With these words, I had to convince a colleague whose face expressed inescapable skepticism, while we, fending off horse-flies the size of a good sparrow living on the Dmitrovsky training ground, are waiting for our turn to drive on an e-mobile. However, it is impossible not to recognize the right to skepticism. After the mass of victorious reports and promises, unprecedented developments such as a rotary vane engine, we see a city crossover with a Fiat four-cylinder engine, an electric motor of an unknown production and a metal body with a completely plastic body kit. The quality of fitting the details of the latter … how would it be softer to say so as not to offend the creators? Well, in general, in terms of the quality of the fitting of the panels, the Gadair "Trabant", in comparison with the ё-crossover, looks like a spaceship next to a peasant cart. But you need to be fair, and therefore once again I remind myself that this is only a prototype of a prototype prototype, followed by a pre-production version.
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The ё-crossover design from some angles looks bright and does not lose at all to most cars traveling in our cities. However, the trunk of the prototype is practically absent. If the gas-electric hybrid has trunk space for three 25-liter backpacks, then in the version with gas equipment the usable volume tends to zero. There is no place for a dokatka. The creators of the hybrid themselves claim that they will offer repair kit and service. At the same time, there is no question about Run flat rubber.
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Trunk volume “eaten up” by units. There is no place for a spare tire. under the luggage. however, too
So it’s our turn to ride. I settle in the driver's seat, the operator climbs into the back. Everything inside is booming, clean plastic. The space inside is quite enough. True, the rear seat cushion is obscene.
The workplace of the ё-crossover driver looks strange in terms of ergonomics. The control panel for everything and everything, which displays information about the operation of motors, capacitors, air conditioning and Internet access, is pushed somewhere in the driver’s right knee area. Maybe I’m wrong, but, in my opinion, such an arrangement, which requires looking down, is unlikely to contribute to the safe use of the radio and navigation system. Not without reason, among practitioner shooters, the rule written in blood is considered to be an axiom, according to which the gaze and barrel of the weapon should always be directed in one direction - the one from which the danger emanates. All this is true for the road. The speedometer and transmission position indicator are also shifted to the right for some reason. So that the passenger does not get bored and can look at the beautifully changing numbers?
[caption id = " align = "aligncenter"] The driver’s workplace is comfortable at first glance, but the dashboard’s solution is very controversial [/ caption]
A thin lever on the steering column is responsible for turning on the transmission. But first, you need to remove the car from the electric parking brake - they did not put it under the right hand, as is customary on foreign cars, but hid it down to the left of the steering column - to where normal cars usually have headlight leveling and dashboard light intensity controls. I switch the lever to the "D" position - nothing happens. I press the gas pedal - silence. I will press even harder … Here the Prokhorovsky hybrid reluctantly responds, starting the movement. In the heat with a working air conditioning, the capacitance of the capacitors is quickly exhausted, and the internal combustion engine is turned on. At the same time, unlike the Audi A6 Hybrid or the Volvo C30 Electric, the voice of the power unit of the ё-crossover is by no means harmonious. The power plant roars like a cheap hotel hairdryer, but it seems like it gives out the promised 9.9 seconds to 100 km / h.
In an official press release, the concept of the power unit is described as follows: “The movement of the ё-crossover is provided by the power plant, created on the basis of a serial hybrid drive circuit using supercapacitors as an energy storage device. This scheme allows you to effectively regulate energy consumption in the urban cycle of movement. In this scheme, the internal combustion engine does not have a mechanical connection with the wheels, and only the generator spins. The engine is designed for optimal load and is carried out in the area with the highest possible efficiency. Further, the electric power from the generator is fed into the unwinding of two electric motors located one on each axis. Each of the traction motors is integrated into the mechatronic module, in the case of which the gearbox, mechanical differential, cooling system and control electronics are also combined. One of the key tenets of the ё-mobile project philosophy is the use of a dual-fuel engine (natural gas / gasoline). The company's engineers focus primarily on natural gas methane, which over time should become the main type of fuel for the ё-mobile. The engine design was originally designed to work on natural gas, so when using methane, the engine gives out full power, which is also available when working on gasoline. At the same time, the engine resource is significantly increased, and the amount of harmful emissions is many times reduced. A supercapacitor battery is used as an energy storage device, which is able to withstand 1 million charge-discharge cycles. At the same time, supercapacitors work stably in the temperature range from -45 to +60 degrees Celsius …."
An attempt to disperse especially vivid emotions also does not deliver. The crossover seems to be accelerating well, but after a few rides the cars get up to cool the overheating power plant. Representatives of ё-AUTO reassure that this is due to the non-tuning of the unit. But we do not argue. From a conversation with the project’s marketer, we learn that the maximum speed of the ё-crossover is forcibly limited to 130 km / h. Explanation - Security Considerations. Silently exchanging glances with colleagues …
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The power unit is a duet of the FIAT ICE and an unnamed manufacturer's electric motor. On its case, something similar to the logo of the famous company GKN
