Poulson hybrid hopes to distribute 100 kits per day by mid-2009

I don't think we've discussed the Poulson hybrid kit on Huddler yet, but it's a very cool invention.  The kit is an aftermarket device you can add to most any compact car so it performs pretty much like a gas/electric hybrid. 

Poulsen’s Hybrid Kit will work on any car with 15” wheels or larger, be they front drive, rear drive, and all wheel drive. As they put it the kit’s development came about from the observation that “only 10-15 horsepower is required to propel a compact or mid-size automobile along a level road at a steady 60 mph. leading to the conclusion that this relatively small amount of electric power would be able to cope with 70-85% of normal driving, only aided by the combustion engine during start up and when extra energy is required for acceleration and hill climbing.”

Basically the kit attaches 2 electric motors to the wheels, and then a battery pack (either lead acid for $4550 or lithium ion for $8600) is placed in the trunk (taking up about 20% of trunk space).

Jim Motavalli from The Daily Green went to visit the Poulsen factory first hand. He reports that “The motors do not drive the car, but kick in to provide a power boost between 15 and 60 miles per hour [24-97 kph]. Regenerative braking helps keep the batteries charged.” Going on to say, If the system works as advertised, a 30-mile-per-gallon [7.8 ltr/100km] car will be raised to 55 mpg [4.3 ltr/100km.” Range on electric alone is expected to to be in the order of 25 to 30 miles (42 -48 km). The factory hopes to be pumping out 100 kits a day by mid 2009.

So I think this is very clever and super awesome.  Converting nearly any car to a hybrid and potentially nearly doubling its fuel efficiency for under $5k?  That kicks some serious butt.  Poulson also says:

"The initial motor design was developed specifically for light and compact sized cars. However, we have recieved numerous requests for a version of the Poulsen Hybrid suitable for SUVs and Pick Up trucks so we’ll attempt to have two more powerful versions available in 2009."

Here's what Poulson hybrid says about that:

"The controllers in the Poulsen Hybrid system are programmed for torque control and not connected to your accelerator pedal.

Instead, a toggle switch serves to turn the system on and off. The toggle swith is connected with the battery power supply in the trunk via a 10 foot cable."

Unfortunately I couldn't find any more details about it.  It certainly can't be as simple as flipping a switch, because you still have to be able to control the amount of power from the motors, but apparently it's not connected to the accelerator pedal.

Well actually there is a bit more info in that DailyGreen article.

"The system, adding approximately 200 pounds to the car and taking up 20 percent of trunk space, acts as range extender. The motors do not drive the car, but kick in to provide a power boost between 15 and 60 miles per hour. Regenerative braking helps keep the batteries charged."

So perhaps it's connected to the speedometer and automatically turns on (as long as the toggle switch is on) in that 15-60 mph speed range.  Then even in the case of rapid braking, the system would turn off below 15 mph.