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Volvo Announces Plug-In Diesel-Electric Hybrid

June 11, 2009 in Consumer News, Future Cars, Hybrids, MPG, New Tech, PHEVs, diesel by kristen | No comments

I’ve long said that the future of the automobile won’t rest on any one new technology. Volvo apparently took this to heart and threw several of the latest alternative-fuel technologies into one model, which could appear on the market as soon as 2012.

There were few details released, but here’s what we know about the first model to embody Volvo’s “Drive towards Zero” mission:

  • It will use a diesel engine and lithium batteries
  • It can run on battery power alone for about 30 miles
  • Emissions would be below 50 grams of CO2 per km
  • The new technology will make the car really expensive, so Volvo is encouraging governments to offer subsidies and incentives

Photo of the concept Volvo hybrid courtesy of Volvo Cars.

Volvo Hybrids on the Way

October 15, 2008 in Consumer News, Future Cars, Hybrids, MPG, PHEVs, diesel by kristen | No comments

Volvo C30 will get start-stop tech in 2009

If you love the safe feeling of driving a Volvo but not the around-town gas mileage (16 mpg in an S80!), do the Swedes have good news for you. Volvo announced at the Paris auto show, where green was king, that it would introduce start-stop technology in some of its 2009 models, with diesel hybrids to appear in 2012 and plug-in hybrids to come sometime soon after that.

The smaller C30, S40, and V50 will get the start-stop treatment first. This relatively uncomplicated technology shuts off the engine when it’s not under load, at stop lights, say, and starts it back up when you’re ready to get moving. Start-stop will make its way into the rest of Volvo’s lineup in the future.

Diesel hybrid systems will be used in the company’s larger vehicles, like SUVs, wagons, and the big sedans. The Volvo setup will have a 5-cylinder turbodiesel engine to drive the front wheels and an electric motor to power the rear wheels. At low speeds, the electric motor will be able to do all the necessary work.

Automotive News mentioned that electric motors and diesel engines have the same shortcoming, namely a lack of horsepower at high rpm. Volvo execs say that they’re more interested in reducing CO2 emissions, and this is the best way for them to do that. I doubt many people were buying Volvo wagons for their sportiness, anyway.