Future truck idea (though exercise/brain storming)

[TheEnemy]

This is probably going to be just a thought exercise, but who knows.

What I am designing is a midsized truck that would best fit what I plan on using it for. 4 doors, (seating for 4-6 depending on bench or bucket seats). The bed should be big enough to hold a 4X8' sheet of plywood preferably with the tailgate closed. Approximate MPGe of 40-50 highway at 75mph. It would have a 9-12 inches of ground clearance with a skinned underside. The truck would likely weigh 4000-5000 lbs, with a target payload of 2000+lbs and a towing rating of 4000+lbs.

It would be a series electric hybrid with an electric only range of 40-100 miles

Frame/body
Tubular roll cage style with the body pannels and interior bolted/screwed to the frame. This should allow easy replacement of damaged body panels and a very strong rigid frame.

Engine
Approx 100hp 4cyl turbo boxer that powers the generator, it can also be connected to the driveline when extra power is needed or when the batteries are depleted.

Electric motors
Option 1: two 50 to 75 hp motors one for the front, and one for the rear giving the truck all wheel drive. (my preference even though it will not be as efficient and more complicated)

Option 2: One 100 to 150hp motor driving either the front or rear wheels (rear is my preference on a truck)

Transmissions
On option 1 there would be 2 transmissions one for the front and one for the rear. One transmission could be shifted then the other to smooth out the shifting

On option 2 there would be only 1 transmission.
For each option the transmissions would be servo shifted manuals that would act like an automatic, but also allow for paddle shifting or some other version of manual operation. Only the transmission that can be coupled to the gas engine would need or even use a clutch.

Suspenssion
The front would be a double A arm with tortion bars. The rear to save space for the cargo bed and to do away with the typical live axle, would use a lower H frame and a coil over shock. Its hard to explain without a picture but the shock mount actually holds the angle of the tire and both the H frame and shock keeps the assembly from rotating.

General shape
The front would be semi wedge much like the front end of the prius, which would allow for a decent hood allowing for easier access to work on the engine and related components than the ideal aero shape would allow. All curves would be smoth with very little transition from hood to windshield to roofline. The rear would encorporate a aero shell with permanent sides and a removable top to allow larger items to be put in the back.

Solar Panels
The roof hood and aero shell would have solar panels to collect sun energy, this would allow many people to not have to even charge from home power and not use any fuel depending on what their daily commute is like.

[TheEnemy]

I will add some pictures and drawings as I make them up.

[Frank Lee]

Get a Prius, cut it off aft of the back seat, add a box with an aeroshell.

[TheEnemy]

Interesting Frank, how well do you think the stock Prius drivetrain would handle 2-4 times the weight?

[Frank Lee]

Do you think something bigger, heavier, and less aero than a Prius is going to get better fe than a Prius?

Actually, look at classic Bug/Microbus for an excellent lesson on making a drivetrain for a small, light car work on a much larger, heavier one.

[Vman455]

Just glancing at your ideal specs, I don't think you'll make your weight target. For comparison, the 4-door 2011 Dakota weighs 4500-4800 lbs, and that's with a short bed that can't handle a 4x8 sheet, no batteries, and seating for 5.

[pete c]

I think the way to go is an existing 4 door pickup. I think you will need to go with a full size to meet the 4x8 requirement. Smaller trucks will hold a 4 ft wide sheet, above the wheel wells. Of course, if the batteries are in the bed, you could have a bed floor above the wheel wells, with the batteries beneath this floor.

I would keep the existing front and rear suspension and drive shafts. Keep the live axle. It is already there and better at carrying loads. You could put the motor at the input of the trans or maybe even loose the tranny and have the motor power the transfer case directly. I think keeping the trans is a good idea as it will allow different ratios depending on payload.

Why a boxer engine? I suppose it would allow for the batteries to be mounted above it.

[TheEnemy]

Frank: Did they do anything in particular such as gearing or did they just drop the Bug dritrain into the Bus?

I understand that on the flat that even a 3cyl metro drivetrain would be able to get a heavy load going at highway speeds, its just that I find myself often having to deal with heavy loads and steep hills.

Vman: The weight is just a guesstimate, but I think it is doable, my 1999 Nissan Frontier is just a hair over 3000lbs with a ladder frame and a big heavy solid axle. I would have to lengthen what I have by about 2-3 feet for it to be the right size. A tubular frame is very strong and very light, it would be a hard target to hit but I think its doable.

Pete: I wouldn't need to go full size, I'm trying to keep the frontal area down. I'm trying to do away with the extra weight of the solid axle, but you might be right about the solid axle being better for load capacity.

[Frank Lee]

On the early Busses they added gear reduction boxes at each rear wheel hub, on stronger swing axles and suspension, and they flopped the diff ring gear to reverse the output direction so as to not have 4 speeds in reverse. IIRC Engines and I think even transmission ratios were the same as in the Bug. We know the early Busses are quite slow but they really got the job done in a world that didn't think it needed to careen around everywhere at 75 mph. The trade-off is going to be speed and fuel efficiency.

I wouldn't add reduction boxes at each front wheel; I'd gear it down in the trans if possible first.

I think a live axle is nice for the heavy loads but not a necessity.

Thinking about typical pickup usage patterns... outside of the trades (real work) pickups are 98% commuter vehicles and 2% work. I wonder if a Prius could be made to pull a trailer as big and capable as you'd like, even if it meant going 5th wheel?