Alicia Silverstone drives one, Cameron Diaz, Leonardo di
Caprio, Brad Pitt and Harrison Ford do too: Hybrid vehicles are all the rage. We tell you about the latest additions to the hybrid range...

And of course California's environmentally-conscious governor Arnold Schwarzenegger also has one of these cars equipped with both an electric motor and a gasoline engine. But the hybrid vehicle is a star not only in Hollywood. Ever more hybrid cars are being registered in Germany as well.

Fuel-saving hybrids are great for city use

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In view of their high fuel-saving potential, hybrid drive systems are felt to have a future, in particular for city use. The additional torque also makes driving twice as much fun. The international automotive supplier Continental recognized this trend early on and was the first European manufacturer to start supplying a hybrid system for production vehicles in 2003.

BMW and Mercedes go hybrid

Hybrid drives were also full in trend at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show, where various manufacturers premiered numerous new hybrid cars. At the international motor show, Continental introduced the latest design for a power electronics system used in high-tech hybrid drives in the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics. At the end of the year, Continental will also launch first-time volume production of a high-performance lithium-ion battery for hybrid vehicles, which will be used in the Mercedes S 400 BlueHYBRID.

Lithium-ion batteries key to hybrid success

Lithium-ion technology is viewed as the key to the success of the hybrid and electric drive systems in motor vehicles, since it provides a higher energy density with which a wider range can be achieved.

Continental Tyre (South Africa) spokesperson Rene Olivier says that according to Continental's Powertrain division in Germany, "The power output of the battery determines the overall performance of the vehicle as well as the potential for lower emissions and for possible fuel savings. It thus plays a key role in CO2 reduction."

Hybrid cars reduce fuel consumption

Depending on the driving situation, a full hybrid vehicle can cut fuel
consumption by up to 25 percent, thus going easy on the environment.

"Continental's technology development department in Germany has said that in their  opinion, CO2 and sustainability mark a key trend that will command the attention of the auto industry more than anything else," says Olivier.

In stop-and-go traffic, the hybrid system uses the electric motor like a generator and converts most of the kinetic energy from braking into electric energy, which is fed back into the powertrain when starting and accelerating. The heart of modern hybrid drives is the power electronics, which links the internal combustion engine and the electric motor while increasing efficiency and driving pleasure.