The Volvo LCP2000 (Light Component Prototype) is a
concept car
A concept car (also known as a concept vehicle, show vehicle or prototype) is a car made to showcase new styling and/or new technology. They are often exhibited at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or ...
built by
Volvo
The Volvo Group ( sv, Volvokoncernen; legally Aktiebolaget Volvo, shortened to AB Volvo, stylized as VOLVO) is a Swedish multinational manufacturing corporation headquartered in Gothenburg. While its core activity is the production, distributio ...
in 1983.
It was a project which comprised many engine options for the testing of different fuel types. In this project Volvo experimented with light weight materials to build the engine, such as aluminium, magnesium and plastics. The engineers started work in 1979; they were given a clean sheet to create a car meant for the year 2000, maximizing low fuel consumption.
[ Especially magnesium was used to a large extent; this was a result of Volvo's aborted Norwegian affair (Norway would take forty per cent of the company in return for cash and ten per cent of one of the North Sea oil fields). ]Norsk Hydro
Norsk Hydro ASA (often referred to as just ''Hydro'') is a Norwegian aluminium and renewable energy company, headquartered in Oslo. It is one of the largest aluminium companies worldwide. It has operations in some 50 countries around the world a ...
, one of the world's foremost magnesium producers provided the technical know-how.[ The wheels were developed in collaboration with Campagnolo.][ Verhelle, p. 6] The floor plate was a single plastic casting, to which aluminium and magnesium elements were glued. The steering was by Germany's ZF, while Moulton
Moulton may refer to:
Places in the United Kingdom
;In England
*Moulton, Cheshire
* Moulton, Lincolnshire
**Moulton Windmill
* Moulton St Mary, Norfolk
* Moulton, Northamptonshire
** Moulton College, agricultural college
** Moulton Park, indus ...
's Hydragas
Hydrolastic is a type of space-efficient automotive suspension system used in many cars produced by British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successor companies.
Invented by British rubber engineer Alex Moulton, and first used on the 1962 BMC p ...
suspension was also installed.[ Verhelle, p. 8]
Designed to weigh less than , the LCP achieved an EPA 56 mpg city/81 highway and 0-60 mph (97 km/h) in 11 seconds and top speed.[ Verhelle, p. 9] There were two types of three-cylinder turbodiesel engines for this car, one was a magnesium 1.3-liter (1279 cc) powerplant developed together with British diesel specialists Ricardo
Ricardo is the Spanish and Portuguese cognate of the name Richard. It derived from Proto-Germanic ''*rīks'' 'king, ruler' + ''*harduz'' 'hard, brave'. It may be a given name, or a surname.
People Given name
*Ricardo de Araújo Pereira, Portugu ...
, pushing and weighing ,[ and a cast-iron 1.4-liter ]Elsbett
The Elsbett engine is an 89 HP, direct-injection diesel engine designed to run on straight vegetable oil. The engine is also known as Elko engine (for "Elsbett Konstruktion") and was invented by Ludwig Elsbett.
The design limits the loss of ener ...
(ELKO) engine with a KKK turbocharger that could run on a variety of fuels such as low-octane gasoline and sunflower oil (biodiesel
Biodiesel is a form of diesel fuel derived from plants or animals and consisting of long-chain fatty acid esters. It is typically made by chemically reacting lipids such as animal fat ( tallow), soybean oil, or some other vegetable oil ...
). The ELKO engine weighs . A five-speed manual did not provide quite enough gear ratios, so Volvo also used the CVT technology they had received when they purchased DAF.[ Verhelle, p. 7] The car's bodywork was of a modular design, which would help offset the greater cost of the exotic materials used. Drag resistance ranged from to 0.28.
See also
http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/1894/Volvo-LCP-2000.html
References
LCP2000, Cars
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