Hybrid Gas-Electric Car Introduced in 1929? Not Really
This article states that the gas-electric hybrid car was invented all the way back in the 1920s, but the car it describes isn’t a hybrid. It’s simply a gasoline car with an electric transmission instead of a mechanical one (a gearbox).
In a hybrid, power can come either from the gas (or diesel) engine or from the batteries, depending on driving conditions. But in the 1929 General Electric car, there were no batteries, and the electric system only served to transmit power from the gas engine to the wheels. It simply performed the function of a gearbox. The engine turned a generator, which fed an electric motor that drove the wheels. The advantage was that there was no need to change gears, because there was no mechanical connection between the gas engine and the wheels.
The electric transmission hasn’t found wider use in cars because it’s heavy. You have an electric motor of almost the same output as the gas engine – basically, two engines. But it’s used in off-road dump trucks, the biggest of which have close to 4000 hp and can haul up to 360 metric tons of rock or coal. It’s also used in diesel-electric locomotives, of course.
Despite this small inaccuracy, though, the 1920-30.com blog and its home site are very interesting.
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