Hyundai Apparently Wants PSA's Hybrid-Air System

Derek Kreindler
by Derek Kreindler

Is Hyundai eyeing PSA’s compressed-air hybrid system? If you believe the scuttlebutt out of France, the answer is yes.

While PSA is heavily touting this new technology as a possible CO2 emissions savior, their technical partner Bosch has been much more cautious. Bosch cautioned that “… Unspecified technical challenges have yet to be overcome before a commercial launch…“, a statement which is at odds with PSA’s ambitious 2016 launch schedule for this technology.

One theory being floated by industry experts (off the record of course) is that this technology is akin to the Volt – a “green vehicle” enticement that PSA can use in the event that it needs to raise bailout funds. At the very least, it is a symbol of what PSA can be capable of.

Hyundai has bucked the trend of fully embracing EVs, with hydrogen being a central focus of its zero-emissions strategy. Even its hybrid lineup is relatively sparse. The compressed-air technology and any notion of technology sharing in itself would be out of character for the Hyundai of Toyota (as opposed to another era, when the cars were Fords and Mitsubishis), but stranger things have happened.

Derek Kreindler
Derek Kreindler

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  • Blowfish Blowfish on Feb 22, 2013

    air is so much safer than those funny chemicals inside a battery. the tank last so long, unlike when u toss out a batt those chemicals will do untold damage to environment. they need to circumvent the extended storage, even not can be installed in pick up trucks. it may work with recapture energy too. as the pump always turning and a matter of valving the air back to a tank when braking.

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    • George Herbert George Herbert on Feb 22, 2013

      @Sigivald The canonical pressure vessel failure examples that will resonate with this crowd would be scuba tanks having their valve knocked off if the tank tips over in the back of the (van/SUV/car). My brother saw that happen on a dive trip. Nobody was in the van at the time, fortunately. The van body more or less unzipped all around, the tank was eventually recovered several hundred yards around.

  • APaGttH APaGttH on Feb 22, 2013

    ...One theory being floated by -- tinfoil hat wearing conspiracy theorists -- (off the record of course) is that this technology is akin to the Volt – a “green vehicle” enticement that PSA can use in the event that it needs to raise bailout funds... Funny, George W. Bush said he bailed out GM because he didn't want to cause a Depression with 21% unemployment. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-07/bush-tells-dealers-he-avoided-gamble-in-bailing-out-automakers.html ...Former U.S. President George W. Bush told car dealers gathered at a convention in Las Vegas he “didn’t want to gamble” with a depression in defending the loans he gave to General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC. “I didn’t want there to be 21 percent unemployment,” Bush said in a speech yesterday to cap the annual National Automobile Dealers Association convention, attended by more than 20,000 people. “I didn’t want to gamble. I didn’t want history to look back and say, ‘Bush could have done something but chose not to do it.’ And so I said, ‘no depression.’” The Bush administration provided loans to GM and Chrysler starting with $4 billion to each company in December 2008 and January 2009. Bush eventually provided $17.4 billion in aid to the automakers..."

  • Carlson Fan Carlson Fan on Feb 22, 2013

    It's no secret that the government wanted to dump the Volt program during the bailout and GM had to convince them to keep it. But hey don't let reality get in the way of sensationalism.

  • Featherston Featherston on Feb 22, 2013

    Will Tomy get royalties for pioneering this technology with the Air Jammer Road Rammer?

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