Frankfurt: what does green really mean? - Radical technology

No question, the Frankfurt motor show hammered home just how seriously the motor industry is taking its responsibility to react to environmental concerns.

With a leaner, greener car present on almost every stand, there was a risk that the environmental assault could leave you numb.

Happily, some manufacturers did produce technology that stopped you in your tracks.

Some of the more extreme technology included GM's latest E-Flex generation, the Opel Flextreme, which the company is at pains to describe as an electric car, despite its obvious similarities with a hybrid system.

In a similar vein was Volvo's ReCharge concept, which claims a range of 66 miles on electric power alone.

Mercedes-Benz's Diesotto power unit, which combines the economy of a diesel with the efficiency of a petrol engine, found a home in the enormous F700, too.

If this technology really can meet the hype and produce a 1.8-litre engine which emits just 127g/km of carbon dioxide, all the while propelling an enormous luxury saloon, then the possibilities are endless.