BMW 2011 Annual Report Download - page 215

2011 BMW GROUP 23
The first BMW Group vehicles to feature Efficient
Dynamics as standard were launched several years
ago. Since then, BMW Group developers have used
brake energy to lower fuel consumption, devised
technologies that activate electric loads only when
needed, and, not least, continued to improve aero-
dynamics. In this way, they have created vehicles that
are not only more dynamic, but also increasingly
efficient to drive.
However, one factor that plays a key role in a car’s
fuel consumption is also the driver.
“We know that a vehicle with Efficient Dynamics
can save even more fuel when the driver drives a
certain way,” says Norman Wiebking, head of
Proactive Energy Management at the BMW Group.
“The only question is: How do we help drivers do
that? How do we give them the tips they need without
overloading them with information while they are
driving?” Another aspect, according to Silvia Patricia
Ghella-Schröder, head of Energy Management, is
that it is hard for drivers to grasp what the efficiency
gained by driving a certain way really means. “As a
driver, the only thing that will motivate me to change
my driving style is seeing for myself exactly how
much fuel I am saving. Then, cruising becomes fun –
especially when I can skip a fuel stop every now and
again.”
The solution the BMW Group developers found
is
as technologically sophisticated as it is persuasive.
At first glance, it is just a control in the centre console
of the new BMW 3 Series that allows the driver to
switch between a more dynamic SPORT mode and an
ultra-efficient ECO PRO mode. In ECO PRO mode,
the on-board computer displays tips on how to drive
even more efficiently in current driving conditions –
for instance, by optimising gear changes or acceler-
ating
more moderately. The driver sees how well
he
or she is doing from the “bonus range” displayed
on the on-board computer. This shows how many
extra miles have been accumulated by changing their
driving style – and translates lower fuel consumption
directly into even more driving pleasure.
All planned out: defensive driving can lower fuel consumption
by up to 20 per cent.
1
Five of more than 180 associates involved in
developing the Driving Experience Control: Jürgen Geus, Driving
Experience Control project manager; Jos van As, head of
function design and integration of driving dynamics functions;
Silvia Patricia Ghella-Schröder, head of energy management;
Christian Popp, Driving Experience Control concept; and
Dietrich Achilles, driving functions (from left to right).
System development
Efficient
ambitious