Hybrid Truck Sets Speed Record
Proving once again that green technology and performance can come in the same package, Volvo has shattered its own record for the world's fastest hybrid truck.
The Sweden-based company's modified diesel-electric haul tractor, dubbed "Mean Green," beat its own top speed April 27 at Wendover Airfield in Utah.
The truck, which is equipped with a diesel engine and electric motor that generate a combined 2,100 horsepower and 5,000 lb-ft of torque, ran the standing kilometer at 153.2 km/h, or about 95.2 mph, and the flying kilometer at 236.5 km/hr, or roughly 147 mph.
The rig previously set the standing kilometer record at 152.2 km/hr and the flying kilometer at 218.7 km/h last year at Hultsfred Airport in Sweden.
"We are very pleased with Mean Green's performance, especially at such a high altitude," says Boije Ovebrink, the truck's driver and owner.
To prepare it for the world speed attempt, technicians had to de-tune the engine's power by about 20% to compensate for the altitude at Wendover, which is about 4,200 ft above sea level. The aerodynamic truck, which runs on renewable liquid-rosin diesel, also sports a hybrid battery, automated manual transmission and rear axle set with a 1.85:1 gear ratio.
The speed record attempt was sanctioned by the United States Auto Club, a member of the global Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), and is pending final FIA certification.
