Performance Fuel Economy and CO ₂ Prediction of a Vehicle using AVL Cruise Simulation Techniques

The determination of power train is one of the fundamental steps in any new vehicle development process. This process is generally iterative in manner and accurate prediction of performance and fuel consumption is required to achieve the different vehicle performance targets.

The use of AVL cruise simulation techniques to improve the vehicle development process has been rapidly expanding over the last decade. This simulation technique allows us to speed up the optimization of vehicle and power train parameters (vehicle weights, frontal area, Cd, engine power, engine torque and gear ratios etc.,) in an early stage of the development process.

This paper establishes the simulation model of a production vehicle through different stages of vehicle development process. The vehicle model was validated through a detailed comparison of the cruise simulation results with experimental data, including acceleration, drivability performance, average fuel consumption and CO₂ emission values over typical driving cycles (UDC, EUDC).

Finally, simulation techniques were applied to the analysis of impact of vehicle and power train modifications on vehicle performance and fuel economy and they have been proved to be powerful and effective instruments to identify the modifications required for achieving the vehicle performance and CO₂ emission targets.