Press Release
Innovations for Green Mobility
 Optimized powertrain and electrification offer greatest saving potential
 Electronics enable anticipatory, fuel-saving driving
 Less weight for engine mounts and interior material
Hanover, June 3, 2013. Green mobility is an issue the auto industry is currently devoting
more attention to than any other. The car of the future is expected to be powerful and
comfortable, and yet it must also be as fuel-efficient as possible, emit few CO2 emissions,
and be manufactured as eco-friendly as possible. The only way to cope with these
challenges is to rigorously upgrade technology and material. In keeping with its Engineering
Green Value concept, Continental develops and produces a comprehensive package of
components, modules, and systems for this purpose. Three key aspects take center stage
here: protecting resources, climate neutrality, and – last but not least – stepped-up efficiency.
This gives rise to products that improve the eco-balance of vehicles without compromising
comfort or driving pleasure. In so doing, Continental developers can build on the wideranging expertise of one of the largest automotive suppliers in the world, while also benefiting
from synergies between the five divisions in the company.
Even in ten years’ time, around 95 percent of all new cars will still be powered by a gasoline
or diesel engine. For this reason, the most effective method of cutting pollutant and CO2
emissions in road traffic is still the optimization and gradual electrification of the conventional
powertrain. Through the simultaneous advancement of both pillars of the "Clean Power"
technology package (combustor and electrification), Continental supports the complete range
of optimization concepts en route to clean individual mobility in 2020 and beyond. Functions
of the electrical and mechanical path are further integrated in a holistic approach and the
systems and components in the electrical powertrain – from the battery and power
electronics through to the electric motor for all types of electric drives – further optimized.
Electronic solutions are already helping drivers to save fuel. An example of this is the
"eHorizon" software concept, which, in conjunction with the AFFP® (accelerator force
feedback pedal), allows for anticipatory driving.
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Your contact person:
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-2This, too, saves fuel. Special sensors calculate the actual fuel quality in the tank as well as
the sulfur content. In this way, they help not only to reduce emissions but also to improve the
efficiency and durability of modern diesel engines.
Lighter materials and energy-efficient components also play an important role in green
mobility. To save weight, Continental ever more frequently uses polyamide to make even
ultra heavy-duty motor mounts and structural components. These components shave fifty
percent off the weight of comparable conventional aluminum engine mounts. Interior foils for
door trim and instrument panels made from TPO (olefin-based thermoplastic elastomers) are
not only recyclable and halogen-free. They also reduce the weight by between 25 and 50
percent, depending on the design.
Drive belts offer another lever for promoting low-consumption and emission-reduced
engines. These generate less friction and provide longer service life than conventional drive
belts. Heavy-duty multiple V-ribbed belts from Continental are also at work in fuel-efficient,
CO2-reducing start-stop systems. At the same time, special hose lines make for more
effective air conditioners and exhaust gas cleaning systems in an increasing number of cars.
There is a particularly high need for vacuum systems in electric, hybrid, and diesel vehicles.
Regardless of the powertrain, the electrical vacuum pump (EVP) helps reduce CO2
emissions from conventional combustion engines in the case of "vacuum on demand".
Health and environmental considerations are closely linked, as demonstrated by
Continental's current range of surface materials. Ultra-modern materials for seat covers and
door trim are particularly kind to the skin, free of contact allergens, and low in emissions.
They can contain up to fifty percent renewable raw materials and exhibit a CO2 balance that
is fifteen percent than standard cover materials. In view of the fact that all of us spend up to
two-and-a-half years of our life in a car, it is important to make the interior climate as healthy
as possible. In China, the Government has specified guide values for pollutant evaporation in
the vehicle interior; these materials make it easier to comply with these values.
Your contact person:
Mario Töpfer, +49 511 938-1304
-3Continental Innovations for Green Mobility in Detail
Acella® Eco Natural: Seat Material Made from Renewable Raw Materials
With the Acella® Eco product family, the Continental surface specialist Benecke-Kaliko is
contributing in a major way to improving the climate in vehicle interiors. As an interior
material for vehicle seats and door trim, Acella® Eco Green is is ultra-skin-friendly, free of
contact allergens, and low in emissions. Acella® Eco Natural has a renewable raw material
content of up to fifty percent and exhibits a fifteen percent better CO2 balance than standard
cover materials. TEPEO® interior foils are up to fifty percent lighter than the usual PVC
products. This can help save up to two kilograms of weight in the car. But it is not just inside
the vehicle that these surface materials are kind to people and the environment. They offer
benefits already in the manufacturing stage and then again later during recycling. The eco
balance testifies to this. The entire life cycle of TEPEO® was compared with that of a
conventional PVC foil: The lightweight TEPEO® foil has a forty-eight-percent better CO2
balance than the standard foil.
Plastic Replacing Aluminum – Engine Mounts and Structural Components Getting
Lighter
Use plastic rather than metal for components is another way to cut weight and render
vehicles more eco-friendly. Continental’s glass-fiber-reinforced polyamide engine mounts
and structural components are at work in vehicles from General Motors, BMW, and Porsche.
These ultra-strong components shave fifty percent off the weight of a comparable
conventional aluminum engine mount. What is more, plastic can be molded at lower
temperatures than, for example, aluminum, so much less energy is required for the
production process. It can also be recycled in lots of different ways. Continental is also
developing new active mounting concepts tailored to innovative and low-consumption drives,
such as engines with cylinder deactivation or hybrid drives.
Aluminum Replacing Steel – New Generation of Lightweight Brake Boosters
Latest-generation brake boosters (generation III) are also lighter. They are made entirely of
aluminum and are therefore almost fifty percent, or 1,700 grams, lighter than conventional
steel brake boosters.
Your contact person:
Mario Töpfer, +49 511 938-1304
-4They have also been reduced in length by twelve percent (15 millimeters). Thinner panels
and optimizing the inner component dimensions made possible the weight reduction and
improved packaging. Compared with conventional aluminum technologies, the panel
thickness was reduced by 50 percent (from 2.4 millimeters to 1.2 millimeters), while
maintaining the same service life of the brake booster.
High-performance Hoses Ensure Ecological Efficiency
To render combustion more effective and thereby reduce exhaust gases, engineers are
developing the next generation of highly turbocharged engines. These work at pressures
above three bar and thus require special hoses. The new materials and innovative
combinations of different knitted fabric and rubber materials used here easily outperform
conventional materials. Continental has likewise taken on a vanguard role in the case of
components used to purify exhaust gases by means of selective catalytic reduction (SCR)
technology. A heatable EPDM-based (ethylene-propylene-diene rubber) hose line module
ensures that the urea required for the process does not freeze. ContiTech is now also
offering this cutting-edge technology for more powerfully engined cars. Comprised of air
conditioning lines and an inner heat exchange unit, the re-designed range of ECO AC
products ups the efficiency of air conditioning units, reduces weight, and lowers the level of
refrigerant usage.
Drive Belts for Low-Emission Engines
The drive belt used is another factor influencing how fuel-efficient and clean an engine is. A
highly flexible multiple-V-ribbed belt, the CONTI® UNIPOWER ECO2-FLEX, reduces the
power loss in auxiliary unit drives by ten percent. High-performance multiple V-ribbed belts
from Continental can also be found in fuel-efficient, CO2-reducing start-stop systems. The oilresistant timing belt CONTI® OIL RUNNER replaces chains in oil pump drives and camshaft
timing assemblies. They benefit the environment thanks to significantly reduced CO2
emissions, since timing belts are less friction-prone and thus reduce a vehicle's fuel
consumption and are quieter to boot. Another example is the belt-driven starter generator
with special high-performance V-ribbed belt. In start-stop operation, it lowers fuel
consumption by as much as five to ten percent, thereby cutting emissions at traffic lights or in
stop-and-go rush-hour traffic.
Your contact person:
Mario Töpfer, +49 511 938-1304
-5Conti® Thermo-Protect Reduces Heat Losses by Up to 70 Percent
Heat insulation is also becoming an issue in cars due to increasingly small clearances. The
flexible insulation material Conti® Thermo-Protect can be used to insulate line systems both
in the car and in the factory. It is suitable for hard-to-reach or critical positions where
conventional sealing or insulation systems are not up to the job. Its special microporous
structure makes Conti® Thermo-Protect extremely easy to handle. The product has proven its
value in highly angular line systems in particular. The highly flexible foam surrounds the pipe
and line systems and exhibits reliable characteristics at temperatures of +250°C to -50°C.
This allows heat losses on these components to be reduced by up to seventy percent.
"Clean Power" Technology Package Bundles Fuel Saving Concepts
Further optimization of the conventional powertrain harbors generous savings potential.
Continental is pressing full steam ahead with these enhancements. It has bundled a number
of different concepts together in the newly created "Clean Power" technology package.
Especially the gasoline engine can be made considerably more fuel- and cost-efficient by
means of downsizing and turbocharging. The switchover from manifold to direct injection can
pave the way to major progress in gasoline engines. With the XL3 solenoid valve and
matching engine control unit and high-pressure pump, Continental is already fielding the third
generation. The direct injector is becoming even more powerful and efficient, while reducing
particle emissions even further. At the moment, Continental is already at work on the next of
injection system generation. It will feature new functions and system pressures of up to 350
bar.
On the diesel engine front as well, the next stages of development for control units, highpressure pumps, and injectors are underway. Systems generating 2,000 bar of injection
pressure are currently in mass production; 2,500 bar is planned for the next generation from
2015 onward. The new power-enhanced and cost-optimized diesel common rail piezo servo
injector, the PCRs5, is a highly attractive solution for the majority of light-vehicle diesel
engines in use worldwide (in passenger cars and lightweight commercial vehicles up to 6
tonnes). This precise and robust technology makes it easy for diesel engines to comply with
the Euro 6 exhaust gas standard specifications.
Your contact person:
Mario Töpfer, +49 511 938-1304
-6System Integration Reduces Energy Consumption
The combination of two of Continental’s award-winning innovations clearly points up how
important it is that different units in vehicle electronics perfectly coordinated their cooperation
when developing new components and systems. The "electronic horizon" (eHorizon) concept
allows drivers to use navigation data to control other vehicle systems. The anticipatory data
lets eHorizon know what to expect up ahead on the road. eHorizon forwards this information
to other control units or the AFFP®. The AFFP®, in turn, acts as the direct contact to the
driver. It generates a haptic signal corresponding to a given driving situation. This helps
drivers to perfectly adapt their driving style to the route ahead. The combination of eHorizon
and the active accelerator helps drivers to markedly reduce fuel consumption, which, in turn,
cuts CO2 emissions. At the same time, AFFP® and eHorizon help hybrid and all-electric
vehicles extend their range potential.
Electrical Vacuum Pump Lowers CO2 Emissions
The electrical vacuum pump (EVP) meets all vacuum requirements, particularly in electric,
hybrid, and diesel vehicles as well is in gasoline-engined cars with direct-injection. The EVP
is also used if the modern dethrottled gasoline combustion engine does not provide sufficient
vacuum for operation of the brake booster or the vacuum-controlled and -operated actuators.
The robust, durable design allows EVP to be used as the sole vacuum source in the vehicle.
With "vacuum on demand" the EVP helps reduce CO2 emissions from conventional
combustion engines, regardless of the powertrain.
With sales of €32.7 billion in 2012, Continental is among the leading automotive suppliers worldwide.
As a supplier of brake systems, systems and components for powertrains and chassis,
instrumentation, infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics, tires, and technical elastomers,
Continental contributes to enhanced driving safety and global climate protection. Continental is also an
expert partner in networked automobile communication. Continental currently has approximately
173,000 employees in 46 countries.
Your contact person:
Mario Töpfer, +49 511 938-1304
-7Contact for journalists
Simone Geldhäuser
External Communications
Continental
Powertrain Division
Siemensstrasse 12
93055 Regensburg, Germany
Ph.: +49 941 790-61302
Fax: +49 941 790-99 61302
simone.geldhaeuser@continentalcorporation.com
Enno Pflug
External Communications
Continental
Interior Division
Sodener Strasse 9
65824 Schwalbach am Taunus, Germany
Ph.: +49 6196 87-2515
Fax: +49 6196 87-792515
enno.pflug@continental-corporation.com
Sören Pinkow
External Communications
Continental
Chassis & Safety Division
Guerickestrasse 7
60488 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Ph.: +49 69 7603-8492
Fax: +49 69 7603-3945
soeren.pinkow@continental-corporation.com
Mario
NicoleTöpfer
Geißler
Head
HeadofofTechnical
Communications
Media
Continental
Continental
ContiTech
Chassis &Division
Safety division
Vahrenwalder
Guerickestrasse
Strasse
7
9
30165
60488Hanover
Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Ph.:
Ph.:+49
+49511
69 7603-6000
938-1304
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mario.toepfer@contitech.de
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