Daimler
Since 2000 the Canadian bus manufacturer Orion has been a Daimler group member company. Since 1997, Orion, together with BAE Systems, has been advancing the development of the diesel-electric drive and is now the world’s leading maker of hybrid buses.
As in the case of the Cito – and unlike the hybrid Sprinter – the 260 hp six-liter diesel does not serve Orion as a drive engine, but, by means of a generator, produces electricity which is then available for the electric drive. By feeding the braking energy back into the batteries mounted on the roof, as much as 45 percent fuel can be saved compared with a normal diesel bus. At the same time it goes easy on the brake linings. The energy recuperation system is particularly well suited for stop-and-go traffic in downtown areas, where normally a great deal of energy is wasted due to frequent braking.
After testing ten vehicles, New York City Transit bought 125 hybrid buses in 2001, and two years later ordered another 200 and thoroughly compared them with an equal number of natural gas and diesel buses. The result of the study, conducted from September 2004 through May 2005, was convincing. With regard to emissions, but also energy consumption, acceleration and useful life, the hybrid bus wins by a mile against the competitors. The hybrid drive cuts the nitrogen oxide emissions by 40 percent and the particulate emissions (thanks to a particulate trap) by as much as 90 percent.
Daimler
New York City Transit was impressed and promptly ordered 500 more vehicles, which were to be followed by another 389 units. Toronto, too, has ordered 150 hybrid buses, another 56 units are going to San Francisco, and in each case there is an option for follow-up orders. A special advantage of the Orion VII HybriDrive is its use of well-tried, robust components. However, the dual drive with lithium-ion batteries makes itself felt in the price.
Mitsubishi Fuso also goes into large-scale production with hybrid buses: The Aerostar Nonstep HEV
The Japanese subsidiary Mitsubishi Fuso has also been manufacturing hybrid buses since 2006: Aerostar Nonstep HEV is the name of its low-entry urban bus with the characteristic rooftop structure housing the batteries. In the rear of the bus is a transversely mounted 125 hp diesel engine featuring common-rail injection, exhaust gas recirculation, oxidation catalyst and particulate trap. Versus a conventional diesel drive the nitrogen oxide emissions are 68 percent lower, the particulate emissions 76 percent. Super-single tires on the rear axle create additional space inside the bus.
[...] Hybrid, gas and hydrogen drive: New concepts for low to zero … By admin By feeding the braking energy back into the batteries mounted on the roof, as much as 45 percent fuel can be saved compared with a normal diesel bus. At the same time it goes easy on the brake linings. The energy recuperation system is … GreenCar Magazine – https://greencarmagazine.net/ [...]