Land Rover goes green

Land Rover has launched its new Freelander 2 TD4_e in Australia, which incorporates stop/start engine functionality to reduce fuel consumption.

Once the sole preserve of hybrid cars, more and more non-hybrid cars are coming equipped with stop/start engine systems.

Land Rover states that the TD4_e is the world's first SUV to feature intelligent stop/start technology, however the Lexus RX400h which launched in late 2005 featured stop-start engine technology and its successor, the RX450h beats the Land Rover to market locally as well. Perhaps the qualifier there is the Land Rover is the first SUV with a diesel engine to feature this technology.

Priced at $45,590 (not including dealer and statutory charges), the Freelander 2 TD4_e model is available in Australia with a six-speed manual only and is powered by a 2.2-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel engine that generates 118kW/400Nm.

It has a quoted fuel consumption of 6.7L/100km, down from 8.5L/100km in the previous models, which were only available with six-speed automatic transmissions.

This 21 per cent drop in fuel consumption is due in part to the adoption of a manual gearbox, but also to Land Rover's intelligent stop/start system which, as the name suggests, shuts the Freelander's engine down in "appropriate situations".

"The Stop/Start Freelander 2 is the first production vehicle to benefit from Jaguar Land Rover's massive investment in sustainable technologies," explained Roger Jory, Land Rover Australia's General Manager.

"It also represents a new entry level into the Land Rover brand, offering improved fuel efficiency and reduced emissions without compromising the vehicle's outstanding on-road performance, and class-leading off-road ability".

Though Land Rover calls its intelligent stop/start system automatic, the driver must shift the gearbox into neutral and leave the clutch unengaged before the engine will switch off.

In practice, drivers can cruise along normally and during situations where the car is stationary and the engine would usually idle, such as at traffic lights, the engine will switch off when the gear shifter is placed in neutral.

An advanced starter motor instantly cranks the engine when the clutch pedal is depressed. Whenever the engine turns offs via the stop/start system, an ECO icon on the centre console will illuminate.

As well as reduced fuel consumption, emissions have dropped from 224g/km to 179g/km, which effectively makes it the greenest Land Rover on offer.

According to Land Rover, the system makes the most fuel savings in heavy commuter traffic and urban situations and thanks to changes to engine systems, such as the alternator, all the car's features such as the climate control and stereo will still function when the engine switches off.

In addition to the stop/start engine functionality, the Freelander 2 TD4_e also features a gearshift indicator light that alerts drivers as to the optimal shift times to reduce fuel consumption.

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