Converting petrol or diesel car into hybrid

[Manu Sharma]

Two Pune based companies claim to have developed a hybrid retrofit system to convert any conventional car into a plug-in hybrid boosting its efficiency by 40-80%. They plan to launch it within six months. 

I had blogged about a similar solution called Poulsen Hybrid, a couple of years ago which used in-wheel hub motors unlike the one below. Nothing seems to have come out of it yet. 

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Retrofit your vehicle with hybrid power in less than six hours

by Eric Loveday on Jun 15th 2010 at 7:48PM

It's almost unbelievable, but Bharat Forge and KPIT Cummins Infosystems LTD. claim to have developed a hybrid retrofit system that can be easily applied to most vehicles in under six hours, resulting in an increase in fuel efficiency of up to 80 percent. It's so wildly unbelievable, that we just had to bring it to you and for those shadetree mechanics out there, this could be one adventurous DIY.

The India-based companies claim that the system is much like a compressed natural gas (CNG) conversion kit. All of the necessary hardware is included to quickly convert your gasoline- or diesel-powered vehicle over to hybrid drive in a few short hours with minimal work. Collectively, Bharat Forge and KPIT Cummins have filed 15 patents for its so-called ReVOLO hybrid drive system. The ReVOLO system should be launch-ready in India within six months and will be offered as both an aftermarket add-on and as an original equipment option. Dependent upon application, the companies claim the ReVOLO kits can reduce fuel usage by 40 to 80 percent, which seems extremely optimistic. Unfortunately, pricing for this unbelievably amazing kit has not yet been announced, but the companies admit that they are aggressively seeking ways to reduce costs, which indicates it's probably a bit high. Follow the jump for more info on hybridizing your auto.

Manu