Citroen has been working on its environmental credentials and this year has shown off a wide range of fuel-efficient and low-emission vehicles. At the Business Car Live Show at the end of September, the company displayed some of its latest technology aimed at keeping emissions to a minimum, including its Diesel Particulate Filter System (DPFS), Stop & Start technology and Electronic Gearbox System (EGS). At present, Citroen's car range includes over 20 models that have carbon dioxide emissions of 120 grammes per kilometre or less, the company has stated.

Citroen has also been highlighting the environmentally-friendly aspects of its light commercial vehicles. The company has adopted the latest generation of Euro 4 HDi diesel engines, which are widely regarded as being among the cleanest and most fuel-efficient engines currently available for commercial vehicles. Its C2 Enterprise van has been shown to deliver 113 grammes per kilogramme of carbon dioxide and has been demonstrated in independent tests to be the UK's most economical diesel van. Meanwhile, its Dispatch models are the first light commercial vehicles to be fitted with the company's Diesel Particulate Filter System (DPFS) which cut particulate emissions to "virtually immeasurable levels", according to Citroen.

Suzuki Motors released the Crosscage hydrogen-powered motorcycle at the Tokyo Motor Show in October. Developed in conjunction with Loughborough-based Intelligent Energy, the new motorcycle is aimed at bringing the potential of a hydrogen-based economy one step closer, according to its creators. The designers believe that the motorcycle is the first commercially-viable fuel-cell motorbike available and is expected to be considerably cheaper than fuel cell cars that are currently in development. While Toyota is aiming to develop a fuel cell car that would cost $60,000 to consumers, Intelligent Energy director Phil Caldwell has claimed that the Crosscage will cost only a fraction of that amount. If that proves to be the case, it is hoped that the motorbike could provide a real opportunity for consumers to purchase an environmentally-friendly mode of transport.

Meanwhile, in the US Honda is working to increase the number of fuel cell vehicles it has on the road. The company has announced it is to launch in the region of 100 fuel cell cars next year and expects the majority of them to go to individuals. At present, Honda has a number of fuel cell vehicles in operation on US roads but only two belong to individuals, with the majority in fleet service. Honda President Takeo Fukui said that the number of fuel cell cars put on the market by the company next year would be under 100 and they will be leased rather than sold in an effort to make them more affordable to consumers.

Although Honda is looking to keep its fuel cell car development to a relatively small number, Toyota has announced that it is to invest significantly more in the production of its hybrid vehicles in the near future. The company has seen huge success of its Prius hybrid vehicle in the US and beyond. It is currently on track to sell in the region of 250,000 hybrid cars around the world this year and as a result the company's President, Katsuaki Watanabe, is looking to boost production. Toyota is now planning to deliver as many as one million hybrid cars per year within a few years, he commented. Toyota has also seen an increased take-up of its hybrid vehicles in the European market, where it is expecting to sell in the region of 40,000 hybrid cars this year.

Figures from the US revealed a patchy sales market for vehicles, with General Motors (GM) announcing improvements, while Ford suffered further slumps. Pickups proved popular in the US for GM, with the sector expected to turn in a two per cent improvement, even though its fleet sales are expected to fall. However, Toyota is struggling to build on its success of last year, according to Market Watch, with the company seeing the third month of year-on-year declines in its sales. The company has, however, retained its dominance of the hybrid sector and the automotive firm is hopeful that its new developments in that area will help to stimulate growth in the future.

Ÿ Adfero Ltd