Next-gen Jaguar Land Rover air-con to kill germs

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has announced that it is working on new in-car filtration technology that could help stop the spread of the common cold.

The new air conditioning units work by using the same ultraviolet light technology (UV-C) that's used in hospitals for disinfecting water, filtering air in operating theatres and even sterilising surfaces.

Integrating UV-C tech, JLR says, will help stop the bacteria and harmful viruses from surviving in the car and breeding with the air conditioning units.

"The average motorist spends as much as 300 hours per year behind the wheel," said Dr Steve Iley, Jaguar Land Rover chief medical officer. "There is a clear opportunity to better utilise cars for administering preventative healthcare.”

"The implementation of individual well-being measures as part of our 'tranquil sanctuary' research promises to not only improve quality of life for our customers but in this case, offers clear advantages in reducing pathogen spread – protecting the overall population from the threat of disease; particularly as we move towards shared mobility solutions."

JLR points out that in recent medical trials, the use of UV-C can cut the transmission of four major superbugs by as much as 30 per cent.

Jaguar Land Rover has not announced when it plans to introduce its the new UV-C-equipped air filtration tech into its model range.