NO GUILT TRIP

Among the first off the block, Mahindra & Mahindra unveiled its eco-friendly Scorpio and Bolero at the Auto Expo, shattering the myth that SUVs and multi-utility vehicles are guzzlers and polluters. The Scorpio now comes as both a diesel-electric hybrid and a biodiesel vehicle, while the Bolero has been fitted to run on biodiesel. The biodiesel variants are now available in the market, the hybrids will hit the roads in 18-24 months. “Alternate power train vehicles, especially hybrid vehicles, are our near-term solution to reducing pollution and fuel consumption,” says Pawan Goenka, president, Automotives, about his company, Mahindra’s business plans for the future.

The biofuel that the Scorpio and Bolero use is jatropha diesel. The eco-friendly fuel, which emits much lower carbon dioxide, hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxide, is available in small quantities in parts of the country. But isn’t that a problem? Dr Arun Jaura, senior vice-president, R&D and Global Product Development, Mahindras, agrees. But he adds, “Biodiesel may not be available in commercial quantities, but as manufacturers we cannot wait for availability of the fuel to develop a technology that uses it.” Till the time jatropha fuel is more readily available, the vehicles can run on normal diesel or other biofuels.

The biodiesel Scorpio has the old 2.6 common rail engine while the hybrid variant runs on the new 2.2 engine which punches out 120 bhp, 5 bhp more than the old engine. “We had to make minimum changes to adapt the common rail engine for biodiesel,” says Jaura. “Not only do the alternative engines provide high fuel economy but there also is no dip in performance,” he adds.

M&M has already launched microhybrids that reduce the usage of fuel when the vehicle has to stop and start at a traffic signal. The full hybrid vehicles that will use a rechargeable battery and petrol will come later. Another green vehicle that Mahindras have come up with is the Hy-Alfa, a three-wheeler powered by hydrogen that runs with near zero emissions.

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