Marangoni Toyota GT86-R Eco Explorer Ammonia Car

Updated: Saturday, March 9, 2013, 16:41 [IST]

Marangoni is a company that is involved in the business of developing and manufacturing tyres, but the company has not limited itself to developing a single component for a vehicle. Thinking big, Marangoni has embarked on a mission to develop a concept car, which is on display at the Geneva Motor Show.

The car here is a Toyota GT86 coupe, which Marangoni, with some help, has turned into Toyota GT86-R Eco Explorer, an environmentally friendly alternative fuel car, which uses Ammonia, but can also run on conventional fuel.

Fuel

The alternative fuel here is ammonia, which we generally recognize by its pungent odor. Marangoni says, running a car on ammonia generates the same amount of power as petrol. The advantage is that per kilogram of ammonia yields more power than the same amount of petrol would. Also, the production cost of ammonia is the same as petrol and is also easier to produce in comparison.

According to Marangoni, "One litre of ammonia costs just 20 cents, and the 30 liters that the Toyota GT86-R tank can hold are enough to travel around 180 km."

Engine

The boxer engine from the Toyota has been modified and the Eco Explorer now uses a system called NH3. The design has been developed by Bigas International, a company that has 40 years of experience with alternative fuel technology.The speciality of the NH3 engine is that it can also run on petrol.

Tyres

Marangoni has developed an experimental, flame red M-Power EvoRed 19 inch tyres based on the standard M-Power. This special tyre has achieved class B rating for rolling resistance and class A for wet braking. This means, these high performance tyres provide high fuel efficiency and increased safety, along with driving pleasure.

Interior

While, alcantara covers the roof of the car, with carbon trims, other parts of the interior, including the Sparco R333 seats are covered in leather from a leading Italian car accessory maker.

Exterior

The stricking feature of the Eco Explorer is its "Flash Chrome" paint, developed by German company Fashion Paint. This speciality of the paint is that its clear coat assumes different hues based on the light exposure. This means the colour will look different at different times of the day. Some of the styling features have been inspired by the Lexus LFA and have been developed by TRC Italia style centre.

Power Kit

The car has a stainless steel exhaust system, with 200 cell metal catalyst and high performance air intake. Total power developed is now increased by 20 HP tp 220 HP.