“Yo-Mobile” is a breakthrough in the classical automotive industry,”says Andrey BIRYUKOV, General Director of Yo-Auto LLC. - And most importantly, the most explosive in it is the body. Its main material is polypropylene. In the automotive industry, we are the first to apply such technology to the manufacture of the whole body. In principle, they have been doing it for a very long time. In Europe, billions have been spent on the creation of new materials, but automakers are saddled with old technology. And when we came up with such an offer, the equipment developers were just happy to make turnkey production for us.
The following is a hybrid scheme. Our car is electrically powered and has a power plant on board. The fundamental difference from existing circuits is in energy storage devices. These are supercapacitors, in the development of which the Soviet Union was still the leader …
In the discussion on the theme “Electric car or hybrid”, we argue that a pure electric car has no prospect. On the contrary, this is a minus that will allow the classic car to survive as long as possible. We do not want to be tied to a large energy sector. I am sure that in the very near future fundamentally new sources of energy will emerge which, - emphasizes Andrei BIRYUKOV, - will take their place under the hood of the ё-mobile.
Andrey BIRYUKOV, General Director of ё-Auto LLC
BODY
The main body material is polypropylene, a durable wear-resistant polymer. Two lines of the future plant in St. Petersburg will produce monocoque and external panels. The main advantages, as conceived by the authors of the project, will provide the properties of the material itself: in strength (including in crash tests) it will not yield to steel, while being 30–40% lighter, more resistant to corrosion, and more technologically advanced. Priming and painting are eliminated, the number of parts is reduced, and their connection is partially simplified. In total, according to calculations, 500-600 conveyor meters can be removed from the traditional technological chain.
Compact crossover
Compact crossover. Compact crossover.
The E-Mobile will be a pioneer, and, in addition to the obvious pluses, the polymer body probably has a lot of disadvantages. However, some are already in full view: for example, the whole body can be manufactured in mass production only after a year. Accordingly, only then will it be possible to conduct full-scale tests. With all due respect to the computer modeling that is going on now, I will assume that surprises do arise. How to fix them - with already purchased turnkey technology?
ENGINE
The ё-mobile engine can be anything - even a piston, even a rotor-blade (RLD), or just a black box with two wires. So excited all RLD goes through the fine-tuning stage; however, the problems inherent in this design are solved under the condition of continuous operation. That's exactly how, according to the idea of the developers, the motor should work, supplying energy to the drive - and that will already power the traction motor. At the first stage, they plan to purchase conventional piston engines; a volume of about 1 liter and a power of about 45 kW is quite enough, the authors of ё-Auto say.
The price of the engine (now calculated as a regular piston) will be 1, 200 euros, which will completely fit into the price framework of the entire project (360 thousand rubles - the declared minimum cost of the "ё-mobile"). There are no technical problems, except perhaps recalling the declared multi-fuel … After all, not all ICE manufacturers today have completely ready-made solutions for operating their methane engines. We will postpone the ways of storing and refueling it for the time being, following the example of the authors of the project - not for nothing that they offer an cheaper gasoline option as an option.
As for the RLD, with all the possible advantages, no one built it in series.
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ENERGY STORAGE
The Yo-Mobile is essentially a hybrid, which means it needs an on-board energy storage device. Lithium-ion batteries, rightly say the developers of the machine, have a number of disadvantages - from high cost and long charging to lack of infrastructure and even explosiveness. Therefore, supercapacitors were selected that can withstand up to a million charge-discharge cycles, work stably in a wide temperature range, and are capable of delivering high energy at once. They are supposed to be used primarily for acceleration. With uniform movement, the electric motor will receive energy through the generator from the engine.
The suspension, steering, brakes and other systems of the car will be made on the side. The project partner Magna Corporation, within the framework of the terms of reference, is ready to provide several options for the selection of components.
PRODUCTION
The production of the ё-mobile is supposed to be deployed in two stages. At the first - 45 thousand bodies a year, then up to 90 thousand. The assembly of cars is planned to be organized in St. Petersburg, and later in the regions. The dealerships will serve as a base: they are equipped with everything they need, they know how to repair technology, including complex bodywork, why not even start small-scale production? Of course, under strict technical control of the parent ё-Auto.
City hatchback
City hatchback. City hatchback.
Well, what is the "yo-mobile", they kind of answered. Now - why they were silent.
Because we considered and believe this project is not automobile, but image-building. The time of ingenious single engineers, who boldly rushed into the unknown and rode out on a white horse, has passed. To make a car that meets modern requirements, today is not enough courage and talent. We need a powerful structure: a plant, a technical center, a training ground, an engineering, marketing, production building …
Such fruits were brought by the long-standing work of those same geniuses: Porsche, Daimler, Citroen, Ford … The creators of the ё-mobile talk about it as if they are building one concept, not a serial product - judging by the number of innovations that are pushed into polypropylene body. The price at the same time announce an unheard of low. They also offer to spray production throughout the country. And what, this fairy tale will come true only because the prime minister swept the layout of the ё-mobile?
