Not a car with batteries, but a car that is a battery

Volvo is working on a car that can actually energize itself. We take a look under the hood.

Mon, Sep 27 2010 at 4:36 PM EST

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IT'S ELECTRIC: Volvo's ReCharge plug-in hybrid concept car could have "energized" body parts. (Credit: Volvo)

 

Until now, the main focus of electric car designers has been finding places to store the heavy and bulky batteries. But suppose the car’s body was itself the battery? That’s the intriguing premise of a project jointly undertaken by the Imperial College of London and Volvo, which is already planning on fielding a small fleet of electric C30 sedans.

 

No, they’re not smoking anything funny. The Imperial College researchers are working with a polymer resin and carbon fiber blend to make special body panels (such as the spare wheel housing) that could store enough energy to restart a hybrid car’s engine, or add a minor amount of range to an electric car. Here's a closer look: