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Two vehicles from RAC's fleet are being trialled with Connaught Engineering's Hybrid+ system, one in Norwich and the other in central London. RAC will be monitoring the fuel consumption over a period of two months to measure the savings.

If the trial successfully reduces fuel consumption and carbon emissions, RAC aims to increase the number of hybrid vehicles in its fleet.

Steve Lydon, RAC quality manager, said:
"The Hybrid+ system is bolted on to the engine of the vehicle. When you pull away, it kicks in and turns the engine using the electricity it has stored, as opposed to fuel. A 20% fuel saving has been proposed but we want to test this to make sure it is effective.

"There is a certain technique required to drive the hybrid vehicles to get the maximum benefits in terms of fuel savings. The two patrols that will be driving the vehicles are going through training to learn the new driving style, which involves having to change gear below 2100 revs/minute."

RAC is working to reduce carbon emissions through various other initiatives, according to Lydon: "Where possible, we are using our network of RAC approved local garages to fix the problem near to the breakdown site, as opposed to towing vehicles a very long distance.

"The weight of the patrol vehicles is also a factor that affects fuel usage and CO2 emissions. We are constantly appraising this, for example at the moment we are testing a lightweight jack and generally making sure patrols remove any unnecessary weight from the van.

"Fix Without Resource is an additional initiative that saves a lot of CO2.  This is where we use the skills of the technical call centre staff to fix problems over the phone."

Hybrid+
A major advantage of the Connaught Hybrid+ system is that it is a retro-fit solution that can be used on existing vehicles. In most cases there is no change to the basic vehicle package, because the 48V Electric Motor is compact, and no large battery packs are required. It is simply bolt on and go and fitted within a day. This makes Hybrid+ ideal for light commercial vehicles.

Connaught Engineering claims the savings, even for a small fleet, can be quite substantial.