Smart takes challenge

Daimlerchrysler's micro-car division Smart has entered two of its models in the eighth World Solar Challenge, a 3492km fuel-efficiency journey from Darwin to Adelaide.

Australian model Annalise Braakensiek will be driving a diesel-powered Smart Fortwo in the event, which the carmaker believes can be completed on four tanks of diesel - with air-conditioning on.

The Smart Fortwo diesel is in the Greenfleet category of the World Solar Challenge. Entrants are from all over the world and the Greenfleet category is a practical test of new and emerging technology.

The organisers said the Greenfleet class offered a unique opportunity to show the capabilities that fuel-efficient technology and low carbon fuels could deliver.

The Smart Fortwo weighs just 730kg and is powered by the world's smallest production diesel engine, a 799cc common-rail injection unit developing 30kW (40bhp). It has a top speed of 135km/h and takes a snail-pace 19.8sec to get from zero to 100km/h - but Smart expects it to consume 3.1 litres/100km (83mpg) on the Darwin-Adelaide run.

The carmaker says it is one the most fuel-efficient and cleanest-burning vehicles available, emitting fewer C02 exhaust emissions than the petrol-electric Toyota Prius, the top-placed car in the Australian Government's Green Vehicle Guide.