France / Morocco – UTAC Group, a provider of testing services for the automotive industry based in Linas-Montlhéry, France, told T&BB it recently opened a new site near Casablanca in Morocco, jointly operated by FEV Group GmbH, for hot weather vehicle testing.

The new test centre in Oued Zem complements two cold weather sites in Finland, north of the Arctic Circle. The test tracks at the Moroccan site are 30 kilometres in length altogether. Together with customer workshops, the amenities at the new facility allow for testing parameters such as speed, durability, reliability, offroad, hill climbing, braking, and acoustics in the hot North African weather.

Morocco Mobility & Automotive Centre in Oued Zem

UTAC CEO, Connor McCormack, also told T&BB that UTAC has recently opened a new EDU lab dedicated to electromobility in Germany.

VTEC 2 at Millbrook

At the latest Cenex Low Carbon Vehicle and Connected Automated Mobility exhibition, held at UTAC’s Millbrook Proving Ground between 6-7 September 2023, T&BB got to see the inside of one of the group’s most recent investments, a variable temperature emissions chamber (dubbed “VTEC 2”) which opened late 2021. The chamber can accommodate vehicles with an axle weight of up to 20 tonnes and a simulated loading weight of up to 60 tonnes, as well as 4x4 vehicles with a wheelbase of up to 8 metres. 

The VTEC 2 allows for testing the thermal stability of commercial vehicles under temperatures as low as -20 degrees Celsius. The facility allows for expanded testing of vehicles running on battery-electric and alternative fuels such as hydrogen. It includes a new dedicated particulate matter filter weighing chamber and emissions testing with no limit on cycle duration. Engineers are able to simulate eight hours of driving to test vehicles against current emissions standards.