Hybrid maker focuses on medium-duty trucks

Hybrid propulsion manufacturer Permo-Drive Technologies has developed a compact version of its hybrid hydraulic drive system for medium-duty trucks, promising to improve fuel economy of these commercial vehicles by 30% or more.

Ballina, Australia-based Permo-Drive said its new design is 300 pounds lighter and significantly smaller than the prototype systems first developed by the company in 2002.

Paul Chandler, vice-president with the company, said Permo-Drive's new system is “ideally suited for Class 6 to 7 trucks and represents an important, evolutionary step in the development of hybrid hydraulic drive technology.”

Installed on a medium-duty truck, the system acts like a second 340-horsepower engine, Chandler said.