Mercedes-Benz has received the 'Safety and Technology' award from Autocar, the UK's leading weekly automotive publication, for its innovative DIESOTTO drive system.
Autocar's editor Chas Hallet said at the London award ceremony that the DIESOTTO concept was an impressive leading-edge technology with a high degree of practicability and had the potential to ensure a bright future, both for the automotive industry and for motorists.
The DIESOTTO drive system is combined with a hybrid module and was featured in the Mercedes-Benz F700 at the Frankfurt Motor Show last September. It demonstrates that a large touring saloon is capable of returning a fuel-consumption figure of just 5.3 litres per 100 kilometres, enabling a drastic reduction in CO2 emissions without compromising on performance.
For example, the four-cylinder drive system with two-stage turbocharging fitted in the F700 achieves the same level of performance as the current S-Class with a 3.5-litre V6 naturally-aspirated petrol engine.
"The DIESOTTO concept shows how, in the medium term, a petrol engine can be made just as efficient as its diesel counterpart and how the internal combustion engine will remain a key drive concept when it comes to meeting private-transport requirements," said Mercedes-Benz Cars, Middle East and Levant sales and marketing director Johannes Fritz.