Paice Corporation: American Automakers Must Change to Win In Hybrid Vehicle Market, Industry Veteran Says

TROY, Mich., Nov. 3, 2003 -- Hybrid electric vehicles are the winning technology and American automakers must make major changes if they want to stay in the global competition, a veteran industry engineer and researcher declared here today.

"Inaction is the greatest risk for America's carmakers, because hybrid technology is certain to be the 'game-changer,'" said Robert J. Templin.

He spoke at an executive briefing on hybrid vehicles by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). A consultant with a 42-year career at General Motors, Templin was chief engineer of the Cadillac Motor Division and technical director of GM Research Laboratories.

To build competitive hybrid cars and trucks in the future, American automakers will have to change their approach and their organization, Templin said.

"Hybrid efforts need to be organized, funded, and led as new vehicle programs, not viewed as research projects. Engine and transmission divisions alone cannot meet the challenge."

"American automakers must commit to a production date and volume, and they must create a hybrid supplier network, or nothing will happen."

"They must acquire and mobilize expertise in high-performance electric motors, inverters and power electronics, system controls and software implementation, computer control algorithms, and energy storage systems."

For automakers, there is nothing in the foreseeable future that can compete with the hybrid, Templin declared. "It's ready to go. It needs no new inventions."

"The second generation hybrids now on the market prove they can provide marketable performance," he noted. "Improved hybrids of the next generation will come fast. Customer awareness is high, and acceptance is growing rapidly."

"Hybrids can meet both the desires of customers and needs of automakers. They are a better bet for the future than fuel cells. The few claimed advantages of fuel cells up to now have been based on comparisons to conventional drives; however, when compared to hybrid drives they have only disadvantages."

Templin serves on the board of the Paice Corporation, developer of the Hyperdrive(TM) system, which is a major advance for hybrid electric vehicle technology.

The Hyperdrive system can meet the performance and cost criteria necessary for wide commercial introduction of hybrid vehicles without substantial changes to the automotive manufacturing and servicing infrastructure, according to two Paice executives who also spoke at the SAE briefing.

"Hyperdrive is a technology with significant differences and capabilities beyond any hybrids on the market today," said Alex Severinsky, chief executive officer of Paice, inventor of the Hyperdrive and a recognized expert in power electronics and battery applications.

Unlike other hybrids, vehicles with the Hyperdrive system can be produced at costs comparable to conventional vehicles, deliver fuel economy improvements of 50 percent or more, and substantially reduce emissions, he said. They can improve vehicle performance and utility and also enable new customer-pleasing amenities.

"The Hyperdrive is the only hybrid suitable for the larger cars, SUVs and light trucks that American consumers demand, and which represent the major source of profits for U.S. automakers," said Ted Louckes, chief operating officer of Paice and a former chief engineer of General Motors' Oldsmobile division, who is an inventor and expert in engines, transmissions and body and chassis systems.

Paice Corporation has created, tested and patented Hyperdrive(TM), a unique gasoline-electric hybrid powertrain system for cars and light trucks. Using high-voltage electric power and an exclusive control system and software, Hyperdrive can achieve equal or better performance, significantly higher fuel economy, and negligible pollutant emissions for virtually all cars and light trucks, compared to current production or hybrid powertrain systems. Additional information is available at www.paice.com .