Some Things Are Just Worth Waiting For

According to lead Volvo engineer Ichiro Sugioka, the Volvo Plug-in Hybrid is worth the wait. Volvo recently released its first production Plug-in Hybrid, the V60, for the European market, but it was many years in the making. “I work at the Volvo Concept and Design Center in Camarillo, where we have been working toward this car since 1990. We have been experimenting with the necessary technologies as they became available, and it’s only recently that we found technology good enough to make a practical car,” said Sugioka.

While the lithium ion battery is a key element; Sugioka believes the electric motors also can be improved quite a bit. “It’s not just about, ‘does it function?' It is also about, 'How much does it cost? How long does it last?’ That’s why it takes so long. We are not going to put a product out on the road that is a science experiment,” he added. When you work for a world class company like Volvo and are designing a vehicle to be road-worthy, it is quite different from a typical university project. “There’s a big difference in what we do and what they do. For a college student, if it breaks, they learn something. If one of our cars breaks, that is not a good thing. Our cars must be safer and more affordable; and that is what my job is right now.”

Sugioka was born in Japan, and when he was seven years old his father was transferred to New York City. After he graduated high school, he attended Caltech Pasadena for his undergraduate degree and received a master’s degree from MIT. “I went back to Caltech for my PhD, and I’ve been here ever since,” he said. When you ask him how he got into designing cars, he chuckles and says, “I’m really a rocket scientist! My thesis is applicable to rocket engines.” After the Cold War ended and the Soviet Union collapsed, there were very few jobs for people who design missiles. Sugioka ran wind tunnel testing at Caltech for many clients, which included several car companies in an effort to help make cars more efficient. Volvo was among many car manufacturers he worked with back in 1989, and in 1994 Volvo hired him to work at its Monitoring and Concept Center. “I can’t believe I’ve been here 17 years!” he said.

Sugioka worked on the first S80 that was ultimately produced in 1999. This took five years. “It takes that long to get a car on the road,” said Sugioka. After that, he worked on the first S60 and the first XC90 and finally began working on electric cars. “I was the project leader for the 3CC, 2004 electric car, and it was a vey significant step for us. It was one of the first cars with lithium ion batteries on the road. This experience eventually led to the pure-electric C30 battery electric car that is now available in Europe. It’s a luxury electric car, so it’s pricey. It’s not for the mass market. It’s for people who ‘just have to have one.’ We put emphasis on making it safe and working in subfreezing weather, which is not something other electric cars can claim to do,” said Sugioka. “The lithium ion battery is really a new technology; it didn’t exist when I joined the company. We don’t want to rush into anything too fast and get our customers into trouble,” he added.. As always, Volvo focuses on the safety of the driver and designs its cars to perform during the worst possible situations. With electric cars, special care has been taken to encapsulate the battery in such a way that protects it and the driver in the event of an accident. The “three-cars-in-one” Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid is the kind of car that Volvo will ultimately produce for sale in the United States. The “Pure,” “Hybrid” and “Power” buttons on the center console allow the driver to choose an electric car, a hybrid or a higher horsepower “fun to drive” mode.

“The one that we are producing right now is made for the European market with a diesel car so we can learn as much as we can about the first product and see how the car is used in normal driving situations. A diesel car does not meet California emissions standards, but we have a really heavy mandate by Europe to produce this car. If you travel to Europe we recommend you take a test drive in one and experience the ‘three-cars-in-one’ experience.” You can’t really compare the Volvo Plug-in Hybrid with any of the hybrids sold here in the United States, because it is a completely different car. European drivers are much different than American drivers. Europeans accelerate harder on the freeways, and in Germany there is no speed limit, so you don’t get the same fuel economy as you would get here in the United States. “Because people in Europe drive so fast, you need a different kind of car, a different kind of engine; and the Prius is not it. Most people don’t realize that a hybrid runs on its engine power once you are in highway speed; then it’s not running on the electric power anymore,” said Sugioka.

Volvo is also looking at a wheel motors technology. Similar to the seatbelt technology that Volvo developed but deliberately didn’t claim exclusivity for so that other car companies would use it, Volvo developed wheel motors technology and made it available for other car companies. “We aren’t making it exclusive to Volvo, because this is something that can help others make cars run more efficiently,” said Sugioka. With the wheel motors technology, the experimental C30 plug-in hybrid has 400 horsepower total with each wheel producing 100 horsepower. It is currently undergoing testing in the UK, and, according to Sugioka, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done to improve durability and cost. “We are doing a lot of durability testing. After a few thousand miles, they fix it and make it last longer. On the plus side, this technology allows software to make the car do almost anything,” he added.

Stefan Jacoby, President and CEO of Volvo Cars, summed up the theory behind the Volvo second generation hybrid when he said, “In order to get true car enthusiasts to think green, you have to offer them the opportunity to drive with low carbon dioxide emissions. That should not, however, take away the adrenaline rush that promotes genuine driving pleasure.”