Bazzi’s World: A Passion for Hybrids

This is the first part in a series of posts from Abdullah A. Bazzi, a manager of the Dodge’ hybrid vehicle program. He will appear from time to time to talk about the progress he and his team are making on the Dodge Durango two-mode hybrid system, which is being developed in a joint partnership with several other global auto companies. — RLD

A personal perspective:

The car business is about delivering what customers want. So, it’’s no surprise that maintaining a lead role in the Chrysler/Daimler/GM/BMW hybrid program has been emotionally captivating for me. This jointly developed cooperation is not only an engineering marvel, but also gives one a sense of relentless achievement. The products that we’’ll be creating in this office will propel our industry and our world into the next century. How could you not be excited to walk through the office door each morning?

Sure, working on hybrids is a nice thing to talk about. Who isn’’t interested these days? But personally, I measure success by the end result — a successful launch of the Durango hybrid and Chrysler Aspen hybrid next year, each delivering around a 40 percent improvement in city mileage and 25 percent improvement in combined highway and city mileage. We’’re aiming to give consumers more miles to the gallon through the next generation of hybrid technology. And that’’s what I’’m working every day to achieve.

It’’s not a conventional environment around here, though. The work atmosphere at the Hybrid Development Center (HDC) in Troy, Michigan is definitely unlike any other. It proves that diversity does exist at Chrysler, and profoundly at HDC. It may have taken a while to adapt to, but now I feel comfortable talking to my Mercedes-Benz, GM and BMW colleagues. I have learned a great deal about the Europeans and their corporate cultures. I would hope that they have learned a great deal from the Chrysler culture as well. With the lines of communication flowing, and through the committed teamwork, the members of the HDC have set an example to other automotive companies out there. The tone at the HDC makes the spirit of the cooperation a cherished and unique model to follow.

Although one might believe the joining of the four different companies could bring about some level of commotion, I would beg to differ. Within my time of almost three years on this project, I have felt happy, sad, excited, disappointed, entertained, stressed, joyful, confused, and delighted; but, through all of these feelings, I always felt successful.

Stay tuned for my next post to learn more about our hybrid systems and what makes them so compelling for the future of transportation in America and around the world.