66 TOPCAR.CO.ZA|January 2016THE
CHASSIS
Both cars are based
on modular lightweight
platforms that will serve
everything from C-Cl ass to
Maybac h, from 2 Seri es to X7.
48v elec tric s means grea ter
efficiency and more gadgets:
semi-active suspension
and virtual dampers
coming in the
future!
THE
POWERTRAINS
E-Class and 5 Seri es
will go plug -in hybrid, both
using 2.0-litr e 4-cylinder
engines with e-motors. Merc
is ditching V6 engines for inline
sixes, and both cars will
get downsized four-pot
diesels in a bid tocrack
99g/km CO2.THE
TECHNOLOGIES
Both cars will feature
spookily similar, hugely
complex driv er assistance
systems, with remote-contro l
parking, car-to-car comms,
gesture contro l and sat-nav
contro lled predictiv e driving.
They disagree on lights
thou gh: BM favours
lasers, Merc LEDs.THE
LINE-UPS
Four-door saloons will
remain the best-sellers,
but Europe will gobble up the
5 Seri es Touringand a much
better-pac kaged 5GT. China’s
fondness for limos wi ll mean lwb
versions will be key, with BMW
basingits new e-po wer model on
the lwb 5 Seri es. New E-Class
coupe and cabrio will
become proper four-
seaters.2
3
NEW 5SERIES,NEW E-CLASS
CARBONFIBRE &HYBRIDTECHREVIVE
GERMANECO CRED
BUSINESSCLASSgets upgraded to first in 2016 as
BMW and Me rcedes load their Mk7 5 Series/E-Class
rivals with th e sort of kit and tech you used to expect only
on a limo. That means not just moreluxury, but cutting
edge powertrains, futuristic driver aids, ultra-light
materials and Stephen Hawking-smart platforms.
Merc’s modular rear-whe el-drive architecture (MRA)
and BMW’s cluster platform (CLAR) are both flexible and
scalable, so you’ll find them underpinning everything
from C-Class to Maybach (not the crossovers though) and
from 2 Series to 7, with X-models included. Both use
aluminium, and BMW also incorporates carbon fibre
reinforc ement elements, to el icit weight savings of
between 70 and 150kg.
Better packaging frees up morespac e too.
A big, fuel-saving breakthrough comes from 48-volt
electrical systems. Not only do they feed ancillaries such
as oil and water pumps (goodbye tobelt-drive!), but the
system is also much be tter at recuperating brake ener gy
and storing it in a lithium-ion ba ttery. 48v also provides
the power for new gadgets, such as electrically operated
turbos delivering instant boost. Other future tech it could
facilitate includes semi-active suspension with dynamic
anti-roll/dive/squat, and electric actuators in li eu of
springs and shocks. Radar surface scanners will repl ace
camera-based se nsors (which don’t work at night).
Plug-in hybrids will be moreprev alent in each line-up.Uncannily, both brands will offer
2.0-litr e engines mated to 60kW
e-motors; Merc will also offer a six
with 80kW e-assistance in the US,
and a plug-in diesel for Europe.
And Me rcedes is junking its V6s
in favour of new, cheaper-to-build in-line sixes too. Out
first is the 2.9-litr e diesel with 233kW in twin-turbo guise
and over 300kW when motivated by four chargers, two of
them battery-driven. At the bottom end of the range,
there’s a new 91kW 1.6-litr e four which, like BMW’s 520d,
is aiming for 99g/km of CO2.
Driver tech systems will personify both cars. Made by
the same hardware supplier they’re unsurpri singly similar,
featurin g remo te-control manoeuvring, pred ictive driving
governed by sat-nav, different levels of to uchscreen
interaction and ge sture contro l, lane-chang ing and
overtaking assist, and an autobahn-assistant which can be
left alone at up to130kph.
Still room for the driver in al l this? We hope so.AUTO BILD/LARSON