Isuzu To Release Hybrid Buses With Higher Fuel Efficiency
TOKYO (Nikkei)--Isuzu Motors Ltd. (7202) has developed a new type of hybrid bus that uses the engine solely for generating electricity and boasts higher fuel economy, The Nikkei learned Monday.

The Nikkei newspaper reported today (9/30) that Isuzu would make serial drive electric bus by 2010. The bus will be running solely on electric motor(s) with an ICE driving a generator. The drive system has a Li-ion battery pack as a buffer. Isuzu claims the new system saves fuel by 30%.

It seems serial electric drive system is more efficient compared to conventional ICE>transmission system even without plug-in feature, at least for larger size vehicles.
I would like to see big GM trucks and SUV’s with the serial design.

Isuzu To Release Hybrid Buses With Higher Fuel Efficiency
TOKYO (Nikkei)--Isuzu Motors Ltd. (7202) has developed a new type of hybrid bus that uses the engine solely for generating electricity and boasts higher fuel economy, The Nikkei learned Monday.

The Nikkei newspaper reported today (9/30) that Isuzu would make serial drive electric bus by 2010. The bus will be running solely on electric motor(s) with an ICE driving a generator. The drive system has a Li-ion battery pack as a buffer. Isuzu claims the new system saves fuel by 30%.

It seems serial electric drive system is more efficient compared to conventional ICE>transmission system even without plug-in feature, at least for larger size vehicles.
I would like to see big GM trucks and SUV’s with the serial design.


Many of the hybrid buses already use a serial design. What is new is the use of the lithium-ion battery pack to store the regen energy. It was just too expensive to justify before.

Texas, it looks like even smaller cars can yield better fuel mileage using serial electric drive from the same ICE:

http://gm-volt.com/2008/08/22/chevy-volt-still-expected-to-get-50-mpg-in-ice-mode-after-battery-depleted/

In the article the Volt chief engineer Andrew Farah stated,” This engine is expected to get more than 40 mpg when used in a non-hybrid model, such as the upcoming Chevy Cruze. Therefore it shouldn’t surprise us that when used in the Volt’s series hybrid system with a massive lithium-ion battery and regenerative brakes, that 50 mpg could be achieved”.

If so, why don’t they (GM) make non plug-in serial electric drive vehicles with smaller buffer battery pack (lighter and cheaper)? 50mpg vs. 40mpg (ICE>transmission drive) is a tremendous improvement from the same engine. The battery pack can be as small as 1 to 2kWh just to store regenerated energy for idling stop feature and to keep accessories such as AC running. It can also supply a burst of extra energy to the motor for start-up acceleration. Money wise the electric car would cost more (generator + motor + battery – transmission), but certainly substantially less than the Volt. The interest of many of today’s consumers is not the total saving of fuel use in 10 years, but how much out of pocket expenses are every month. In other words their concern is their monthly cash flow after leasing a car. Here a 50mpg car (compared to a 25mpg one) becomes attractive if you drive 2000 miles or so a month. Besides, it makes drivers feel good about their contribution to the environment and reduction of foreign oil use.

The answer is: GM is betting the farm on a single horse. They will deliver a mass-production Volt, with the first models hitting the Dealerships late 2010.

All the while, I am SURE that GM techs are reading every scrap of intel they can get on all of the other flavors of serial Hybrid... from everywhere, including Chrysler, who announced four various vehicles (two of which were serial hybrids) that were extremely careful not to bump heads with GM and the Volt.

I am guessing that GM will come out with other flavors, once Vanilla is selling like... ice cream on a hot September day. :) Modifying the production line to produce varieties of Volt should be fairly easy:
* All-Electric 100-mile range sooOOooper sport Volt.
* Tiny Battery "Run the ICE most of the time" (can you say WAY cheaper) Volt.
* Convertible Volt.
* Mini-wagon Volt.
* Mini-Pickup Volt.
* Police Interceptor Volt from Robo-Cop (maybe this is going a bit too far).
et cetera.

All on the same production lines, because the basic structure would be the same.

Also, building a hybrid that is very close to the specifications of the Prius is not all that impressive after so many years. Don't you think? They needed to swing for the plug-in-hybrid fences. It's also why they are not going to use the same old battery technology that the Prius uses. It just feels old and already done. Believe it or not marketing can be much more of a force than the engineering.