With fuel prices sky rocketing, manufacturers are looking at alternative ways to field gasoline cars.
Suzuki has presented a hybrid version of the Wagon R in Japan with a patented technology called ‘ENE-CHARGE’ in Japan.
Short for energy charge, ENE-CHARGE is a hybrid system which features a small petrol engine mated to an electric motor with a lithium-ion battery pack. Regenerative braking generates some power to help the petrol engine and runs electrical equipments of the car.
Adding to that, the hybrid Wagon-R is bundled with an energy-saving air conditioning system called "ECO-COOL." When both technologies are combined together, Suzuki claims that this Wagon R can deliver up to 28.8km/l in the Japanese cycle.
Manufacturers have upgraded technology in the usual gasoline powered cars to make them lighter and more economical. For example, Volkswagen uses technology that is extremely fuel efficient, and groups them together in a Bluemotion variant. The Wagon R hybrid is the next step to this technology as it employs a hybrid powertrain.
I would love to explain you how the technology works. Sadly, the video that they have released is in Japanese and my Japanese prowess is very much restricted to Sayonara.
[Direct Youtube link]
But we will keep a tab on this topic to make sure that you are updated. The ENE-CHARGE is a match made in heaven to Maruti Suzuki which wears the 'kitna deti hai?' attitude. Can this technology be rationalized to find a place in a super-efficient Wagon R variant?
