Advanced Automotive Technology: Visions of a Super-Efficient Family Car

feasibility of these technologies is proven, commercialization will depend on the manufacturers’
judgments of cost effectiveness and market acceptance.

U.S. R&D Program

The U.S. R&D program for leapfrog automotive technologies is technologically diversified and

includes a mix of near term and long-range options. For example, batteries, ultracapacitors, and

flywheels are being researched in parallel as energy storage devices, as are gas turbines, diesels,

and advanced gasoline engines for hybrid powerplants. Near term prospects, such as advanced

lead acid traction batteries and aluminum body structures, are being investigated, along with

longer term technologies such as fuel cells and advanced composites. At this writing, it is very

uncertain which powertrains, drive systems, body designs, and materials will combine to give the

best package of cost and performance in advanced light duty vehicles of the future. Indeed,

depending on the desired vehicle function, location, and driving conditions (e.g., fleet or private,

cold or warm climate, urban or rural), different combinations of technologies may be most

appropriate. The federal R&D program is conscious of these uncertainties, and is structured to

pursue several options in parallel, so as not to pick a timer prematurely.

The current research program involves a large number of participants, including eight

government agencies, the national laboratories, and the Big Three and their suppliers and

contractors. Government officials interviewed by OTA noted that mechanisms such as the

Interagency Hybrid and Electric Vehicle Task Force, PNGV technical meetings, and ARPA-

sponsored meetings of regional consortia were stimulating an unprecedented level of information

sharing. Industry officials also expressed satisfaction with the new climate for collaborative

research and noted enthusiastic cooperation from the agencies and laboratories with which they

were associated. Industry cost-sharing of government contracts is growing, ranging from 50

percent or more for nearer term technologies (e.g., piston engines for hybrids) to around 15 to 20

percent for longer term technologies (e.g., fuel cells).

Key Budgetary Changes in FY 1996.

FY 1996 is significant because it is the first real opportunity for the PNGV program to

influence the budget priorities of the participating federal agencies. Table 5-5 gives a summary of

some of the larger budget changes requested in FY 1996 for the agency programs discussed

above. In the analysis section below, the impact of these proposed changes is assessed.

As might be anticipated, the largest increases in FY 1996 are in DOE’s Electric and Hybrid

Vehicle Program, the cornerstone of the PNGV effort; specifically, in high-power energy-storage

devices, fuel cells, and hybrid systems. Small piston engines and turbines for hybrids are requested

for a significant increase at DOE, as are materials for lightweight vehicles; however, hybrid

vehicle and composite materials programs in NIST and ARPA may confront large cuts.

The priorities reflected in the federal budget request for FY 1996 appear generally consistent

with the results of OTA’s technical analysis, presented in previous chapters. Research needs