses military-grade aluminum for the body -- a breakthrough that builds on the Department’s research in this area in the late 1990s and early 2000s -- to reduce the vehicle’s weight by more than 500 pounds and improve its fuel economy. And Hyundai’s Tucson fuel cell vehicle, which will go on sale in California in spring 2014, leverages the Department’s research in fuel cell components like catalysts and membranes to help make it the first mass-market hydrogen vehicle available in the U.S.
Take a moment to explore the slideshow, and for more on how the Energy Department’s vehicle research is laying the foundation for more efficient vehicles, visit EERE’s blog.
