Electric cars are old hat, but how about other modes of transport for the public? The Solaris Urbino 18 is a hybrid city bus that comes with 51 seats as well as room for 161 passengers – we presume that figure includes those of average size and build, of course. Thanks to its articulating mid-section, it will be able to navigate through tight corners in a jiffy. The Urbino 18 boasts Voith’s parallel DIWA hybrid system and will be crammed with Maxwell’s ultracapacitors, powered by a 150 kW electric motor that works in tandem with a downsized diesel engine. There will be energy recaptured whenever you brake, where all that juice will be kept in a massive supercapacitor which weighs in at 904 pounds while offering a total storage capacity of 0.5 kWh. With its DIWA hybrid setup, you will get up to 389 horsepower and 1,180 pound-feet of torque. Ready to roll out in mid-2011, we do hope to see more cities adopt the Solaris Urbino 18 if it is affordable.
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