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Is this taxi USB 3.0-enabled?

by Mark Tyson on 5 April 2012, 21:01

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Actually this taxi is only equipped with USB ports for charging so the version isn’t relevant. Within 3 or 4 years the entire taxi fleet in New York will have been replaced by new Nissan NV200 commercial vans. Nissan won the Taxi of Tomorrow competition to be supplier of the taxis last year. The first of the new fleet of taxis will be on display tomorrow at the New York Auto Show. However they won’t start to be deployed, replacing current taxi stock, until October 2013.

 old NY taxis

Previous and current New York yellow cabs

 

What makes the NV200 the “Taxi of Tomorrow” according to the New York Mayor? Well it’s not quite The Jetsons futuristic, it still has 4 wheels. However it does feature 2 USB power outlets and a 12V charging point, LED lighting, non-stick antimicrobial upholstery, passenger climate control and a sunroof. As for fuel economy, it seems like they will be opting for the 2 litre 25mpg petrol version over the 1.5 litre diesel 53.3mpg version popular in the UK. That is still a consumption improvement over the current standard New York cab, the Ford Crown Victoria, at approximately 12mpg. Nissan states that the NV200 could possibly use a hybrid or electric power source, using their Leaf technology, in the future.

Some people are of the opinion that the default taxi in New York being a van might hurt the image of New York and that could be right, it does seem to lack the cool factor, from the outside. The inside of the NV200 is supposed to be spacious (the mayor says it’s the most roomy taxi ever), comfortable and accessible (sliding door with attachable ramp). Another bonus is that there is an air purity filter to filter out noxious city fumes. It’s also the safest so far with side and front airbags and it has passed federal crash tests kitted out with all the standard fittings.

 

Taxi of Tomorrow is here

 

Overall I’d consider this cab rather underwhelming for a “Taxi of Tomorrow”. They haven’t even committed to a hybrid power train, though they are going to test 6 Nissan Leaf cars as taxis this year. There’s not one mention of entertainment/IT gadgetry (or any karaoke equipment) for the passengers, though I’ve seen what looks like a mock-up of an interior featuring an LCD display on the partition screen. Some kind touch screen “what’s on” and tourist guide to the city would be a great addition.

What would you install in the Taxi of Tomorrow?



HEXUS Forums :: 20 Comments

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I've been configuring a kernel for the past few hours so here's a quick cool-down rant. :P

2 litre 25mpg petrol version…Ford Crown Victoria, at approximately 12mpg
How do they manage to get such poor efficiency from an engine? :O_o1:

Some people are of the opinion that the default taxi in New York being a van might hurt the image of New York and that could be right, it does seem to lack the cool factor, from the outside.
Yeah it's not exactly what I think of when someone says ‘New York cab’. And is making vehicles even bigger a great idea in such an overcrowded city?

Another bonus is that there is an air purity filter to filter out noxious city fumes. It’s also the safest so far with side and front airbags and it has passed federal crash tests kitted out with all the standard fittings.
It's possible to travel fast enough to require airbags in NYC? It looks like they've borrowed a few ideas from our black cabs, with the flat floor and such. I didn't think there was anything wrong with the current cabs TBH, you don't get groundbreaking fuel efficiency with these so I don't see why they're bothering?
watercooled
How do they manage to get such poor efficiency from an engine? :O_o1:

The figures quoted will be US MPG, which are lower.
25 MPG (US) = Around 30MPG over here, and 12 MPG (US) = Around 15.

Sounds about right. Remember the weight of the cars, plus the economy will be seriously hurt in City conditions, plus they are geared towards long life so they are relatively unstressed, and the current Crown Vics are V8 powered, hence the low MPG. Oh and the fact that the engine has been around for many many years!


watercooled
I didn't think there was anything wrong with the current cabs TBH

Did you ever sit in them? For the size of them, roomy isn't a word I would use, plus the ride was erm ‘interesting’.
Guy
The figures quoted will be US MPG, which are lower.
25 MPG (US) = Around 30MPG over here, and 12 MPG (US) = Around 15.

Sounds about right. Remember the weight of the cars, plus the economy will be seriously hurt in City conditions, plus they are geared towards long life so they are relatively unstressed, and the current Crown Vics are V8 powered, hence the low MPG. Oh and the fact that the engine has been around for many many years!
Thanks for the clarification, I wasn't aware of a different measurement, but it's still not terribly impressive for a commercial vehicle IMHO. A UK bus probably manages greater than 15MPG. To be fair though, it's not that bad when you compare to a London Taxi considering it's petrol. I'd like to know why they didn't choose the diesel version though?

Guy
Did you ever sit in them? For the size of them, roomy isn't a word I would use, plus the ride was erm ‘interesting’.
Quite fun, but yeah I suppose it could get annoying using them every day.
What would you install in the Taxi of Tomorrow?

Pole dancers.
Those Crown Victorias are huge barges, so I'm not surprised they get rubbish mileage. I remember seeing a program where they took a London cab out to New York, the NY cabbies couldn't believe the MPG, reliability, miles between services etc, and especially the turning circle. But they're not Yellow barges, so the public probably wouldn't have them…