Professor Develops Kit To Turn Any Car Into a Plug-in Hybrid

Perry is now talking with several investors, attempting to get funding to outfit a fleet of test vehicles with the plug-in hybrid technology.

For a test platform, Perry and his team used a 1994 Honda Accord station wagon fitted with electric motors in each rear wheelwell and a lithium-ion battery in the cargo area. The motors supplement the vehicle's internal-combustion engine, resulting in a mileage increase of 50-100 percent when driving below 40 mph.

Perry's objective was to create a hybrid kit that could be added to any car without changing brakes, suspension, or other mechanical systems. Similar add-on hybrid kits are expensive and require major modifications to the vehicle.

When it goes into full production, Perry estimates his kit will cost about $3,000.

Perry said his team has reached "what industry insiders call 'the valley of death' as they try to transfer the project's technology from the laboratory to a commercial product," according to a posting on the school's Web site.

"We have gained proof of concept in terms of feasibility," he said. "We need quite a bit of money to have proof of product. What we've achieved is a demonstrated technology, not a proven technology. Investors want to see proven, field-tested performance and reliability. We have to pass through this transition, from feasibility to true, viable product."