Automotive News released an article today stating that Ford has signed a contract with Azure Dynamics to retrofit electric (plug in electric) engines in the new F250-550. I think this may work in a tuck application because of the torque that electric motors produce but I doubt it will get any better gas mileage.

http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dl...110729849/1186

 

It will save gas, if (and it probably does) use regenerative braking. Slowing down the vehicle charges the batteries by using the electric motor in reverse as a generator.

To speed back up, it'll use that reclaimed energy.

Hybrids make great gains in city driving. On the highway, not so much.

And I doubt it will be used for towing 12-15lbs on the highway up mountain passes

 

It's doable. Just look at how trains are pulled. But if this is going to be a plug in type that relies on some battery cells, then I agree. It won't do much good pulling big loads for very far.

 

I will wait for the guys saying that spending $4-6000 for diesel makes no economical sense to come to the conclusion how the $15,000 for the hybrid batteries does.
Customers got duped by manufacturers jumping on band wagon full of uneducated customers.
Hybrids makes sense only in city traffic and the buses with small diesel running generator at constant speed and electric motors build into the wheels for power makes lot of sense.
on hybrid cars, driven on highways the electric motors and batteries are 100% dead weight.
I can almost feel new sale pitch. "Our truck regenerated $ 1 worth of fuel going downhill for 2 miles."
SURE >>> load 2 tons of manure on the back and you will regenerate even more.

 

We got hybrid bus's at my work and they run the same motor as the dodge truck. They have big batteries and electric motors in the trans. They also get the exact same mpg as the bus running a cummins 11 litter. Hybrids at least from what I have seen don't work to well to scale up and still have the engine driving the truck. I can see maybe if it went electic only then maybe. Oh yeah the hybrid option is a 300k option on each bus.

 

I think some of the problems in these threads is that the actual process is not very detailed.

A "plug in hybrid" is not like a Prius. A Prius relies on it's engine to charge the batteries, while first using the engine to accelerate. Over time, it charges the batteries enough that it starts to use the batteries to accelerate. And when braking, it also charges the batteries using the motor in reverse.

Real highway cruising is mostly done on the engine, with some help from the batteries. It shines in city driving.

A "plug in hybrid" starts out with a full battery charge. Depending on how it's programmed, the engine doesn't come into play right away. And if it's stop-and-go, the battery stays almost fully charged because of regenerative braking.

Depending on how big the battery is, it can run quite some time before it NEEDS the engine for anything.

A locomotive is not a "hybrid". It's just a convenient way to control the power from the diesel. Electric motors can produce almost instant torque with no RPM, meaning getting a train moving is a lot easier with a diesel pushing a generator. And there's no regenerative braking. It's just about the closest analog to a steam engine there is. Control the amount of steam, control the torque, without worrying about RPM. Control the amount of electric, control the amount of torque. Without worrying about RPM.

It will be interesting, that's for sure.

 

What I have read so far is the plug-in hybrid will be offered first in the F-Series Super Duty cab and chassis truck (F550 in 2013). They will follow with F450 and F350 versions and as far as I have seen an F250 version has not been announced. The hybrid will likely use a parallel powertrain designed around the 6.2-liter V8 and/or the 6.7-liter Power Stroke. How about this---a plug-in hybrid 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 Super Duty---LOL. The truck could operate over short distances on battery power alone or the electric motor can provide an assist for the gas or diesel motor. My guess is they are targeting fleet and commercial customers doing mostly in town driving.

FYI a Ford/Azure hybrid version of the E-450 using 5.4-liter does get better fuel economy, Azure says up to 40% better. However, this uses the Balance Hybrid system (electric-launch assist, engine-off at idle and regenerative braking) and does not have to be plugged in for recharging.

 

But not across the board, right? In town sure, but for the guys who run 2000+ miles a month on the highways I would question whether it's worth it.

 

We have retro-fitted "hybrid" MT45s, and they consume so much of the mechanic's time they neglect the other vehicles....(jmo, not an official opinion). There ain't that many of them either, may 12 or 18. Towing guy is sending his kids to Stanford on them bastids....

 

When did electricity become a clean energy source? How many new powerplants will have to be built to satisfy our power needs when millions of people are plugging thier cars/trucks in at night? Who will elect to have all this nuclear waste stored in their neighborhood

 

When I worked in the Oil fields in West Texas, and I notice it now with rigs I drive by, they were and still are using electric motors. Most use propane to power the engines, some use diesel, but that is a stationary situation. So it looks like this, Engines turn generators which generators power the electric motors and supply the electricity to the drill site. There may be 20 motors in parallel producing the electricity for the motors. Trains, same concept only more portable, but look at the size of the engines that turn the electric motors! Trucks on the road? Weight of Batteries? Weight of the Generator, cause the alternator we have now, will not power it? How often will it have to plug in? So now the weight of charger? Addition of weight, must compromise towing capacity. I think we are headed down another road of dissappointment and unecessary cost to the American public.

 

Hybrids are hardly ever worth it on the highway, and pulling heavy loads, heck no

Notice how manufacturers usually brag about highway mileage for "normal" vehicles, and city mileage for hybrids? There's a reason for that

 

I just remembered I saw something a while back about Eaton producing plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) F-550 Super Dutys, The PHEV system is specifically designed with repair trucks in mind. The design includes: Blended Regenerative Braking, Engine Off at Zero Speed, On-board Charger (7kW), Charging-Level 1 (120 Vac) and Level 2 (240 Vac), Electrified Accessories (Steering, Brakes, and HVAC), Export Power (5 kW, 120 Vac, 60 Hz), ePTO operation (>5 Hours with Engine-Off).

With the export power and ePTO, you can operate tools and hydraulics without the engine idling. Maybe this is where the Ford/Azure hybrid is going.

 

Not to mention electricity generated by a tired Cummins as in the case of the trucks I mentioned earlier.

It will take some time for this stuff to shake out. Clearly there will be some applications, but nothing like urban-suburban cars.

Of course, our stuff makes 100+ stops per day, so if they can make these things run on the battery juice for every other stop, they might be on to something.

Everyone's mmv.

 

Azure Dynamics already uses f550 frames and engines to build hybrid delivery vans and shuttle busses, they've been making them for years.....they get a proven (in Canada's coldest weather) 40% better fuel economy. I talked to a guy driving one (a delivery driver) he said he doesn't even look at the gas gauge now....he also peeled out of the lot after I talked to him just to show off it's torque They work, period. This company and Ford are going to save a lot of people money, or just redirect it into their pockets instead of the oil companies