Volvo is adjusting its approach to sustainable transportation by dumping its proposed full hybrid moel in favor if a plug-in diesel hybrid. This proposed diesel hybrid will use components from its recent V70 PHEV demonstrators along with existing body designs to expedite the production process. Volvo projects that the as-yet-unnamed hybrid will hit European streets by 2012. The Gothenburg, Sweden-based automaker is hoping that the costs of batteries will decrease in order to bring its proposed hybrid into line with the prices of other Volvo vehicles.
The V70 PHEV demonstrators were featured this summer in the first stage of the V2 Plug-in Hybrid Vehicle Partnership between Volvo and Swedish utility Vattenfall. These plug-in hybrids feature rear-wheel electric motors, front-wheel diesel engines and 11.3 kWh lithium-ion batteries. Volvo’s diesel engine will be able to run separately from the electric motor for greater power or join the motor to reduce fuel consumption. Volvo and Vattenfall are focusing on synthetic diesel as the optimal fuel source for this plug-in car.
Volvo representatives stated last week that the plug-in diesel concept will differ slightly from the V70 demonstrators. The automaker used the V70 demonstrator as a stepping stone for its fuel mileage, all-electric and total range projections for the 2012 model. Volvo claims that the plug-in diesel hybrid will achieve up to 124 miles per gallon thanks to the diesel engine and electric motor. The company will design the plug-in diesel to travel up to 31 miles on electrical power, allowing most drivers to run errands without using a drop of diesel. The plug-in diesel hybrid will be able to travel up to 746 miles without recharging or refueling according to Volvo.
The announcement made last week by Volvo should be viewed as a realistic look at hybrid development by a major automaker. Volvo’s use of existing designs, body construction techniques and drive components decreases initial costs for producing its plug-in diesel hybrid. Customers purchasing the diesel plug-in starting in 2012 may enter into a contract with Vattenfall to purchase cheaper electricity, batteries and synthetic diesel to operate their cars. We should reserve our excitement about the Volvo plug-in diesel until more details are unveiled but the initial announcement reveals a trend among major automakers. We will see automakers like Honda, Ford and Toyota scuttle elaborate concepts in favor of hybrids and alternative-fuel vehicles using existing components. This trend may not be the massive revolution in alternative fuels some readers hope for but it means that automakers are trying to get hybrids to market at reasonable prices.
