Most impressive of all, however, is Hyundai's home-grown hybrid architecture. It is as yet unproven in the marketplace, but no one should dismiss what's going on here. Hyundai plans to mate a 2.4-litre engine to a six-speed automatic transmission and a 30 kW electric motor to achieve excellent fuel economy.
Full hybrids are nothing new, of course. Toyota does it, GM does it, Chrysler does it and others are on the way. What separates Hyundai from these others is the battery.
Hyundai plans to deliver the hybrid's electrical charge using a lithium polymer rechargeable battery. Krafcik says it surpasses existing nickel-metal hydride batteries and will be better than pending lithium-ion batteries, too.
Moreover, it is more durable and space-efficient than these other hybrid batteries. Lithium polymer delivers the same power with 30 per cent less weight, 50 per cent less volume and 10 per cent greater efficiency over the current nickel-metal hydride batteries in current hybrids, he says.
