Welcome to the Mechanical Engineering Department
Hybrid Vehicle Development Team
Homepage: http://hybridvehicle.calpoly.edu/
The Hybrid Vehicle Development Team follows the steps of the past FutureTruck team. FutureTruck was a competition sponsored by Ford Motor Company where fifteen schools turned a Ford Explorer into a more efficient and cleaner running hybrid SUV. After the last year of the competition the team disassembled and now HVDT is using the Ford Explorer chassis to design and create a new, stronger hybrid; thinking out of the box from current technology. Even with the increase in gas prices, SUVs are still very popular and useful vehicles. Now is the time to gain as many miles per gallon as possible, now is the time to seriously research alternative fuels, now is the time to have as clean an exhaust as possible, now is the time to develop hybrid technology. This team truly practices the “learn by doing” motto of Cal Poly—the best way to gain experience and knowledge. As the team develops, members are gaining teamwork experience and technical experience; preparing for the business world in a technology that is our future.