| Valeo has confirmed it is the driving force
behind PSA’s strategic plan to be the first carmaker in Europe to
offer consumers technology that automatically shuts down engines in a
bid to save on fuel consumption and cut airborne pollution.
Valeo’s belt-driven starter-alternator that will be installed at the place of conventional alternators in a number of PSA models next year |
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Starting in 2004, selected PSA cars will feature Valeo’s
14-volt belt-driven starter-alternator that enables a start-stop mode
to cut power to the engine automatically when the vehicle is standing
still and in neutral. The system then fires the engine back to life inside
400 milliseconds and without noise as soon as the driver presses the accelerator
pedal or releases the brakes.
Valeo chiefs insist that PSA drivers will benefit from around 10 per cent
in fuel savings, as well as a substantial reduction in noise, zero emissions
at standstill and the prospect of having a longer tank life.
The belt-driven starter-alternator combines the functions of the starter
and alternator into one easy-to-install unit that, through electric control,
not only efficiently generates electrical energy, but is also capable
of performing the function of a conventional starter motor.
Using existing alternator engine mountings, the Valeo system is a flexible
bolt-on solution that does not intrude on powertrain design, unlike integrated
starter-alternators that tend to be located between the engine and transmission
and subsequently forces extensive re-design of such systems.
It is thought Peugeot’s 206 and Citroën’s C2 and C3 models
will be the first vehicles to feature Valeo’s technology next year,
with PSA boss Jean-Martin Folz estimating that more than 50,000 Peugeot
and Citroën cars will be armed with Valeo’s technology by 2006.
Valeo’s launch timing of its belt-driven start-alternator is hot
on the heels of Visteon’s earlier announcement (AE Sept 03) that
the US tier one had developed its own integrated starter generator system
– Speedstart12 – that offers up to five per cent in fuel savings
and further reductions in CO2 emissions.
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