Hybrid Vehicle Repair
According to HybridCenter.org, a hybrid vehicle is one that “combines an internal combustion engine and an electric motor powered by batteries, merging the best features of today’s combustion engine cars and electric vehicles. The combination allows the electric motor and batteries to help the conventional engine operate more efficiently, cutting down on fuel use.” http://www.hybridcenter.org/hybrid-center-how-hybrid-cars-work-under-the-hood.html
Hybrids combine the range and torque of the combustion engine with the energy efficiency of an electric motor to create a vehicle that can travel 500 miles before recharging and get up to 20 or 30 more mpg than a gas-only car.
Hybrid Parts and Types
The major components of a hybrid vehicle include a gasoline engine that is typically smaller and more energy efficient; an electric motor that serves as a motor and secondary generator; a generator that draws energy from, and return energy to, the batteries; several batteries (it takes almost 1,000 pounds of batteries to store the energy produced by one gallon of gas); and a transmission, either a conventional type or one specially designed for the hybrid.
Hybrid vehicles come with various engine types and drive train configurations including:
Engine types:
- Hybrid electric-petroleum
- Hybrid fuel (dual mode)
- Fluid power hybrid
Drive train configurations:
- Parallel hybrid – (Honda Insight, Toyota Prius, Ford Escape Hybrid)
- Mild parallel hybrid – (Honda Civic Hybrid, Mercedes Benz S400 BlueHYBRID, BMW 7-Series hybrids)
- Power-split or series-parallel hybrid – (Toyota Prius, Lexus RX400h and LS600h)
- Fuel cell, electric hybrid – (Chevrolet Equinox FCEV, Ford Edge, Honda FCX)
Repairing a hybrid requires a comprehensive knowledge of combustion engines, electrical motors and the specialized transmissions used in these vehicles. And given the various engines and drive train configurations, it’s not a job many auto repair shops can tackle. But it’s one we can handle at Denver Transmission. And all our repair work comes with a two-year unlimited mileage warranty.