AFS Trinity Power Corporation today filed a patent application disclosing the company’s new technology for an “Extreme Hybrid” car capable of carrying the average American motorist more than 250 miles on a single gallon of gasoline or ethanol. The Extreme Hybrid will plug into a house’s electrical current overnight and could run without gasoline or ethanol for the 40 miles that the average American drives each day, the company said. For longer trips, the vehicle would operate as a conventional hybrid that efficiently burns gasoline or ethanol.
“The U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that the average American drives 300 miles per week,” company CEO Edward W. Furia said. “Most days Americans drive 40 miles or less. At $3 a gallon, this costs about $48 a week for a conventional 20 mpg car and $36 if the car can get 25 mpg. The most efficient conventional hybrids get about 50 mpg which means $19 a week. By comparison, the Extreme Hybrid will use less than $8 per week total for fuel and electricity.”
AFS Trinity plans to build the XH drive train with the help of UK-based Ricardo plc, an automotive design and engineering firm.
AFS Trinity and Ricardo have signed a “mutually exclusive Technology Partnership Agreement” to work together to develop the plug-in hybrid technology. With sufficient funding they expect that XH demonstration vehicles could be in the hands of fleet owners in two years and could be licensed for mass production by car makers in three years.
The Patent and the Technology
The AFS Trinity patent filing discloses that Fast Energy Storage technology, including ultracapacitors, controllers and power electronics, will enable the Extreme Hybrid to “overcome the limitations of the energy storage components of conventional hybrids and other plug-in designs.”
“This technology will permit a car to travel the entire 40 miles of an average American’s daily driving in all-electric mode, without giving up rapid acceleration or the ability to travel at highway speeds, all without burning a drop of gasoline,” Furia said.
The patent filing also discloses that idle XH vehicles will be capable of sending power back into the grid through a vehicle to grid – V2G – subsystem, which will help stabilize the power grid and reduce XH owners’ cost of electricity.
“The Extreme Hybrid won’t only cost less to operate on a daily basis, it will also be the first hybrid that will save enough money from reduced operating costs to more than offset the higher purchase price of the car,” added Furia. “In fact, over five years, we estimate that the XH owner will be $11,000 ahead and, over 10 years, $22,000 ahead.”
Filling up once every 10 weeks
“The advantages to the environment and our independence from foreign oil are obvious, but the reason we believe consumers will want this car is because they will save money and because the performance of the XH will be no different than that of conventional cars,” Furia said.
“To recharge the Extreme Hybrid for your daily driving you will need to plug in your car to house current every night, but the average American will only have to fill up with gasoline or ethanol once every 10 weeks or so unless they take a longer trip.”
05/05, 9:02 AM
posted by:
Terence
but how much will the car be and when will it be available??
we need it now damn it!!
05/05, 9:03 AM
posted by:
TW
If they build it, I’ll buy it for everyday driving. I’ll keep an E-Type for fun.
05/05, 9:14 AM
posted by:
Anonymous
Just someone expecting their patent to be bought by Ole’ Lutz and then alowing him to claim he thought it up while they’re looking for property in Hilton Head.
It takes a zillion dollars to bring anything useful to market – half to the lawyers. There’s no way a couple of guys in lab coats or dirty finger nails can do it.
j i m
05/05, 9:22 AM
posted by:
Northeasterner
How much electricity will that thing use? Will the savings in gas offset higher electricity costs? Especially if everyone increases electricity usage and then utilities increase electricity pricing?
05/05, 9:41 AM
posted by:
Captain America
it says
“By comparison, the Extreme Hybrid will use less than $8 per week total for fuel and electricity.”
05/05, 9:56 AM
posted by:
tob
so when we have an “addiction” to coal what we burn at our powerplants…flowers, teddy bears, and lollipops?
05/05, 11:56 AM
posted by:
Greg
Good luck, guys. Hopefully government jerks and large corporations will let you build the car. More likely they will acquire the company and shut it down.
05/05, 12:08 PM
posted by:
Chad
Only $8/WEEK till is goes mass market and the electric company increases the rates to accomodate the extra load and stick it to us another way since we won’t be using as much gas.
05/05, 2:38 PM
posted by:
JCwhitless
Thats why I’m going to buy a gasoline generator to recharge the hybrid to save the bills from the electric company. Of course, I’ll have to spend more on Gas, but I’ll save gas by driving the hybrid to the oh god my head just asploded’
05/05, 3:43 PM
posted by:
Angelo
I have some questions, what are it’s 0-60 and 1/4 mile, skipad and slalom figures? Can I seat two adults in the back seat? Trunk volume?
05/05, 6:06 PM
posted by:
mdt
Warning: VAPORWARE. -mt
05/05, 7:02 PM
posted by:
Jim Press
Plug in hybrids are the future. Look at my name. Hint hint.
05/05, 10:07 PM
posted by:
manny
it looks like one of those round ugly 1980s/1990s concept cars…
05/08, 3:50 PM
posted by:
dan
I hope ACP gets a cut of this.
plugin hybrids aren’t really “tech around the corner” R-and-D-then-wait-and-see obstructed, it’s one more thing to do with what we have, so… why not embrace this?
Electricity is cheaper than gas, so we might as well give oil producers some kind of competition to encourage them to drop rates again…. I like the idea of pitting energy against energy for the benefit of the public.
Right now there aren’t many things that make them compete with one another… just separate oligopolies….
But why is this one news? It’s primary advantage over other hybrids is that its really more of a full electric car that has an on-board generator! Do you see a “mechanical” link between motor and diff on their patent drawing? (follow the link and look around) Only the motor on the diff actually drives the car…. So really, it could be an infinite MPG car b/c it appears to be able to run full-electric, battery pack limited! Their 250MPG figure is just based on some target test feat of some given distance with a fully battery load and full tank load. I think they ought to be using the MPGEEG unit.
05/08, 4:01 PM
posted by:
Phil McCrackin
Thre have been numerous concept vehicles with super-high MPG. From many manufacturers. VW has a concept that uses less that 1L of fuel to travel 100km.
The trick is getting those numbers in a vehicle that satisfies safety requirements, has creature comforts that people want (like climate controls) and making it large enough to fit 2 or 4 (or whatever) fullsize people plus cargo room.