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Recharge Wrap-up: Daimler spending big for fuel cells, Ford Go!Drive experiment advances

Ford's Go!Drive experiment is entering its beta phase in London. The project, which is one of the automaker's global smart mobility experiments, uses a mobile app for on-demand carsharing of Ford Focus Electric and Ford Fiesta vehicles. The beta phase involves increasing the number of available vehicles from 20 to 50, and collecting new data from users. The program offers one-way rentals and guaranteed parking, with no membership fees and a cost of 26 cents per minute. Ford hopes to get 2,000 drivers involved in the program. Read more at Green Car Congress. Daimler will invest billions of dollars to upgrade the Mercedes-Benz Unterturkheim plant over the next few years. This year alone, it plans to spend $1.06 billion. The company expects cost savings "in the range of hundreds of millions of euros until 2020," while maintaining its workforce of 18,700 employees and adding 150 vocational training positions. The upgrades will allow the plant to become a center for building more efficient engines, hybrid powertrains and fuel cell systems. "Alternative drive systems are an important element of our future mobility," says Mercedes-Benz's Markus Schafer. "Their share of automotive production is set to steadily rise over the next few years, complementing our highly efficient engines within the portfolio. This is what we have laid the groundwork for today." Read more at Reuters, or in the press release below. The Department of Energy is providing $20 million in funding for the development of more efficient high speed industrial motors and drives. Ditching old motors and gearboxes for ones that use integrated power electronics could help decrease the energy consumption of the industrial sector, which currently uses more than 25 percent of the electricity generated in the US. The projects being funded will reduce losses and decrease the size of drive systems used in industries like petroleum refining and natural gas, which could affect the lifecycle efficiency of transportation fuels. Read more at Energy.gov.

Europe getting special Mercedes-Benz CLA Edition 1

Last week when we saw the leaked ordering guide for the 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class, one particular image caught our eye showing the interior of the new sedan with a neon yellow stripe on the seats and yellow stitching throughout the cabin. As it turns out, this will be part of a limited-edition model called the Edition 1 about which Mercedes-Benz just released some information.
Usually, automakers wait until later in a vehicle's life to introduce special models like this, but the Edition 1 will be available right out of the gate for the first 12 months the CLA-Class is on sale. The 2014 CLA-Class Edition 1 includes the more aggressive Sport package adding AMG-style fascias and wheels, Bi-Xenon headlights and a lowered suspension; it will be offered only in five colors - unfortunately, Northern Lights Purple is not one of them. In addition to the bright yellow cabin accents, the Edition 1 will get sport seats wrapped in leather and microfiber, a sporty, flat-bottom steering wheel wrapped in Nappa leather and real aluminum trim on the instrument panel.
With no mention of the US, we're only left to imagine that this car will not be arriving on our shores, but customers in Europe will definitely be able to enjoy the mean styling and funky interior with prices ranging from 35,402 euros up to 43,940 euros.

France formally moves to ban Mercedes vehicles using contested refrigerant

That didn't take long. Shortly after a French administrative court gave the French government a ten-day window to reconsider its ban on registrations of Mercedes-Benz A-, B- and CLA-Class cars using the prohibited R134a refrigerant, the government cited an EU directive to formalize banning the sale of the cars. The country's environmental ministry said that registrations "will remain forbidden in France as long as the company does not to conform to European regulations," meaning so long as they do not use the approved R1234yf refrigerant.
Daimler had won the administrative court decision by challenging France's application of a "safeguard" provision in which the EU allows a country to block sales of cars that would "seriously harm the environment." In spite of Daimler's victory, France has cited that very provision as basis for the continuation of the ban.
Daimler got permission from Germany's KBA federal motor authority to keep selling cars with the coolant banned by EU politicians, and is using that national permission as the right to sell the cars throughout Europe. Meanwhile, above that battle, German politicians are asking the EU to let Mercedes sell the cars in France while the KBA does more testing, at the same time as the EU is threatening Germany with repercussions if it doesn't bring the KBA and Daimler into line.