Seattle Inventor’s Creation to Convert Gas Vehicles to Hybrids

The process seems to scream, why didn't someone think of this before?  (video courtesy  of Blue Dot Motorworks via YouTube).

A Seattle-based team made up of mechanics, researchers, and tech experts has created a process by which a fossil fuel (gas, diesel) powered vehicle can be converted to an EV.

  Blue Dot Motoworks was recently featured in Geekwire Magazine, and they've released a series of videos about how they came up with the idea and how it works.

The company says the slow turnover in vehicles by consumers slows the conversion to EVs, with more drivers keeping vehicles 10-15 even 20 years, partly due to economic reasons.  It is also well-known that many consumers cannot afford many of the current EV vehicles being offered on the market today.

Blue Dot Officials say even if we were only building EVs, it would take far longer than Officials claim it would to realize reductions in pollution and other claims about how EVs will benefit the environment.

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The process allows a driver of nearly any kind of vehicle, even older ones, to run initially on electric power until the battery dies, then rely on their traditional fossil fuel engine.  Blue Dot's goal is to manufacture the tech and conversions in a way that they are noticeably cheaper than having to buy an EV or hybrid.

It's called the RHS, or retrofit hybrid system, which is bolt-on tech that allows any vehicle to use electricity instead of fuel, thus creating less pollution. The prototype is called the Narwhal.

The company has received a lot of attention as a start up, and is getting some investment support from a variety of sources.

The eventual goal is to create a conversion kit that costs only a few thousand dollars and can be installed in about a day's time.