Volkswagen Working on Golf Hybrid

Very good! Electric/Hybrid > Diesel

"Volkswagen is saying that the hybrid components take up 50% less space than existing hybrids.” The Volkswagen Golf Hybrid will use a lightweight electric CVT transmission which is 35kg lighter than the system used in the Prius."

Very nice.

This means that the Golf has a super duper efficient regular engine that saves 10% by itself.

"hybrid prototype using 10% less fuel than a conventional vehicle while running its engine"

AND it saves 15% more with the hybrid part

"The Golf hybrid also saved 15% while running in hybrid mode."

I think that means that combined it can save up to 25 % which is very good. Soon the fuel economy ratings for all of the hybrids will fall dramatically. This improvement on the Golf is very good compared to the actual improvement of most hyrbids.

Will it output the same power as the bigger one in the Prius?

I'm not excited, and unimpressed. VW can do better.

I thought Germans didn't give a damn about Hybrids?

Oh well!

Who came out with the first hybrid?

In 20 years who will give a damn, but if you need to know ask NASA.

In 1898 Ferdinand Porsche designed the Lohner-Porsche carriage, a series-hybrid vehicle that broke several Austrian speed records, and also won the Exelberg Rally in 1901 with Porsche himself driving. Over 300 of the Lohner-Porsche carriages were sold to the public. However this is more an example of electrical transmission than a hybrid vehicle.

The 1915 Dual Power made by the Woods Motor Vehicle electric car maker had a four cylinder internal combustion engine and an electric motor. Below 15 mph (25 km/h) the electric motor alone drove the vehicle and above this speed the "main" engine cut in to take the car up to its 35 mph (55 km/h) top speed. About 600 were made up to 1918. [3]

There have also been air engine hybrids where a small petrol engine powered a compressor. Several types of air engines also increased the range between fill-ups with up to 60% by absorbing ambient heat from its surroundings.[4]

In 1959 the development of the first transistor-based electric car—the Henney Kilowatt—heralded the development of the electronic speed control that paved the way for modern hybrid electric cars. The Henney Kilowatt was the first modern production electric vehicle and was developed by a cooperative effort between National Union Electric Company, Henney Coachworks, Renault, and the Eureka Williams Company. Although sales of the Kilowatt were dismal, the development of the Kilowatt served was a historical "who's who" of electric propulsion technology.

A more recent working prototype of the electric-hybrid vehicle was built by Victor Wouk (one of the scientists involved with the Henney Kilowatt and also brother of author Herman Wouk ). Wouk's work with electric hybrid vehicles in the 1960s and 1970s earned him the title as the "Godfather of the Hybrid"[5]). Wouk installed a prototype electric-hybrid drivetrain into a 1972 Buick Skylark provided by GM for the 1970 Federal Clean Car Incentive Program, but the program was killed by the EPA in 1976 while Eric Stork, the head of the EPA at the time, was accused of a prejudicial coverup[6]. Since then, hobbyists have continued to build hybrids but none was put into mass production by a major manufacturer until the waning years of the twentieth century.

The regenerative-braking hybrid, the core design concept of most production hybrids, was developed by Electrical Engineer David Arthurs around 1978 using off-the shelf components and an Opel GT. However the voltage controller to link the batteries, motor (a jet-engine starter motor), and DC generator was Mr. Arthurs'. The vehicle exhibited ~75 mpg fuel efficiency and plans for it (as well as somewhat updated versions) are still available through the Mother Earth News web site. The Mother Earth News' own 1980 version claimed nearly 84 mpg.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hybrid_car

Kewlllll - Too bad Toyota is the only one who can do it right, ty for the info.

Blueice,

What the hell is that supposed to mean? This car hasn't even been tested yet nor been compared to the Toyota hyrbid.

Already, you are claiming that the Toyota hybrid is better. We call that FANBOY BULLSHIT. Leave it to the magazines to decide which hybrid system is better.

And even if the VW should loose, it'll be a million times more fun to drive than your Toyota Prius, Camry or whatever hybrid models they offer.

From Autobild 2004 Touran hybrid for those that did not know

http://www.autobild.de/test/neuwagen/artikel.php?artikel_id=6787&artikel_seite=1

translated
http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&u=http://www.autobild.de/test/neuwagen/artikel.php%3Fartikel_id%3D6787%26artikel_seite%3D1&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=2&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dvw%2Bhybrid%2Bautobild.de%26num%3D100%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26newwindow%3D1%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DG

It would be nice to have a GTI version too.