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environmental event, Challenge Bibendum, to the city of San Francisco,"
said Mayor Brown. "I'd like to thank Michelin for its efforts to help ensure a healthy environment for future generations."
More than 100 San Francisco environmental and community leaders, including members of the Board of Supervisors, environmental
commissioners and other city employees, attended the breakfast. In addition, two fuel cell cars showcasing state-of-the-art technology
were displayed on Civic Center Plaza during the event.
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"The pollution-free, environmentally-integrated
car of our dreams is on its way. It is up to us to speed its arrival! Clean air or cars? Easy...both!"
- Edouard Michelin
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Click above to request a complimentary copy of the Challenge Bibendum book Clean Cars Now!
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Chairman of California Air Resources Board to Moderate Speaker Program
Dr. Alan C. Lloyd, Chairman of the California Air Resources Board (ARB), has
signed on to moderate the Tues., Sept. 23 speaker program during Challenge Bibendum. Possible panel topics at the program include
"Global Perspectives" and "National & Regional Sustainable Mobility Actions."Appointed as Chairman of the ARB by California
Governor Gray Davis in February 1999, Dr. Lloyd is one of 11 ARB members. Dr. Lloyd is committed to influencing government, industry
and society opinion that zero and near-zero emission technologies can be put to use now or in the immediate future to help California
meet its air quality goals.
In his many presentations to national and international audiences, Dr. Lloyd focuses on the viable future of advanced technology
and renewable fuels. He highlights urban air quality challenges faced by California and the impact on global climate change, and
is a major proponent of alternate fuels, electric drive and fuel cell vehicles eventually leading to a hydrogen economy.
Dr. Lloyd also serves as the 2003 Chairman of the California Fuel Cell Partnership and is a co-founder of the California Stationary
Fuel Cell Collaborative.
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Iceland First with Hydrogen Filling Station for Public
According to a report from Reuters, the new hydrogen filling station in Reykjavic,
Iceland is the first such commercial station open to the public. At first, only three DaimlerChrysler hydrogen-powered buses will
use the Shell hydrogen station. However, Iceland's goal is to base all of its energy production on renewable resources by 2030.
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Study Says EVs Soon Will Be Cost-Competitive
A new study by the Electric Power Research Institute of Palo Alto, Calif., says "greatly improved battery life and projected cost
reductions for batteries and other components can make electric drive vehicles (engine-hybrid EVs, plug-in hybrid EVs, and some
pure EVs) cost competitive with gasoline vehicles."
The nonprofit group reported that "key battery technology improvements [and] reduced component costs can make electric drive vehicles
cost-effective even at lower production volumes."
[For information, visit the EPRI website:
www.epri.com
and visit the News Releases section or call Christine Hopf-Lovette at EPRI at (650) 855-2733.]
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Challenge Bibendum V
Sonoma and San Francisco, California, USA
Sept. 23-25, 2003
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Media Inquiries:
Lynn Mann: 1-864-458-4698
lynn.mann@us.michelin.com
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Participant And
Sponsorship Inquiries:
John Love: 1-313-449-0106
john@emcpr.com
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Copyright © 2003
Michelin Photos
Copyright: Michelin/DPPI
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Challenge Bibendum Tackles Dry Run in California for Fall Event
SONOMA, Calif. - Before the first person or first vehicle arrives at the annual Challenge
Bibendum scheduled in California this fall, thousands of hours of planning and preparation take place.
On June 4, 2003, the Challenge Bibendum planning committee along with many of the major automakers and others will gather in
Sonoma, then San Francisco, California to prepare for the Sept. 23-25 event.
"It's like scoring a classical overture," said Ron Musgnug, Challenge Bibendum project manager. "We have to have all the pieces
and players in place and they must work perfectly together."
Musgnug refers to the multitude of details from fueling more than 80 vehicles with different energy sources to arranging and
coordinating newsworthy speakers for the event's speaker program.
"This is a huge event that brings together the global auto industry, technology developers, energy suppliers, universities,
governmental agencies and approximately 200 journalists from across the globe," Musgnug said. "We leave no detail untouched, from
the testing criteria to the path of our road rally and from the press room needs to hotels and food."
Registration for manufacturers and technology developers interested in participating in Challenge Bibendum should visit
www.challengebibendum.com for complete details and
registration forms.
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Renewable-Fuel Racecar Set for Le Mans Effort
 Cosworth
Racing has developed a wholly renewably fueled engine that will power Team Nasamax' entry in the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in June.
Team Nasamax was created to demonstrate that renewable fuels could compete in international motorsports.
The team's Reynard LMP 900 is powered by a Cosworth XDE V8, which runs on bio-ethanol fuel and is a highly modified version of
Cosworth's Indy car engine. The car is scheduled to make its Le Mans debut in a
practice session May 4. The 24-hour race is June 14-15.
Cosworth says the use of bio-ethanol effectively eliminates the release of CO2. The team worked with Applied Sciences Technology
(ASTEK) to develop the bio-fuel and to insure fuel-tank safety features.
[For additional information, see the Team Nasamax website:
www.nasamax.com
or contact Janice Minton in England at 1787-880820 or at
Janice@mintonevent.co.uk or Claire Adams of Ford of
Europe in the UK at 1604-598654. For information on ASTEK, see its website:
www.astek.com]
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University Students Seek Fuel Cell Distance Record
 According
to the Autotech Daily newsletter (www.autotechdaily.com),
students at Middle Tennessee State University's School of Agribusiness and Agriscience expect to drive a fuel cell-powered vehicle
500 miles next year without refueling. They expect to set the distance record for a FCV using hydrogen derived from renewable sources
as they make their way from Mountain City, Tenn., to Memphis.
The school has purchased a Proton Energy Systems hydrogen generator that uses sun and wind power to produce hydrogen fuel.
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Magazine "Covers" Hydrogen-Powered Future
Wired magazine celebrated its 10th anniversary with an April 2003 issue that looks 10 years into the future with a special
"Life in 2013" issue. The cover story was titled, "How Hydrogen Power Can Save America: A 5-Point Plan to End the Oil Era."
While taking a patriotic stand focused on energy independence, the magazine noted that "fuel cell and hydrogen-extraction technology
will provide enormous opportunities for developing nations like China and India, which will be the fastest-growing consumers of
energy in coming decades. Because they don't have an adequate petroleum-based infrastructure today, these nations will be quick
to take full advantage of hydrogen, leapfrogging developed countries..."
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French Automaker's Focus is on Hybrids and Clean Diesels
Autotech Daily also reports that PSA Peugeot Citroen SA says it doesn't expect to make a major investment in fuel cells
and will continue to focus on electric-hybrid and clean-diesel technologies. The newsletter says PSA will introduce three hybrid
drivetrains in the next five years: mini, mild and full hybrids that will cut carbon dioxide emissions by 5-30 percent. Also coming
are common rail direct injection diesel engines that used 20 percent less fuel than pre-chamber injection engines.
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Fiat Irisbus Shows Fuel Cell Bus
Irisbus, a part of Fiat SpA, unveiled the prototype for its new CityClass fuel cell-powered bus in Madrid, Spain. Plans call for
the bus to go into service in Madrid, Berlin, Paris and Turin, according to the Autotech Daily newsletter.
United Technologies is the fuel cell supplier and Repsol-Ypf, the Spanish oil group, produced the hydrogen fuel for the project.
The electrical drive unit for the bus is from Ansaldo, the engineering division of Italy's Finmeccanica, an aerospace and defense
company.
United Technologies also is involved in a joint venture with Nissan to develop fuel cells. According to Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun
newspaper, Nissan will invest $723 million over the next five years in conjunction with Renault to develop fuel cell vehicles.
[For more information, see the Irisbus website at
www.irisbus.com or visit United Technologies at
www.utcpower.com.]
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Australian Company
Shows Hydraulic Drive System
A compact and light-weight hybrid hydraulic drive system that its maker says offers fuel-economy
gains of 30 percent or more for medium- duty military and commercial vehicles was unveiled by the U.S. Army's National Automotive
Center at the 2003 Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) World Congress and Expo recently in Detroit.
Permo-Drive Technologies Ltd. says its Regenerative Drive System (RDS) can significantly increase brake life and reduce hydrocarbon-and-
particulate emissions for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles. In testing, a six-wheel-drive U.S. Army vehicle equipped
with a prototype RDS system achieved a 27 percent improvement in fuel economy.
When fully "charged," the system can generate nearly 1,000 foot-pounds of torque and power equivalent to a 340-horsepower engine,
according to Paul Chandler, the company's vice president for North American Operations.
The Permo-Drive system stores energy normally lost as heat during the braking process in a high-pressure oil tank called an accumulator.
Captured as pressurized fluid, the energy later can be released into a vehicle's driveline to reduce fuel consumption or provide
additional horsepower on demand.
Permo-Drive expects to have prototype commercial vehicles equipped with hybrid-hydraulic systems available for testing later this
year and plans to introduce the technology commercially in 2005.
[For more information, contact Paul Chandler of Permo-Drive Technologies at
paul.chandler@permo-ddrive.com
or visit the company's website:
www.permo-drive.com.]
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www.challengebibendum.com
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