This paper deals with the hypothesis that the recent growing craze for hybrid vehicles in the USA and Europe is simply a temporary step between the traditional technology based on gasoline and diesel engines and the forthcoming of full electric vehicles, probably with hydrogen-powered fuel cells. Such an assumption is shared by several observers from professional as well as academic backgrounds (Ashley, 2002; Hekkert and Vandenhoed, 2004). Hekkert and Vandenhoed (2004) is the most radical challenging the idea that the emergence of hybrid vehicles might be at the expense of the fuel-cell vehicle. Chanaron and Orselli (2002) suggest that hydrogen fuel cells will not be marketable in high volumes before at least 2025 and that most, if not all, information released so far are pure manipulation and marketing by the hydrogen lobby. The quest for low emission (clean) and high-mileage vehicles is on its way and will surely remain at the top of the OEM’s agenda.

Because new facts and events occur on a daily basis, such a paper is inevitably out-dated as far as factual information and data are concerned. They have been updated up to the end of 2006. It has to be pointed out that the research is targeting only passenger cars, SUV and light commercial vehicles.
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FRAUD .... One or two errors are forgivable but this report is so flawed as to cross the line from research to advocacy and especially poorly reasoned at that. Internal inconsistencies make you wonder where their peer reviewers were. Substandard, below "C" work!

Having paid the $40, I'm able to quote and criticize the original report, something missing from the current reviewers including those selling this useless report:

The authors report on pp. 277 that "According to Ashley (2002), OEMs ""must subsidize current hybrid car models heavily to make them affordable"" " Unfortunately, the authors failed to report from "consumerguideauto" that, "Toyota officials recently told Bloomberg News that Prius is turning a small per-unit profit . . ." In fact, the author's hybrid sales figure on pp. 273, "Sales of HEV vehicles in the USA," shows a greater than 10 fold increase between 2002 and 2006 with no explanation of how the 2002 "subsidies" are maintained and Toyota hasn't gone broke (" Sûr nous perdons l'argent dans chaque vente mais le succès vient du volume !")

The authors put conditions on diesel efficiency pp. 276 with "when comparing with modern diesel vehicles with high pressure direct injection and turbo charging, HEVs lose out when it comes to constant driving over longer distances." This well qualified and limited diesel performance, by no means the standard for all diesels, presumes cities and urban driving do not exist. It is a fact taken out of context by the reviewers making inflated diesel claims. The authors didn't emphasize the diesel limitations enough.

There are other errors including inadequate references, pp. 279 to "Les Echos, 5/10/206"; misleading appendices pp. 287 mixing models to mask hybrid efficiency with vehicle classes having no hybrids; or pp. 288 equating the "Smart for two CDI (diesel)" and a Prius instead of the Honda Insight, another hybrid, two-seater.

The paper flaws are only matched by reviewers who cherry pick whatever nonsense they wish to echo. Worse, there is no synthesis, no value added analysis as shown by repeating the 2002 subsidy claim while HEV sales increase by an order of magnitude. Rather than advancing our understanding, this paper sweeps together a collection of outdated and improperly qualified reports with no synthesis. Thus they remain bewildered by a Chinese hybrid market rather than observing the obvious.

With this paper, I've bought $40 of rubish and would warn serious people away from it. Furthermore, I do not care for the unethical panders of this poor excuse of for research. The authors Chanaron and Teske may be serious people but this must not be their best work.

Bob Wilson

The authors put conditions on diesel efficiency pp. 276 with "when comparing with modern diesel vehicles with high pressure direct injection and turbo charging, HEVs lose out when it comes to constant driving over longer distances." This well qualified and limited diesel performance, by no means the standard for all diesels, presumes cities and urban driving do not exist.