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Hybrid Diesel Electric Car
The Dodge Ram Diesel hybrid is built on the Ram Heavy Duty (2500/3500) chassis and is equipped with diesel/electric hybrid propulsion. Diesel works well as a hybrid because there is fuel economy savings with a diesel compared to a similar gasoline engine. The main reasons customers will choose the Dodge Ram will be the improved fuel economy (up to 15 percent over comparable engines) and the lower emissions, but the Ram hybrid offers another benefit. The truck can operate as an electric generator, providing 110/220-volt AC power, useful on job sites, for recreational use and for use during emergency power outages.  Dodge Ram Diesel Hybrid For passanger cars, in Europe, there is Opel Astra Diesel Hybrid, which uses a two-mode full hybrid system based on GM/DaimlerChrysler co-development. Introduced in the 2005 North American International Auto Show (in Detroit), the Opel Astra GTC Coupe is equipped with a 125-horsepower, 1.7-liter CDTI diesel engine plugged to twin electric motors, one generating 30kw of power and the other 40kw. Compared to standard Astra diesel cars, the Astra Diesel Hybrid is 25 percent more fuel-efficient. The Opel Astra GTC Coupe diesel hybrid will be sold in Europe, but not in the North American market. In addition, Peugeot Citroen is building a diesel hybrid based on the family-sized Citroen Berlingo. Peugeot has stated that the company aims to achieve a combined fuel economy of 70 miles per gallon with carbon-dioxide emissions of only 90 grams per 0.62 miles. In comparison, Toyota Prius delivers 55 miles per gallon with carbon-dioxide emissions of 104 grams per 0.62 miles. It is unsure whether the diesel-hybrid Citroen Berlingo will ever make into production, however. Future Outlook for Hybrid Diesel Electric CarThere is one interesting study available on diesel hybrids and other alternative fuel resources, published by MIT, that gives an idea on the impact that diesel hybrids could have. The March 2003 MIT Laboratory for Energy Environment study looked at energy use over the course of a vehicle's life. The conclusion of the study was that the hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle will not be better than the diesel hybrid (a vehicle powered by a conventional engine supplemented by an electric motor) in terms of total energy use and greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. Also, the adoption of hydrogen-based vehicles will require major infrastructure changes to make compressed hydrogen available, while no such investment is required for hybrid diesel electric cars. You can download the Comparative Assessment of Fuel Cell Cars (2003) MIT report directly from the source. However, there are reasons why the hybrid diesel cars are not widely available on the market. One of the main reasons is that hybrid diesels are very expensive to produce. If you combine a diesel engine, (which costs around $2,000 more than a petrol engine) with a hybrid powertrain, the end result is a very expensive system. Also, specific systems to treat the diesel exhausts would increase the unit costs.
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