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02/09/2010
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Ashwoods Automotive is to launch an "exciting technology" that can reduce fuel consumption by 10%, as well as demonstrating its hybrid-electric vans at the low carbon vehicle event, LCV 2010 (Millbrook Proving Grounds 15—16 September).
 The company is remaining tight lipped about the new technology, saying only that it "aims to replicate the success of the Hybrid Transit" – which is working well on the Department for Transport's Low Carbon Vehicle Procurement Programme (LCVPP).
As for the firm's Hybrid Transit, Mark Roberts, managing director at Ashwoods Automotive, explains that it works on Ford's panel van and reduces fuel consumption by 15—25%.
It also takes less than four hours to fit. The van recovers kinetic energy usually wasted through braking or deceleration, with a lithium-ion battery storing the recovered energy, while a high efficiency electric motor delivers the power back to the wheels on demand.
Says Roberts: "Ashwoods Hybrid Transit is now the best-selling hybrid van in the UK, because it delivers simple, practical benefits to fleets.
Roberts makes the point that because Ashwoods' system is self-powered, it never needs plugging into a charging point and drivers don't have to worry about the battery running flat. The technology also reduces wear and tear on the brakes and there is no interference with the vehicle's structure – so standard warranty and residual values remain intact.
When a fleet manager wants to sell on the van, Ashwoods can decouple the system, refurbish it and fit it to another vehicle in the fleet.
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Author
Brian Tinham
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