ZiS-154 - the first domestic car with a hybrid engine

2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:42

December 8, 1946, the first domestic bus ZiS-154, which had a wagon layout, was tested. And this was not his only feature. The new bus became the first Soviet car with a hybrid power unit. That is, a sequential scheme was implemented in it. In it, an internal combustion engine rotated a generator, from which, in turn, electric motors were fed, transmitting torque to the drive wheels.

Beginning and prototypes

Work on the project began in the early spring of 1946. By May of the same year, a specialized design bureau for buses was organized at ZiS, which took up the design of a new car. The bureau was headed by A. I. Skerdzhiev. It is worth noting that the design of the bus was not created from scratch. The prototypes of the new model were the American GMC and Mack. It was these machines that had a wagon layout and a body made of aluminum alloy, which was subsequently used in the design of the body of the ZiS-154.

The engine of the new car was also not original. Two-stroke power unit with a capacity of 110 liters. With. (YaAZ-204D), inherently was a "pirate"a copy of the American engine from GMC. Moscow buses were supposed to accept a new car for the 800th anniversary of the capital of the USSR. Therefore, in order to avoid unforeseen situations during the celebration of the anniversary, on the first produced 45 "exemplary" copies of the ZiS, the domestic power unit was replaced with a GMC-4-71 diesel engine, received back in the war years from the lend-lease allies.

Aluminum bus

Since ZiS had never produced cars with all-metal load-bearing bodies before, it was decided to involve specialists from the Tushino aircraft plant in the design of the bus. As a result of the joint work of the two design bureaus, a load-bearing body was created, the design of which was a set of several sections similar to each other, consisting of frames cast from steel and aluminum profiles. It was also decided to unify the body structure of the ZiS-154 with the bodies of the MTB-82B trolleybus and the MTV-82 tram. The only difference was that for these modes of transport it was made non-bearing.

Bus transmission

The power unit was located transversely in the rear overhang of the bus, under a five-seater sofa. The YaAZ-204 D diesel engine was connected to a power generator that supplied direct current to an electric motor, which transmitted rotation to the rear drive axle through a cardan. Changing the direction of movement (forward-backward) was carried out using a switch located near the driver's seat. Switching was allowed only after the bus had come to a complete stop.

Valuethe necessary traction force was automatically adjusted, which was an undoubted plus of the electric transmission. In this regard, the work of the driver is greatly facilitated. There was no need to shift gears, respectively, and depress the clutch pedal, which was important in urban conditions. However, such convenience required careful and, most importantly, qualified maintenance of the unit, which, of course, was a big problem at that time due to the novelty of the system and the lack of specialists capable of repairing it.

In addition, the energy transmitted from the internal combustion engine, while reaching the wheels, was double converted with significant losses in efficiency. And this led to high fuel consumption (65 liters per 100 km). Nevertheless, the new ZiS went into series. By the beginning of July, Moscow buses accepted the first 7 cars produced by the plant into their ranks. And on September 7, the fleet was replenished by another 25 units.

To the delight of passengers

The design of the bus in terms of passenger convenience turned out to be quite successful. The salon was designed for 60 seats, including 34 seats. The seats were covered with leatherette or plush. For the winter period, the ZiS-154 was equipped with a good heating system, and for the summer - with ventilation. Added comfort and soft suspension. The bus accelerated smoothly, moved evenly, which, in comparison with previous models, was simply an automobile miracle. Nevertheless, during the operation, a significant drawback was revealed, which ultimately led to the removal of the machine from production.

The big problem of the new bus

The whole problem with the ZiS-154 was the engine. In addition to high fuel consumption, YaAZ-204D turned out to be very noisy. At the same time, he still mercilessly smoked black exhaust. But even that wasn't the worst. From time to time, the diesel of the bus, as they say, "went into gear", that is, it independently and uncontrollably increased its speed. To stop it, the driver had to shut off the fuel line. And if you remember that the engine was in the back of the car, then this was really a serious problem.

"Spacing" has become a real scourge of the ZiS-154. Even in the instructions for the safe operation of the bus, the driver was instructed to stop the bus with a hand and foot brake. Then he had to ask the conductor or one of the passengers to continue braking, and he himself immediately went to the engine compartment and unscrewed the fuel line, thereby interrupting the fuel supply to the engine injectors. They could not eliminate this malfunction at the plant, since they did not know for sure the main cause of the phenomenon.

Therefore, already in 1950, that is, three years after the start of production, the serial production of the ZiS-154 was completely discontinued. Nevertheless, during this time, the plant managed to produce 1165 "miracle buses", from which the bus fleets tried to get rid of by hook or by crook. Of course, although the bus was an innovation for its time, it was very unsuccessful, and therefore not further developed.