03-04-2008, 12:09 AM
|
|
|
Quote:
The OE 302 marks a new start for hybrid development
The more recent history of hybrid drives at Daimler-Benz began in 1969, when the company presented the OE 302 city bus as an experimental vehicle at the Frankfurt International Motor Show (IAA). The bus carried 66 passengers, and its powertrain was a DC motor with an output of 115 kW (156 hp), that could be temporarily increased to 150 kW (204 hp). This electric motor was powered by lead batteries, for example during zero-emission driving through city centers. For driving in the country, the electric motor fed a generator which in turn was powered by a diesel engine. The latter operated at a constant speed, at a constant load, and with good efficiency, which meant it generated less exhaust gas or noise in comparison with a vehicle diesel engine, and also required less fuel. According to the researchers, the hybrid principle employed in the OE 302 substantially reduced the downside of having a lead battery - high weight and low energy density - at reasonable cost.
“The electric drive will find its application in buses, where noise and emissions from street vehicles must be entirely eliminated from the city center,” according to a somewhat prescient 1971 press release. “Using hybrid energy systems, they can travel through inner-city areas on electric batteries, thus producing zero emissions and very little noise.” At that time, however, the company reached the following conclusion: “The additional cost in comparison with the drive systems already in use and with natural gas drives therefore means that […], for the present, practical application [of electric drive systems] should only be expected in special cases.”
The Mercedes-Benz OE 305, presented in October 1978 at “transport ’78,” the international trade fair for transport technology, was set up on the same principle as the OE 302. With identical output data, however, it was able carry up to 100 passengers. Its range using only batteries was between 50 and 75 kilometers, depending on driving style, and up to 300 kilometers in hybrid mode. In May 1970, as part of a five-year model test, the first four of a total of thirteen OE 305 buses commenced regular duties as public transport vehicles in Stuttgart. Another seven vehicles followed in September in Wesel.
-----
2002: For the legendary Unimog commercial vehicle, the corporate Research division develops a serial hybrid variant in 2002. In the Unimog E-Drive, a 130-kW (177-hp) diesel engine drives a 100-kW (136-hp) generator which, in turn, supplies power to the electric traction motor and drive systems for the various implements.
|
40 years MB has been researching series-hybrid diesel-electric vehicles. Yet, not a single car is being sold with it by any manufacturer.
You really should check out this article, there are lots of rare alternative fuel high resolution pictures. http://www.emercedesbenz.com/Nov07/21_Alternative_Drive_Systems_At_Daimler_AG_For_The_Mobility_Of_The_Future_1.html
|