More than just a vehicle study: The diesel-electric uni1 as a pioneer in hybrid drive and transmission development at IAV.

In the early 1990s, IAV joined forces with Sachsenring Automobiltechnik AG and other partners to research a fuel-efficient hybrid drive system with a diesel engine – at the time, absolutely uncharted territory for passenger cars. With the help of funding from the Free State of Saxony, three prototypes were developed in the “uni1” project: a van, a cab and a pickup, the former of which was presented to the public at great expense in 1996.

IAV was responsible for the entire engineering, including the drive control system that regulates the interaction between the VW diesel engine and the electric motor, the automation of the manual transmission and the HMI (Human Machine Interface). But IAV engineers also played a key role in commissioning and testing the vehicles.

“Getting the drive control system for a completely redesigned vehicle up and running was already a major technical achievement for a small company like IAV was at the time,” says Prof. Dr. Burghard Voß, head of the project at IAV. “For building up expertise and further developing IAV, the project was very important.”