Toyota Industries Corporation announces the launch of the worlds first IC hybrid lift truck.
Hybrid lift truck
Here at LotPro.com, we thought that production vehicles that never remotely match their concept counterparts were the exclusive domain of the automobile industry. It turns out that we were wrong. A case in point is, believe it or not, the lift truck industry and the culprit is familiar to anyone who has ever attended an auto show.
Today, Toyota Industries Corporation unveiled what it calls “the world’s first internal combustion hybrid truck.” According to TICO, “the ground-breaking ‘GENEO-HYBRID’ 8,000 lb. counterbalanced lift truck combines a 2.5-liter diesel engine, electric motor and nickel-metal hydride battery to reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by 50%.
“Toyota has been a leader in hybrid development for years with the very popular Prius vehicle,” said Brett Wood, president of TMHU (Toyota Material Handling, U.S.A., Inc.). “We are excited to see hybrid technology entering the mainstream of material handling. This is a huge step forward for our industry.”
According to Toyota, their latest hybrid combines a Series Hybrid System for driving as well as a Parallel Hybrid System for load handling and will be launched in the Japanese market first (they always get the good stuff before we do).
Not like the concept
So far, so good – except if you had the chance to view the Concept Hybrid Lift Truck at this year’s Chicago Show – the ProMat 2009 show, that is, not the more familiar Chicago Auto Show.
Because on January 12th of this year, Toyota unveiled a real gee-whiz concept vehicle at the show that could’ve blown away the whole industry had they just had the nerve to build it.
If only.
Tags: Chicago Auto Show, hybrid, prius, Toyota, toyota hybrid, toyota hybrid lift truck
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