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BMW, Germany’s premium car manufacturer, has finally decided that it is time to introduce its newest hybrid model, the BMW ActiveHybrid X6, to the Middle East. “At one time you have to start with it,” BMW spokesperson for corporate and intergovernmental affairs, Andreas Lampka, told Gulf News in an interview.This X6 model comes with a full-mode hybrid technology that switches between battery power and boost from its 4.4-litres, 400 hp V8 gasoline engine according to driving requirements.

During a test drive last week, Gulf News experienced the car which could be best described as a Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde vehicle. After pressing the start button, one must check that the X6 is really in driving mode, because there is absolutely no noise from the engine — only the electric power is switched on.
Mighty V8
Gently accelerated, the X6 remains in electric mode until it reaches around 60 kilometres per hour, then the mighty V8 steps in — and, gosh, suddenly the entire attitude of the “green” vehicle changes into a powerful, noisy street beast. The remarkable pulling force of the V8 comes with a distinctive bubbling from the rear exhaust, tuned by BMW’s inhouse sound engineering department. What an ambivalent experience.
“A hybrid does not need to be a nerd car, it can also be a performance car,” Lampka said.
Less petrol
The car consumes around 20 per cent less petrol than the gasoline-only version. But its sales price is 20 per cent higher. So what’s the point?
“In this region, it’s not about saving. It’s about people wanting to have the newest in technology, just because of it,” Lampka says. To amortise the additional costs, the car needs to be driven more than one million kilometres, Lampka admits.
Sales of the BMW ActiveHybrid in the UAE start in April 2010. The company says it cannot predict any sales figures. Main competitors in the X6 range are General Motors’ hybrid versions of the Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade and the Mercedes ML 450 Hybrid.
Hybrid technology explained
A hybrid vehicle is one that uses two or more distinct power sources to move. Modern hybrid cars are equipped with a normal gasoline engine combined with one or more electric motors.
Over the last few years, several types of hybrid engine combinations have been developed, ranging from fully hybrid cars to mild hybrid ones which distinguish themselves in the way and scale electric energy is used to support the combustion engine. All those combinations come with different advantages and disadvantages.
Modern hybrid engines use electric energy for low-speed driving while the combustions engine remains switched off. Other efficiency-improving technologies comprise regenerative braking, which converts the vehicle’s kinetic energy into battery-replenishing electric energy, or the use of generators to produce additional energy.

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