Recently, Geely Methanol Automobile, which successfully won the special award of the jury of the "China National Radio and Television Corporation • 2021 China Automobile Festival", has become the object of hot discussion in the industry for a while.
In the view of Kung Fu Automobile, in addition to this award, in addition to the affirmation of Geely's 17 years of deep cultivation in the field of methanol automobiles, it also means that Geely will take off" in this new track.
For the term "methanol car", most consumers may still have the impression on paper, or in the proposals of the two sessions that Geely Li Shufu has repeatedly submitted for many years.
However, with the country's increasing emphasis on energy security and the approaching of the "double carbon" target and other factors, the promotion of methanol vehicles undoubtedly has greater practical significance at present.
To this end, behind the award of Geely Methanol Automobile, we will be able to glimpse the strength and boldness of Geely to become the "pioneer" and "leader" of the new methanol automobile track.
(1) The "pioneer" of methanol automobiles, 17 years of hard work
At the recent "China National Radio and Television Corporation • 2021 China Automotive Award", Geely methanol automobile technology and application won the "Special Jury Award" with a highly anticipated attitude.
Geely's frequent praise from judges and the market this time is behind the encouragement of its 17 years of deep cultivation in the field of methanol vehicles as a "pioneer", and it is also an affirmation of its excellent technical strength in this field.
As the earliest car company in mainland China to invest in the research and development of methanol vehicles and realize the industrialization, the development history of Geely methanol vehicles is actually the evolutionary history of China's methanol vehicles.
As early as 2005, while Chinese consumers' cognition of new energy vehicles was "enlightened" by Toyota Prius Hybrid, Geely, which has a deep understanding and foresight of the national energy strategy, also officially began to "pioneer" methanol vehicle technology.
After 17 years of development, Geely methanol automobile can be said to be the "originator" of the market segment, whether from the market layout or the degree of industrialization. It can be said that at present, 9 of the 10 operating vehicles in the domestic methanol vehicle pilot project are Geely's methanol vehicles.
Another set of more intuitive data: as of now, Geely has developed more than 20 models of methanol passenger and commercial vehicles, with a total of more than 27,000 methanol vehicles on the market, with a total operating mileage of nearly 10 billion kilometers, and the highest single mileage has exceeded 1.2 million kilometers; methanol commercial vehicles have been operated on a large scale of more than 5 million kilometers.
Nowadays, Geely methanol vehicles, which already have the ability to develop, manufacture and sell the whole chain system, have finally come to the front of the stage and are seen by more consumers. And we can also use the launch of the 4th generation of Emgrandol electric hybrid sedan to get a glimpse of Geely's deep technical strength in methanol vehicles.
First of all, the 4th generation Emgrand alcohol hybrid sedan equipped with four energy-saving technologies is a "dessert" brought to users by Geely in solving the original pain points of methanol vehicles and combining the most advanced hybrid technology at present.
As a clean energy source, methanol has the advantages of not accumulating carbon after combustion, and the high octane number can support a higher compression ratio, but the disadvantages are also obvious.
For example, methanol has certain toxicity and corrosiveness while having volatility; using methanol at the same time, it is difficult to start in winter, and it is necessary to install a preheater in cold areas, or add a certain number of gasoline...
However, after 17 years of research and development, Geely has not only overcome a number of key technologies such as low temperature cold start, methanol-resistant material development, special lubricant development, special additive development, emission control, methanol EFI control system, etc., but also mastered the new technology of "capturing CO2 cycle to produce methanol".
The 4th-generation Emgrand alcohol hybrid sedan equipped with a new generation of 1.8L alcohol-electric hybrid engine and hybrid electric drive is the result of the above technology.
In addition to a dedicated alcohol-electric engine with a thermal efficiency of up to 41.5% and a hybrid electric drive transmission with the strongest 40% energy saving rate in the same class, this alcohol-electric hybrid sedan also has a 1.83kWh high-capacity high-performance ternary lithium battery with three-sided luxury liquid cooling technology, and 20 hybrid driving modes that can be intelligently adjusted according to actual use scenarios.
Secondly, with the launch of the 4th generation of Emexol electric hybrid sedan, Geely will also open up a new new energy methanol track and begin to compete head-on with traditional fuel vehicles and other types of new energy vehicles in the passenger car market.
The new car was recently held in Guiyang at a national public test event, the measured average alcohol consumption of 100 kilometers was 7.7L (equivalent to fuel consumption of 2.9L), the travel cost per kilometer was only 0.24 yuan, and the carbon emissions were reduced by 42% compared with traditional gasoline vehicles.
It can be said that this is a bombshell that Geely is about to drop in the field of new energy vehicles. Especially in this year, when various hybrid models have been fiercely fighting, Geely methanol vehicles that truly take into account "low energy consumption" and "strong power" will undoubtedly have strong differentiated advantages and are expected to break through.
(2) The "frontrunner" of the new energy track, Geely will help methanol cars where to go
Under the accumulation of 17 years of research and development and industrialization, Geely methanol automobile has also officially completed the transformation from "pioneer" to "leader".
This is not only reflected in the launch of the world's first alcohol-electric hybrid sedan, but also in Geely's "sense of distress" about national energy security over the years, which has been increasingly seen and recognized.
In fact, in the face of the world's energy shortage, serious environmental pollution and other practical problems, it is imperative to develop and apply new clean energy in the transportation field.
Especially in the context of the current increase in international crude oil facing increasing uncertainties, the mainland urgently needs to find more alternative energy sources, and Geely's continuous promotion of continuous breakthroughs in methanol technology will undoubtedly provide more choices for the mainland to achieve energy diversification, so as to achieve the common development of multiple energy sources and ensure that the country's energy is more secure.
"The development of methanol energy is in line with China's national conditions. The technical reserves, production equipment, engineering construction and application of methanol vehicles and methanol fuels have matured, and they have the basis for comprehensive promotion and application, and the conditions for extensive international cooperation and cooperation. Xie Kechang, former vice president of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, previously said in an interview with the media.
It is precisely because methanol has a variety of advantages, so in recent years began to be recognized and developed by more and more countries.
The experience accumulated by Geely Methanol Automobile in domestic and overseas markets over the years will surely help it become a "new leader" in the new energy market segment, and the methanol vehicles with Chinese characteristics that it has created will further help China's automotive industry to achieve the "double carbon" goal.
In the past one or two years, the position of methanol vehicles in the national "14th Five-Year Plan" has also become more and more important; for example, in April 2022, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Science and Technology issued the "14th Five-Year Plan for Scientific and Technological Innovation in the Field of Transportation", which believes that the application of new energy and clean energy such as methanol should be promoted around the goal of carbon peak carbon neutrality.
To this end, as a leader of its own brand, Geely is obviously more familiar with the way of "first on the road, then there are companions". Building a methanol vehicle with Chinese characteristics with the world's leading methanol vehicle technology will also help the industry's spring to come as soon as possible.
Nowadays, the mainland has included methanol vehicles in the national green products in 2021, and the introduction of future supporting policies is also worth looking forward to; and this year, as methanol vehicles and other alcohol ether fuel passenger cars will be officially included in the new "double integral" assessment category, we may also see geely, more and more car companies join this field, and jointly expand this promising new energy market.
(3) Kung Fu shooting
After years of development, Geely has proved that methanol vehicles are relatively good, and methanol will become one of the ideal energy sources for the mainland to solve the dependence on oil imports, promote energy diversification, ensure energy security, and help achieve carbon neutrality.
From the industry's "pioneer" to the "frontrunner", Geely is getting more and more stable on the new track of methanol automobile, and will run faster and faster.
The 4th generation Emgrand alcohol electric hybrid sedan is not only the culmination of Geely's methanol research and development technology in the past 17 years, but also an optimal solution for geely's "double carbon" goal provided for the automotive industry in the era of new energy vehicles.