Discussion on:

Can hydraulic systems fuel the next generation of hybrid cars?

There is supposed to be a company in France building cars that run on a system of compressed air. A very similar system, but no hydraulics involved. The weight of the hydraulics made them impractical for cars.

The target market was replacing the small cabs supposedly popular in most major cities of France.

The video is 100% a marketing promotion for UPS, which makes the article less reliable.

"The bottom line is that although saving on fuel costs and reducing carbon footprints will always remain strong selling points, it?s unlikely very many people would want to drive a minivan without a car radio ? no matter how fuel efficient."

That's a surprisingly stupid statement (even suspicious) from the Smart Planet authors!
Having a small alternator and battery for some in-car electric devices on an hydraulic hybrid, like radio, which will consume less than 0.001 of total engine power, doesn't relate at all with electric hybrids, nor it is a "bottom line" in any way about the success or not of HHVs! You missed the bottom line of your own article!

P.S Also, since a hydraulic storage system exists, headlights and other heavier electric consumption could be supplied using just an alternator and a small electronic switching converter without even the need of a battery!

I believe the key word here is "hybrid," which like an electric hybrid has an on-board ICE. The ICE provides the basic motive force and is just smaller than would be found in a non-hybrid. It has all the electricals necessary to run the car's radio, lights, etc. Another oversight or lack of understanding of the topic and the technology?

This sounds like a perfect technology to use in city buses, light rail trains and street cars. Their always stopping and starting.