PLUG OK license plate
PHEV News Catchup: Buses/Phoenix/Hymotion Acquisition?/DIY Diesel/Sprinter/Minnesota Study
Apr 26, 2007 (From the CalCars-News archive)
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This posting originally appeared at CalCars-News, our newsletter of breaking CalCars and plug-in hybrid news. View the original posting here.
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We've had so much going on I haven't been able to do justice to external news. So here's a shortcut summary.

Conveniently, Autopia/Wired Blog Network writer John Gartner has a roundup of several important developments (including the latest in a series of milestones for plug-in hybrid school buses, which we have not covered adequately). If you click on the original posting URL, you'll find links to all these items, which I've turned into bullets (followed with additional items).

Autopia: Plug-In Hybrids Just Around the Corner http://blog.wired.com/­cars/­2007/­04/­plugin_hybrids__1.html It may be a few years before you'll see many plug-in hybrids on the lots of "dealer row," but smaller vehicle makers are close to making them a reality. The first plug-in hybrids on the roads are likely to be buses, trucks, and transit vehicles that have regularly scheduled downtime to recharge. If you can believe the flurry of investment in this space, plug-in hybrids are likely just around the corner.

  • Electric vehicle manufacturer Phoenix Motorcars and electric motor company UQM Technologies are building a plug-in version of Phoenix' electric pickup truck.
  • Wise men looking for a plug-in hybrid school bus can go to Nazareth (Pennsylvania) to see one of the first vehicles of its kind in operation. Bus manufacturer IC Corporation has teamed with Enova Systems to build plug-in hybrid buses, including the first two which hit the road in Florida.
  • Odyne Corporation and battery maker Enersys are building plug-in shuttle buses and transit vehicles that are being tested in New York.
  • Finally, battery maker A123 Systems is rumored to have acquired plug-in hybrid partner Hymotion, according to Tyler Hamilton. It's looking like 2008 will be the year that we'll see hundreds or thousands of plug-in fleet vehicles. Can the big auto makers be far behind? [End of Wired story]
  • One of the DaimlerChrysler Sprinter PHEV prototypes has now migrated from Federal Express to the New York Times, where it will stay for a long time: http://www.treehugger.com/­files/­2007/­04/­new-york-times-plug-in.php www.greencarcongress.com/2007/04/new_york_times_.html
  • In the "now-we've seen everything" department, Do-It-Yourself [Diesel] Plug-In Hybrid Set for June Launch http://www.edmunds.com/­insideline/­do/­News/­articleId=120085
  • State of Minnesota study on the environmental impact of PHEVs (885K PDF) http://www.state.mn.us/­mn/­externalDocs/­Commerce/­Air_Emissions_Impacts_of_PlugIn_Hybrid_Vehicles_in_Minnesotas_Pass_032907013010_PCA_PHEV_emissions_FINAL_2.pdf

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