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Oshkosh Company Introduces New Military Hybrid Vehicle February 2005Even the U.S. Army is thinking about the price of a gallon of gas and Oshkosh Truck Corporation is ready to help.Truck unveiled its next generation Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck at the Association of the U.S. Army Winter Exposition in Florida this month. The new truck implements a ProPulse diesel-electric hybrid drive system capable of increasing its fuel efficiency by 20 percent. The increase translates to 2.5 instead of two miles per gallon, but any increase makes a difference on the battlefield, Oshkosh Truck Executive Vice President John Stoddart said. It's more stable and maneuverable. It's got a 40 percent larger cab and 20 percent better fuel economy, Stoddart said. That's a big deal when you're moving around the sands of Iraq or the mountains of Afghanistan. Standing between its unveiling and the start of production lies 18 months of rigorous testing. Truck officials estimate production won't begin until sometime in 2007, but Stoddart also acknowledged it's ultimately up to the U.S. Army. Our customer, the U.S. Army comes in and they have a rigorous and strenuous regimen they run the vehicles and they determine when it goes into production, he said. I just want to be ready to go into production when they tell us. The truck also features a generator capable of 200 kilowatts of AC power or enough to safely run Wittman Regional Airport, Stoddart and Truck's defense division found out. It takes a bit of chutzpah to ask them to turn off their systems, but we were able to run the airport very easily, Stoddart said. You could run a hospital off the vehicle. | ||
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