F-150 Hybrid

[Hans627]

I just saw an article about a F-150 H that is planned for 2019. It should be interesting to see the details, as the article leaves a lot to the imagination, and 2019 is not far away in model years.

Here is the article, http://www.autospies.com/news/The-20...-system-94894/

[Countryboy59]

I wonder if it will have the auto start/stop like our Escape has? Wonder how long those starters are gonna last restarting the engine at every stoplight? Who thinks this stuff up?

At least you can turn the "feature" off!

[AnnArborBob]

It's always fun to speculate about these things and I'm sure there will be as may opinions on this as there are people who will comment.

For what it's worth, and in my opinion, a hybrid pick up truck will not be of much use to the Airstream community. The advantage that a hybrid vehicle offers to it's owner is for relatively short drives (under 100 miles) with a fairly well defined and limited amount of payload (i.e., one to four passengers) and, in the case of plug in hybrids, access to a charging station at least once a day. Contrast that with the typical trailer towing profile where you are pulling a relatively huge load (i.e., a 4,000 to 10,000 lb. trailer plus the tow vehicle) for several hundred miles with limited prospects of having access to a charging station every day. Accordingly, I just don't see the fit in this application.

The F-150 diesel which is due out in mid-2018 might very well be a much better fit as a tow vehicle for Airstreamers, especially if it has a proper engine brake.

[polarlyse]

We had the start/stop feature on a BMW X3 that we had. I didn't care for it personally. There is a switch at the starter button that will disable if you wish. I also suspect a lot of extra wear on the starter system and it may not be worth the fuel saving in the long haul.

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by AnnArborBob

It's always fun to speculate about these things and I'm sure there will be as may opinions on this as there are people who will comment.

For what it's worth, and in my opinion, a hybrid pick up truck will not be of much use to the Airstream community. The advantage that a hybrid vehicle offers to it's owner is for relatively short drives (under 100 miles) with a fairly well defined and limited amount of payload (i.e., one to four passengers) and, in the case of plug in hybrids, access to a charging station at least once a day. Contrast that with the typical trailer towing profile where you are pulling a relatively huge load (i.e., a 4,000 to 10,000 lb. trailer plus the tow vehicle) for several hundred miles with limited prospects of having access to a charging station every day. Accordingly, I just don't see the fit in this application.

The F-150 diesel which is due out in mid-2018 might very well be a much better fit as a tow vehicle for Airstreamers, especially if it has a proper engine brake.

Depends. On some vehicle the electric system provides a power boost for acceleration. Some might find that useful.

Personally, the economy and pollution aspects of a vehicle I use for towing are at the bottom of the priority list. I'm not really interested in any of the six cylinder diesel options out there as the V8s have plenty of power for towing.

[jcl]

Originally Posted by AnnArborBob

For what it's worth, and in my opinion, a hybrid pick up truck will not be of much use to the Airstream community. The advantage that a hybrid vehicle offers to it's owner is for relatively short drives (under 100 miles) with a fairly well defined and limited amount of payload (i.e., one to four passengers) and, in the case of plug in hybrids, access to a charging station at least once a day. Contrast that with the typical trailer towing profile where you are pulling a relatively huge load (i.e., a 4,000 to 10,000 lb. trailer plus the tow vehicle) for several hundred miles with limited prospects of having access to a charging station every day. Accordingly, I just don't see the fit in this application.

Leaving aside full timers, most tow vehicles serve double duty. They typically spend a high percentage of their time running around town when not towing. Advantage: hybrid.

A hybrid drivetrain is a benefit in an application with a variable engine load profile. They don’t help as much in a steady state condition. That variable load is usually defined as stopping and starting in traffic, but it is also applicable to climbing and descending hills. Electric assist on the climb, and not only retardation on the descent, but regeneration as well. Advantage: hybrid.

Many people towing have a plug in at their campsite. Not a fast charge, but then campers are usually there overnight.

If there is sufficient payload, a hybrid makes sense to me in some applications, until such time as there is a more complete charging network.

Yes, a hybrid is hauling around some weight that might be used for payload, to provide additional power for only those times when it is required. The exact same can be said of a modern diesel, which is heavier, reduces payload, and may really shine only when climbing a mountain pass on rare occasions.

I am interested in the X5 hybrid. Battery only range is very small, but it covers trips to the grocery store on full electric. The gasoline engine (smaller than the non hybrid version) can handle regular towing without electric assist, and electric assist helps with acceleration such as on ramps.

[jcl]

Originally Posted by Countryboy59

Wonder how long those starters are gonna last restarting the engine at every stoplight? Who thinks this stuff up?

Info on whether your starter motor will wear out sooner:

https://www.greencarreports.com/news...r-cars-starter

[aftermath]

Originally Posted by Countryboy59

I wonder if it will have the auto start/stop like our Escape has? Wonder how long those starters are gonna last restarting the engine at every stoplight? Who thinks this stuff up?

I drove a Prius for a few years. This was a GREAT feature. It was seamless and we never felt a thing when moving away from a stop. If you live in the country or in a small town where you spend little time stopped at a light this might not be for you. It was a brilliant invention considering all the wasted fuel and added pollution from millions of cars idling at a stop. Never had any problem with the starter. I was concerned about the life of the battery pack though. At the time I bought, Toyota did not have one returned because of a worn out battery. There was a cab driver back east that hit 800K miles on his. Toyota bought it back and tore it apart. No issues with the battery and no issues with the starter.

We did trade our Prius in on an all wheel vehicle since the Prius that sat rather low to the ground was not very good in the snow.

[rmkrum]

The ‘starter’ in the Prius hybrid system is actually an AC motor bolted to the engine’s flywheel. It uses the 200volt traction battery and the electrical inverter system to spin up the engine under computer control. It’s very smooth and has no brushes or gears to wear like a conventional starter. The other AC electric motor is bolted to the transmission input shaft. Since the AC motors have permanent magnet armatures, they both can be run ‘backwards’ as an alternator to charge the traction battery.

The smooth transition is handled by a sophisticated constantly variable transmission and some very cleverly engineered software and sensors.

It’s the only vehicle I have owned that has to boot up a computer to even run.

[Hans627]

Originally Posted by jcl

Leaving aside full timers, most tow vehicles serve double duty. They typically spend a high percentage of their time running around town when not towing. Advantage: hybrid.

A hybrid drivetrain is a benefit in an application with a variable engine load profile. They don’t help as much in a steady state condition. That variable load is usually defined as stopping and starting in traffic, but it is also applicable to climbing and descending hills. Electric assist on the climb, and not only retardation on the descent, but regeneration as well. Advantage: hybrid.

Many people towing have a plug in at their campsite. Not a fast charge, but then campers are usually there overnight.

If there is sufficient payload, a hybrid makes sense to me in some applications, until such time as there is a more complete charging network.

Yes, a hybrid is hauling around some weight that might be used for payload, to provide additional power for only those times when it is required. The exact same can be said of a modern diesel, which is heavier, reduces payload, and may really shine only when climbing a mountain pass on rare occasions.

I am interested in the X5 hybrid. Battery only range is very small, but it covers trips to the grocery store on full electric. The gasoline engine (smaller than the non hybrid version) can handle regular towing without electric assist, and electric assist helps with acceleration such as on ramps.

I actually have a BMW X5 Hybrid. It is a really nice vehicle and has plenty of power when needed or desired. Actually the electric motors provide the added horsepower. For short runs, about 16-18 miles, it runs on batteries with the engine kicking in when needed.

I don’t tow with it but I remember someone posting on the forum that they use the X5 hybrid as a TV.

Hybrid is the way of the immediate future. And with trucks going that way also, many will be used for towing I would suspect!