Do-it-yourself hybrid
The bolt-on hybrid
A cheap bolt-on kit will one day be able to turn most ordinary cars into fuel-sipping plug-in hybrids, US researchers say.
Engineering technology students at the Middle Tennessee State University have fitted a 20-year-old Honda Accord wagon with a retrofit plug-in hybrid system that powers the front wheels using the conventional petrol engine, and a pair of electric hub motors hidden inside the rear wheels.
Users are then able to plug the hybrid car into an ordinary power point to charge up a set of lithium-ion batteries mounted in the wagon?s load space.
The batteries in turn feed electricity into the hub motors to provide low-speed power that is able to help the conventional petrol engine accelerate - the most fuel-hungry part of driving.
The bolt-on kit was developed in recognition of the fact that many drivers in the US only travelled about 70 kilometres a day at speeds below about 70km/h.
According to researchers, the in-wheel electric motors provide about 270Nm of torque - the equivalent pulling power of a 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder diesel engine - and help to slash the car?s fuel bill in half.
Even better, researchers say the system currently costs roughly $3000, about twice the price of converting a car to run on LPG, but costs should come down as battery technology improves and the suitcase-sized bank of batteries becomes much smaller.
According to the university, the big benefit of the retrofit system is that it does not require any modification to the suspension or drivetrain to use it, bolting on directly over the existing parts.
MTSU says the university is now looking for a business partner to help it commercialise the concept.
Do-it-yourself hybrid
The bolt-on hybrid
A cheap bolt-on kit will one day be able to turn most ordinary cars into fuel-sipping plug-in hybrids, US researchers say.
Engineering technology students at the Middle Tennessee State University have fitted a 20-year-old Honda Accord wagon with a retrofit plug-in hybrid system that powers the front wheels using the conventional petrol engine, and a pair of electric hub motors hidden inside the rear wheels.
Users are then able to plug the hybrid car into an ordinary power point to charge up a set of lithium-ion batteries mounted in the wagon?s load space.
The batteries in turn feed electricity into the hub motors to provide low-speed power that is able to help the conventional petrol engine accelerate - the most fuel-hungry part of driving.
The bolt-on kit was developed in recognition of the fact that many drivers in the US only travelled about 70 kilometres a day at speeds below about 70km/h.
According to researchers, the in-wheel electric motors provide about 270Nm of torque - the equivalent pulling power of a 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder diesel engine - and help to slash the car?s fuel bill in half.
Even better, researchers say the system currently costs roughly $3000, about twice the price of converting a car to run on LPG, but costs should come down as battery technology improves and the suitcase-sized bank of batteries becomes much smaller.
According to the university, the big benefit of the retrofit system is that it does not require any modification to the suspension or drivetrain to use it, bolting on directly over the existing parts.
MTSU says the university is now looking for a business partner to help it commercialise the concept.
Do-it-yourself hybrid
