10.07.2017
Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant (UAZ) presented a development prototype of its new hybrid electric vehicle at the International Industrial Trade Fair INNOPROM-2017 in Yekaterinburg on July 10. Russian President Vladimir Putin was the first person who saw the UAZ innovative car.
As part of his tour of the International Industrial Trade Fair INNOPROM-2017, Vladimir Putin visited the stand of the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant where plant’s general director V.A. Shvetsov showed him the upcoming promising car model.
The hybrid electric vehicle was designed by LLC UAZ Research and Engineering Center with support from the Central Scientific Research Automobile and Automotive Engines Institute (NAMI). The new model was developed on the basis of the UAZ’s new commercial car, UAZ PROFI, loaded weight up to 3.5 t, mass production of which is planned to be launched in September 2017.
UAZ’s first hybrid electric vehicle is presented in a “sectional” view so that the exhibition’s visitors could visualize energy distribution between power units in different operation modes. The development prototype presented at the exhibition is equipped with a gasoline naturally aspirated engine, a 84 kW starter-generator unit, a 105 KW traction electric motor with torque up to 469 Nm, a 25 kW high-voltage storage battery, and auxiliary systems for energy distribution and conversion.
Furthermore, the presented prototype is equipped with an intellectual driver’s support system, which warns the driver of unintentional straying from the lane, recognizes traffic signs, traffic lights and pedestrians and measures the distance from the car ahead. Thanks to these options, the future UAZ car will be classified as having automation level of “2” and “3” (according to SAE J3016* standard).
In the longer run, UAZ hybrid electric vehicles are projected to have up to 1,000 km fuel range, fuel economy (for a vehicle with a load capacity of 1,500 kg) as low as 7 l per 100 km, and up to 100 km of electrically-powered driving range. Cars will be equipped with rechargers connectable to AC or DC mains. The new car combines the advantages of gasoline- and diesel-fueled cars and its electric motor boasts nearly a double torque compared to internal combustion engine. The hybrid electric vehicle meets the most strict environmental requirements established for its potential export destinations, including EU member countries.
Supervised trial runs of UAZ PROFI equipped with hybrid power unit are planned for 2019.
The innovative UAZ PROFI will also be equipped with the UAZ proprietary telematics platform allowing to monitor vehicle’s condition remotely, which will help substantially increase the efficiency of car fleet management and reduce overall OPEX. With support from the V2I (Vehicles to Infrastructure) system, which is currently being created in Russia, the upcoming UAZ car will provide customers with a wide range of online services — from automated technical support and navigation to information and entertainment services.
LLC UAZ general director V.A. Shvetsov said: “We forecast that means of transportation powered by alternative energy sources will plunge into the Russian market and into the largest automobile markets worldwide in the next few years, and hybrid power vehicles are destined to take the biggest market share. We see our goal as implementing innovative technologies to offer the very best vehicles to our clients, which, in addition to perfect environmental characteristics, boast the very best fuel economy. Equipped with ADAS and telematics platform, our vehicles will be much safer and cheaper to run in any operational conditions, including the most tough ones. In addition, the new model has a high export potential: UAZ plans to supply it to the global market, including to China and Europe,” Vadim Shvetsov noted. According to Shvetsov, the key to successful development of electromobiles in Russia is localization of battery production technologies and reduction of their production cost: “Organizing local production of batteries will allow bringing the cost of their production down to EUR 150 per one KW thus making both the batteries and electromobiles competitive on the world market. These goals have been fully supported by the president, and we hope to start intensive work with potential Russian suppliers in the near future,” Shvetsov stressed.
*SAE J3016 “Taxonomy and Definitions for Terms Related to On-Road Motor Vehicle Automated Driving Systems” — an international vehicle automation classification system, where a vehicle equipped with only alarm systems is given a “0” grade and a fully automated vehicle is given a “5” grade.
