Featuring a parallel hybrid system, the new Mitsubishi Fuso Canter Eco Hybrid medium-duty cabover work truck is designed to increase fuel efficiency and decrease fuel emissions. The Fuso Eco-Hybrid couples a 123 horsepower turbocharged diesel engine with an ultraslim 47 horsepower permanent-magnet synchronous electric motor/generator. The power from both the diesel and electric drives is carried through a Mitsubishi Fuso Inomat II automated mechanical transmission that is similar to the ones that have been used in Fuso Class 8 trucks form more than a decade. The hybrid system switches its operational mode according to the driving situation. The electric motor is used to drive the vehicle when starting off, while both the diesel engine and electric motor/generator power the vehicle during hard acceleration. When cruising, the vehicle is driven by the diesel engine only, like a conventional vehicle. When slowing down or braking, the electric motor/generator functions as a generator to brake the vehicle. The generator converts brake energy into electric energy and stores it in the lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery for the next moving off or acceleration. The Mitsubishi Fuso Eco Hybrid will be introduced to the Japanese commercial market later this year. The prototype, which has been shown at the National Work Truck Show in Atlanta, Ga., and at the Mid-America Truck Show in Louisville, Ky., is currently in the U.S. to help the company gauge interest by potential buyers, so that it can evaluate its demand in the North American market.