kinetic energy recov...

The McLaren Formula One team has joined Ferrari, Renault and Williams in backing the return of kinetic energy recovery systems (KERS) to the series in 2011. A handful of teams experimented with these hybrid drive systems in 2009 but everyone abandoned the systems for 2010. McLaren was actually ...

The hybrid drive development unit of the Williams Formula One team has decided to stop working on its Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) for the team. Instead, the Williams Hybrid Power (WHP) division will target the flywheel electric KERS at road going applications. In spite of ending the ...

Italian magazine Quattroroute is reporting that Ferrari will show its first road-going hybrid next March at the Geneva Motor Show. The concept is reportedly based on the the 599 GTB and is expected to use a derivative of the kinetic energy recovery system (KERS) that was used on the Ferrari formula ...

2009 has not been a good season for the McLaren team and defending world driving champion Lewis Hamilton. Nonetheless, the team – along with Ferrari – are the only ones still persevering with the new kinetic energy recovery systems (KERS). This weekend in Hungary, the efforts finally ...

The Williams Formula One team developed one of the most unusual approaches to a hybrid KERS (kinetic energy recovery system) but it looks increasingly unlikely that the system will ever be used in competition. The current F1 teams have previously voted unanimously not to use KERS in 2010, even ...

The ongoing debate among Formula one teams over whether to run kinetic energy recovery systems (KERS) continues as those teams head to the streets of Monaco this weekend. While as many as eight cars have used the new hybrid systems at races earlier this year, only four are expected to use it this ...

The Formula One circus has landed in Bahrain this weekend and the controversies surrounding kinetic energy recovery systems are continuing. Four of ten teams are apparently using KERS this week including BMW, Ferrari, McLaren and Renault. Renault team boss Flavio Briatore remains unconvinced of the ...

Adding an electric motor and battery to a vehicle is just one of many ways to create a hybrid. We've seen hydraulic hybrids being tested in a variety of commercial vehicle applications. Torotrak has an altogether different mechanical system based on flywheels. The Torotrak system first came to our ...

Ah, fire. One of humanity's oldest ways to generate energy. Technically, you could generate energy by burning brake pads, as seen in the picture above (thanks, Flickr!), but automotive engineers have managed to come up with a way to use brakes to generate energy without going up in flames. The ...

The opening of the 2009 Formula one season is only a month away in Melbourne, Austraiia and, for the first time, teams will be able to compete with KERS hybrid drive systems aboard. It's not clear yet how many of the teams are actually ready to run their systems, but there is one big concern: ...