Green Car Congress: Toyota Announces Development of Plug-In Hybrid; First Manufacturer to Have PHEV Certified for Public Road Use in Japan

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Toyota Announces Development of Plug-In Hybrid; First Manufacturer to Have PHEV Certified for Public Road Use in Japan

25 July 2007

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) announced that it has developed a plug-in hybrid vehicle and become the first manufacturer to have such a vehicle certified for use on public roads in Japan. (Earlier post.)

The Toyota Plug-in HV—certified for public road-use by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport—uses a NiMH battery pack and has an all-electric range of 13 kilometers (8 miles) under the 10-15 cycle with a maximum speed of 100 km/h (62 mph).

In its press release, Toyota said that:

Although challenges still exist in the development of pure electric vehicles such as a limited cruising range and issues related to cost, TMC still views plug-in hybrid vehicles as a promising technology for allowing electricity to serve as a viable power source for automobiles and is committed to their continued development as a key environmental technology.

Toyota will conduct public-road tests in Japan with eight units of the Plug-in HV to verify electric-motor-only cruising ranges and optimal battery capacity. While doing so, it plans to provide the government with data for formulating testing methods for emissions and fuel efficiency and to consider TMC’s measures for promoting plug-in hybrids and the use of electricity. Toyota also plans to conduct public-road tests of the Plug-in HV in the United States and in Europe.

Specifications of Toyota Plug-in HV
Vehicle	Length/Width/Height	4,445/1,725/1,490 mm
	Weight	1,360 kg
	Seating capacity	5 persons
All-electric performance	Cruising range	13 km in 10-15 cycle
All-electric performance	Max. speed	100 km/h
Engine	Displacement	1,496cc
	Max. output	56 kW (75 hp) @ 5,000rpm
	Max. torque	110 Nm (81 lb-ft) @ 4,000 rpm
Motor	Type	AC synchronous
	Max. output	50 kW (67 hp) @ 1,200 - 1,540rpm
	Max. torque	400 Nm (295 lb-ft) @ 0-1,200 rpm
Secondary battery	Type	NiMH
	Capacity	13 Ah (6.5 Ah x 2)
	Rated voltage	202V
Overall System	Maximum Output	100 kW (134 hp)
Overall System	Voltage	202 - 500V
Battery charging	Power source	Household electrical power
Battery charging	Charging time	1 - 1.5 hrs (200V); 3 - 4 hrs (100V)

Resources

Video of driving and recharging

July 25, 2007 in Plug-ins | Permalink | Comments (82) | TrackBack (0)

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Comments

Toyota's announcement confirms we can have plug-in hybrids now, with today's technology and today's infrastructure. We've been working for this moment since 2002. This milestone validates PHEVs as the best next step -- soon to become mass-produced and affordable.

Finally, hybrids green-tuned by CalCars.org and others will be joined by ones from the world's largest carmaker, with the resources to build better PHEVs than volunteer engineers!

The world's car industry is watching this momentous transition -- as is every advocate of solutions to global warming and oil addiction. Now plug-in advocates will work to get other carmakers into the race to get PHEVs on the road. CalCars.org, other advocates and government will roll out a green carpet for every company that wants to compete with Toyota.

-- Felix Kramer, Founder, The California Cars Initiative

Posted by: Felix Kramer | Jul 25, 2007 12:53:02 AM

The small battery is disappointing; and an 8 mile range is equally disappointing. I wonder if Toyota will explain why they didn't go for at least a 40 mile range? Is it excessive weight, too expensive for the market? Will they offer a larger battery as an accessory? Is Cobasys (Chevron Oil) limiting their use of the NiMH battery technology by controlling the patent? What about a deal with Firefly for their lighter, cheaper lead acid battery? What happened here, Toyota?

Perhaps some enterprising company will offer a reasonable DIY range upgrade when Firefly Batteries make it to the market. I hope so.

Posted by: Lad | Jul 25, 2007 1:19:45 AM

P.S.: Having said all that above, I would like to join with Felix Kramer in congratulating Toyota in crossing the line and introducing the PHEV. And, I believe improving the range of the car, by hook or crook, is only a matter of time.

Posted by: Lad | Jul 25, 2007 1:29:36 AM

At first this looks like super good news until you read that Toyota uses a NiMH battery of an almost pathetic capacity of 2.6 kWh giving it an all electric range of 8 miles. It is hardly more powerful than the Prius battery. The good thing is that with such a small battery and such old technology the car will cost almost no more than a Prius and Toyota will not take any important liability risk that could importantly delay this car’s introduction to the market. This news also add further confirmation to the rumor that Toyota has made a big development error betting on the wrong battery chemistry using the instable LiCoO2 chemistry instead of the more stable LiFePO4 and LiMn2O4. For this reason it could very well be that GM’s Volt will be able to beat Toyota with regard to be first to introduce a PHEV to the market.

Posted by: Henrik | Jul 25, 2007 1:31:54 AM

Henrik ,
You really think the "volt" will reach prodution ?

Posted by: | Jul 25, 2007 1:57:53 AM

Yes this Volt will reach production. The Volt is already doing a lot of good in terms of improving GMs image as a ‘green’ vehicle manufacture. At the moment they are not at all green but if they can get this Volt into production they will be recognized as a world leader in green car manufacturing. To some degree GMs future depends on the success of the Volt project. Note also that the Volt is using state of the art PHEV technology whereas the Toyota project in my opinion looks as an almost desperate attempt to market a PHEV before GMs Volt project goes online in 2010.

Posted by: Henrik | Jul 25, 2007 2:19:30 AM

8 miles (13 kms)!? Is this a joke? Just more Toyota PR without any substance.

Posted by: Pete_P | Jul 25, 2007 2:59:30 AM

This is just an ordinary Prius with two of the standard 1.3 kWh packs in parallel.

So it could theoretically be sold tomorrow (all safety profiles, reliability, crash testing etc have already been performed for these batteries) at a premium of only $1,000 over a base Prius.

I think a lot of people would spend an extra $1,000 to get 8 miles EV range.

Posted by: clett | Jul 25, 2007 3:18:40 AM

These are great news. Here is why: By using the soon obsolete NiMH battery Toyota proves the obvious (PHEV can work reliably even with a "substandard" battery). Once Lithium batteries beat NiMH batteries in EVERY aspect (price per KW*hr, and production volume to name a few), Toyota will make the switch at once. It would be wonderful if Toyota/Panasonic would just license the Altair Nano and/or A123 Systems technologies and slash the time for a real PHEV with 60 mile electric range to come to the market but the truth is that none of us know how close Panasonic is from producing their own Lithium batteries for electric and PHEVs. It all comes down to this: Toyota has an astronomical lead and there is no benefit in taking engineering risks at this point.
After all, even Tesla Motors is doing exactly the same with their Lithium battery pack: They found a good enough battery that can do the job, designed an overly complicated cooling/warming system for the battery pack, and they are going to stick to their guns with this battery pack until they actually sell enough cars to make some money on their product. As the battery power density increases and the internal resistance decreases, Tesla Motors thermal management system becomes less relevant (it is already irrelevant for the common car).
Again, Tesla is able to use substandard batteries because they seem to have a huge lead in the electric car market (even though they have not sold a single car yet). This is what happens when there is no serious competition: You can become overly conservative and still keep your lead. Good for them, bad for the rest of us.

Posted by: Freddy | Jul 25, 2007 3:21:45 AM

An all-electric range of 13 km is not as useless as it seems. It does one important thing: preventing cold starts. Cold starts are BAD.

Depending on how many short trips you make, this could reduce the number cold starts by perhaps as much as 50%. This has a huge impact on the total pollution that this vehicle produces.

Posted by: Anne | Jul 25, 2007 4:33:35 AM

This is good news coming from Toyota. One must walk before they can run. Yes, the electric range is poor and the battery technology is old, but they are still learning (Everyone is learning). What Toyota doesn't want to do is ruin their hybrid reputation. Yes, they could try to use the latest technology and bring it to market. But, if consumers start to have problems with this new car, then Toyota sales could suffer significantly. They went with what they know. From there, they can swap in newer battery technology, more efficient electric motors, and more efficient control systems.
From what I hear, the next model of Prius will have a lithium ion battery in a couple of years. In those couple of years, they can learn a lot from this current round of testing and how to incorporate a plugin into this new model.

As for GM and the Volt, bring it on. Competition can only make better more efficient hybrids. But my concern is that GM has a poor track record of bringing concepts to reality in this area. Until actual product is being sold in the showroom, the Volt is only a dream.

Posted by: Todd | Jul 25, 2007 4:44:59 AM

Did I miss something? Doesn't a plug-in such as this increase the regular MPG for the car? If we're achieving 100 MPG, is 8 mile all electric range really that bad?

Posted by: dave | Jul 25, 2007 4:59:38 AM

I'm sure quite a few people will take a "this isn't good enough" attitude towards this car, but this is another good evolutionary baby step in the right direction. Once they hit the market here in the U.S., I'll be in line to buy one.

Posted by: Travis Rassat | Jul 25, 2007 5:02:57 AM

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Posted by: Mike Artherton | Jul 25, 2007 5:10:16 AM

13 km electric range would cover about 70-80% of all car trips (http://themes.eea.europa.eu/Sectors_and_activities/transport/indicators/spatial/TERM14,2001/Access_to_basic_services.pdf) here in the EU; the median distance of a trip taken by car is about 6 km (half of all trips taken are only up to 6 km).

13 km would cover most city driving, thereby eliminiating emissions where their impact is most severe.

I can only congratulate Toyota to this bold step, and hope that the Prius III will have an PHEV (factory)option (2nd battery pack, modified HV control algorithms to allow 100 km/h in pure electric mode, and of course an electric oil pump to have proper lubrication - that's the main issue of the DIY mods being done so far, in my eyes;

I hope the PHEV Prius will indeed make it to europe for testing, to have a look :)

I'll replace my P1 only with a PHEV (200 000km and still going strong)...

Posted by: realarms | Jul 25, 2007 5:15:54 AM

AtairNano and Phoenix Motorcars seem to be only a couple of weeks away from delivering the goods.
Nanosafe is the proven real deal for EV-HEV-PHEV(PMC-Lightning-ISE-Alcoa deals) and GRID balancing(AES deal).
I'd say to Toyota the game has changed and they better play it safe: NANOSAFE.
Plugin2Go, Plugin2G,Plugover,PluginFleet.com are altairnative.com ideas.

Posted by: Altarian1 | Jul 25, 2007 5:16:53 AM

Almost any news of PHEV's is good news these days. I'm glad to see progress in that direction, although being honest, the 8 mile range takes a lot of wind out of the sails. Just was hoping for something a little more robust on behalf of the veritable hybrid experts that are Toyota, (no sarcasm intended). I guess we as advocates of the green should be happy and accepting that there is progress being made, and get behind any of these efforts, even if they are baby steps.

Posted by: Schmeltz | Jul 25, 2007 5:34:54 AM

This is very good - it should mean that all the bumper to bumper driving can be done on the EV side. This is where the main benefits will be.
The benefits of highway driving on EV. vs. ICE will be much less, so 8 miles e-driving is a good thing.
It will also encourage people to get charging stations at work.
Unlike the dreamers, Toyota have to write warranties.

Posted by: mahonj | Jul 25, 2007 5:58:01 AM

Keep in mind that with a larger motor, this will go 62 mph. Current conversions, I think, only go about 30 mph. So, it is not just about the battery and this makes it practical for highway driving, a big improvement.

Posted by: tom | Jul 25, 2007 6:27:00 AM

The motor is the same 50 kW unit as in the existing Prius. Battery power is up from 21 kW to 44 kW.

The increase to 62 mph has been enabled by a revised power-split device, which allows higher speed EV use without having to spin the engine (this previously is the real reason for the low max EV speed of the Prius).

Posted by: clett | Jul 25, 2007 7:04:28 AM

At first I was upset by the short amount of range in electric mode. But it sounds like the perfect thing for most short car trips, so, kickass.

Posted by: Gary | Jul 25, 2007 7:05:55 AM

It would seem they are creating a platform on which they can test future battery technologies. By using the existing technologies they get real world experience with all the other bits of the car (engine, lubrication, AC/Heating demands etc) which may give them valuable data while securing a contract with higher energy density battery suppliers.

This seems to be a wise and valuable step by Toyota in breaking into PEHV technologies.

Posted by: Tom | Jul 25, 2007 7:11:21 AM

Amazing how many people think they're qualified to run the world's most successful auto company.

Posted by: db | Jul 25, 2007 7:11:27 AM

What would the range be at 50mph? 45mph?

Posted by: Mike | Jul 25, 2007 7:42:16 AM

No one noticed so far that this Plug-in Prius has another advantage over the current model: better performance. Due to the stronger batter, the maximum power has risen by almost 20% from 84 to 100 kW.

Well, probably no one is interested, it's GREENcarcongress after all....

Posted by: Anne | Jul 25, 2007 7:47:29 AM

Correction: (Freddy) Tesla Motors has presold 560 Roadsters for $92,000+ a piece. It is true however, that they haven't delivered them yet. They say they are on track still for Q4 delivery, and a release date announcement has been rumored to be coming soon.

Word on the street is that Toyota will bring a plug-in version of the Prius to the US with the next model "update". (but no official announcement) With this announcement about Japan it looks like those rumors could be very true.

I think with our longer commutes in the US, customers would definitely like more miles of pure EV drive. I don't know if 8 will cut it. But if the Prius is sold essentially how it is now, with little price increase, customer may not notice any difference.

Posted by: Chris Crawford | Jul 25, 2007 8:00:10 AM

What would the range be at 50mph? 45mph?

This guy estimates 193.6 wh/mile @ 45 mph and 201.4 wh/mile @ 50 mph, under the conditions he describes.

The secondary battery is 2.6 kWh, so that makes for a range of 13-14 miles -- if the battery is fully drawn down, which I doubt they let happen. If it can only draw down to 40% of its full charge, that puts the range at those speeds at around 8 miles - same as the Toyota estimate.

The 10-15 test cycle (the basis for the range claim) runs a vehicle at speeds between 12 and 44 mph.

Posted by: db | Jul 25, 2007 8:02:26 AM

any progress along this road is more than welcome

Posted by: andrichrose | Jul 25, 2007 8:02:36 AM

No one noticed so far that this Plug-in Prius has another advantage over the current model: better performance. Due to the stronger batter, the maximum power has risen by almost 20% from 84 to 100 kW.

Well, probably no one is interested, it's GREENcarcongress after all....

It's the same 50 kW electric motor as before, it's the same 76 hp gas engine as before. No change in power.

Posted by: db | Jul 25, 2007 8:08:54 AM

There is a certain marketing award Toyota can claim for being first to introduce certified PHEV. And ALL HEV products are welcome additions to the global energy solution. Most trips to local stores, schools and neighbors are within the 8 mile range so it is a good first step.

The VOLT will come to market on time with a far greater range we hope, and it too will make a contribution. Pretty much all good.

Posted by: gr | Jul 25, 2007 8:11:55 AM

This is a perfectly logical conservative design choice to make Prius plugin. Staying with NiMH is a necessity due to lengthy development and testing effort required for LiXxx chemistry to be certified for roads. Not to mention the existing production and other infrastructure that is in place, plus proven reliability. Given NiMH the range is limited unless much more space is allocated for additional packs.

Thus to keep it a general purpose car with a long range driving capability they could only manage a modest electric capacity increase. Again, no choice.

They would have to sacrifice the trunk, or even replace ICE engine with more packs. In that case you end up with a longer electric range, but limited space and/or range - specialized city only car design.

For instance, you replace ICE with more packs thus extending the range to say 50 miles = only for driving in town, commuting to work, shopping, etc. Now some people may still purchase such a car, but the market is much smaller for such a specialized car.

For a decent electric range we'll have to wait for LiXxxx batteries. However, as most people don't want big battery packs exploding under their seats :() there is a lot of testing and different issues that need to be worked out = needs more time.

So Toyota didn't really have much choice.

I think this is a reasonable compromise. It means you can go around corner to buy milk without ICE. You can drive short distances without ICE. Yet for longer distances you are using a smallish efficient ICE. Not gasoline free, but if it cuts gasoline consumption in half, then that is progress.

Posted by: q | Jul 25, 2007 8:13:03 AM

@db:

You are wrong. Look at the specs. The maximum power output is stated as being 100 kW. You can lookup the current maximum output of the Prius yourself.

The 50 kW electric motor in the Prius doesn't deliver that to not overload the battery.

Posted by: Anne | Jul 25, 2007 8:35:02 AM

I'm thrilled!!! With the number of drives each year that I take that are less than 8 miles, this car could easily cut my gas consumption in half. This better than anything we currently have!

Posted by: David | Jul 25, 2007 9:16:37 AM

g- I guess I'd be one of those who'd be happy to sacrifice trunk space for greater all electric range. I live in a city, have disposable income and want a full-dledged EV but the market isn't making such a thing. Your post makes me think having that sort of modular flexibility would be quite a coup for Toyota. If they allowed you to optionally attach an expensive NiMH battery array in the trunk that boosted electric range from 8 to say 24 miles, they would easily hit both the broad hybrid market as they have now, and allow the more adventuresome folks with the spare cash to pay out of pocket to the subsidize the EV technology. If on the other hand, Toyota's long term vision of a PHEV is something with 8 miles electric range, I think I'm going to cry :-)

Posted by: Jim G. | Jul 25, 2007 9:49:01 AM

Jim G
Good idea. For trips where more space is required, simply allow the customer to take out the battery. Better yet, establish a string of suppliers who would keep batteries charged and swap them as you head down the road. Use the same model as propane tanks where you just swap out the battery when a charge is needed.

Most of the time most of us don't need that extra trunk space.

Posted by: tom | Jul 25, 2007 10:11:14 AM

Any PHEV announcment is a good announcement, so this is a good day. Still, it's remarkable how Toyota went from unassailable leader to laggard in just a few months. A bold stroke by GM and a dumb choice by Toyota/PEVE to use lithium-cobalt was all it took. Toyota is scrambling now, and this pathetic "Prius with two battery packs" test program is only a placeholder while they go back to the drawing board.

Toyota faces some interesting choices. HSD is an engine-dominant design, and NiMH isn't competitive on power/range/weight/cost. If not for the Volt this gradual, evolutionary approach would make sense for Toyota. But with GM threatening to leapfrog them it's clear they need to bring more to the table. Competition is good. Let's get Honda and Ford into the mix and watch the pace REALLY start to pick up!

Posted by: doggydogworld | Jul 25, 2007 10:25:15 AM

You are wrong. Look at the specs. The maximum power output is stated as being 100 kW. You can lookup the current maximum output of the Prius yourself.

What it says is "Overall System Maximum Output". Electric and gas peak horsepower aren't strictly additive, since the curves are different. The gas engine is the same, the electric motor is the same, as I said. It hasn't changed the overall power of the vehicle.

You can see this from a much older post that mentions the "Combined System Net Power."

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2006/01/toyota_rolls_ou.html

Posted by: db | Jul 25, 2007 10:31:57 AM

Jim,
The Smart car is an example of a design for short distance driving, such as commute to work. It is much smaller, has a small diesel engine that is powerful enough for short trips. Space if sacrificied, but as you pointed out that is fine for in town driving.

Logistics of extra batteries for Prius would be difficult. The pack itself is not light, so you'd need some sort of lift. When outside of a vehicle they would still need to be maintained with a trickle charge. etc.

Still I agree that it would be a great option if I can fill the trunk with extra battery packs since most of the time it is empty anyway. I am just not sure about the actual design, how it would work.

Posted by: q | Jul 25, 2007 10:37:51 AM

"Toyota went from unassailable leader to laggard in just a few months"

Really? That is news to me. Let's see, Toyota sells a bunch of Prius hybrids every month and GM sells exactly zero, nil, nada. Gee, seems Toyota is still the leader.

As much as I want Volt to be a success and put pressure on Toyota to advance its designs, the FACT is that Volt is still in the labs and not available for sale anywhere. Also, until Volt does start selling and establishes several years of reliable service and no major problems like Prius has, it cannot challenge Prius.

Toyota is still in the drivers seat and it is others trying to catch up.

Posted by: q | Jul 25, 2007 10:42:25 AM

Just to point out, if the pure electric range is 8 miles, then we're only talking about a 4 mile trip up and a 4 mile trip back. So while an encouraging development, this is very much a baby step indeed. as for what this baby step is worth, probably not much for most Americans. Assuming the average gallon of gas costs $2.95 (current as of today), with a generous estimate of 55 mpg fuel efficiency for the plug-in prius, that means that the plug-in version saves 43 cents over a non-plug in version for that 8 mile all-electric trip ((8/55) *$2.95). You'd have to go on 2,325 8-mile trips (or one 8-mile trip every day for 6 years and 4 months straight) in order to recoup a $1000 premium. And this analysis assumes that once the all-electric portion of the trip is over, the fuel efficiency for the rest of the trip does not decrease, which it might. So yes, we're talking micro-baby steps here. But still, an encouraging evolutionary development.

Posted by: marc | Jul 25, 2007 11:00:23 AM

...and, of course, the above analysis does not factor in the cost of electricity to charge the car for that all-electric 8 mile trip...

Posted by: marc | Jul 25, 2007 11:05:26 AM

That's longer than my commute. That's about the length of my neighbor's commute. For my neighbor, going all-electric for his commute would bump the 46 mpg of a Prius up to about 70 mpg and reduce CO2 emissions by about 170 pounds (saved gasoline emissions minus increased emissions from electric power generation).

Not bad if they can make it affordable.

Posted by: db | Jul 25, 2007 11:23:46 AM

That's a good point about the weight/inconvenience issue. But I think they should try it anyway, or set up an approved standard interface whereby others can develop something for hobbyist suppliers to plug into it. I guess I'd model this on how the consumer electronics and computing industry works, where you plug in a printer, new PCI cards, or a slingbox or a DSL modem or whatever. Part of the impediment to this kind of thinking for an automaker probably relates to scale, part to engineering it with regard to regulation/safety, but I think by far the largest part of it is just the fact that it's not done that way right now. I wish at least one automaker would try and approach problems in a modular kind of way. A hip niche brand like Jeep or Saturn could pull that off, I'm convinced.

With regard to the diesel Smart, that's wonderful, but at the same time I still want an EV so I don't have to use the tailpipe.

Posted by: Jim G | Jul 25, 2007 11:25:17 AM

..and, of course, the above analysis does not factor in the cost of electricity to charge the car for that all-electric 8 mile trip...

Factor that in, and the payback period is 133,000 miles for a price premium of $1,000. I guess it all depends on battery durability (and the assumed price premium) as to whether this makes economic sense.

Of course, cars are economically irrational generally (anyone ever do calculations about the payback period of spinning rims?) and there are obviously other things to consider, like better air quality, lower CO2 emissions, less dependence on oil, and pushing a promising technology forward.

Posted by: db | Jul 25, 2007 11:33:30 AM

Jim,
Come to think of it, I am sure other companies will provide simple and cheap modifications to add a socket for additional battery packs in the trunk. I wouldn't be surprised if it became widely available soon after new Prius is introduced.

Posted by: q | Jul 25, 2007 11:45:06 AM

"Electric and gas peak horsepower aren't strictly additive, since the curves are different. The gas engine is the same, the electric motor is the same, as I said. It hasn't changed the overall power of the vehicle."

The performance will be better because the battery power is about twice now. In a normal Prius, the battery provides 21kW to the 50kW motor(MG2). Now, you have 44kW going to the 50kW motor. You can say the PHEV Prius now fully utilize the big motor.

The peak power for PHEV Prius is now 136hp instead of 110hp simply because MG2 contribute more with the juice from the extra pack.

Posted by: usbseawolf2000 | Jul 25, 2007 12:17:41 PM

Jim G.,

The auto industry can't adopt the computer industry model of modular components because of liability. Small companies making power accessories have no liability because they have no money. So the liability reverts back to the OEM with deep pockets. Yes, it inhibits some innovation and makes auto manufacturers cautious. But it is good for public safety.

Posted by: JamesEE | Jul 25, 2007 12:17:48 PM

A lot of people seem to be worried about "recouping" money for a hybrid vehicle. Even though a 25,000$ plug in is 10 grand cheaper than a 35 grand suv/pickup. So when you are telling your grandchildren why they don't have fresh water, no polar ice caps, huge hurricanes, and have to drive an SUV on $10 dollar a gallon. tell them you just couldn't see yourself driving a fuel efficient vehicle because it cost a little more. hey, who cares about the future---you want benefits without sacrifice. my children will be driving an electric vehicle powered by the array on my roof.

Posted by: scott | Jul 25, 2007 12:34:35 PM

I see the 8 mile range as the way to go. It may mean all the miles driven below 30 mph are electic.

Posted by: JimO | Jul 25, 2007 12:36:08 PM

Nobody mentioned about the increase performance for the regenerative braking. PHEV Prius will be able to capture twice more energy at twice the rate (hard braking).

Posted by: usbseawolf2000 | Jul 25, 2007 12:39:20 PM

I believe this is not such a small step as it seems for the Prius.

1) Maximum power goes up by more than 20%. The car will become even more dynamic than it is now.

2)It is very likely that it will get at least 20% better fuel economy because a) two times the battery (in paralel), two times the regeneration amps it can tolerate (hill driving, heavy braking...etc) b) less stress on the engine when accelerating = smaller consumption c) 13 km full-electric range is much cheaper than doing it on gasoline (esp. here in Europe)
I think you will gain much more than simply the 8 mile electric range.

3) You get the same-old trustworthy Prius. No risk with some new tech.

4) It will be a PHEV by design. Toyota will probably support future battery upgrades built-in. By the time the Volt gets into production (if ever), Toyota will start distributing their high capacity, safe LiXXX battery pack upgrades (hopefully for modest prices) for the PHEV Prius.

All in all, it sounds very good to me. Somebody has just made a sound decision at Toyota HQ again. (and I am not on TMC payroll :)))

Posted by: Sola | Jul 25, 2007 12:42:26 PM

The peak power for PHEV Prius is now 136hp instead of 110hp simply because MG2 contribute more with the juice from the extra pack.

Really? Where did Toyota claim that? Where's the supposedly new power curves?

Please explain to me how a motor with a fixed power rating (in this case, 50 kW or 67 hp) somehow magically becomes more powerful now that there's more "fuel" available. That's like claiming that a Ferrari would boost its horsepower with a bigger fuel tank.

You're confusing battery capacity with power output to the wheels.

Posted by: db | Jul 25, 2007 1:00:05 PM

Realarms mentions above that Toyota is rating the Electric Vehicle mode at 100 km/h or 62 MPH so, much, much more all electric driving will be the case with greatly improved fuel efficiency. Realarms also mentions a need for improved lubrication at those speeds which is correct; MG1 (Motor Generator #1) will be spinning backward at 9,778 RPM during a 100 km/h or 62 MPH all electric event. Normally the Prius transaxle is only splash-lubricated until the ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) starts at which time a shaft coming off the ICE turns the transaxle’s own oil pump.

My vehicle is set up very similarly to this PHEV test vehicle & I get 72 MPG in the City & about 54 MPG on the highway @ 70 MPH without plugging in so, I expect to see even better fuel efficiency out of this vehicle as the SOC (State of Charge) or DOD (Depth of Discharge) & the max assist amperages have to be set higher than mine also.

We really should salute Felix Kramer of CalCars for pursuing, relentlessly I might add, this path & do what we can to assist his non-profit drive to see more PHEVs world-wide. Felix was standing up & waving the PHEV flag when the whole world including Toyota was telling him he was nuts! PHEVs are the extremely logical & proper route to the full EV world we all need to be living in.

Posted by: Wayne | Jul 25, 2007 1:08:01 PM

Today Toyota announced testing a plug in hybrid with a short range. If they were to put an existing production model Zebra Battery into a Prius along with its regular hybrid battery, the car could go 100 miles, on electricity alone, according to the CALCARS figure of 200 watt-hours per mile average. Ron Gremban, of CALCARS, has already successfully tested a method of connecting a battery of appropriate voltage in parallel with the existing hybrid battery while leaving it in place. Ron knows of more convenient but more flexible and expensive ways of connecting batteries of a wider range of voltages to the original battery that will give even better results. This makes making a plug in hybrid out of a Prius much easier, and may be the method used by HYMOTION.

The weight of the Zebra battery is about the total weight, 200kg, of the Lead Acid cells that CALCARS used for their first conversion. A smaller Zebra battery could be made to fit existing space and have less weight but at the cost of some miles. There is no need for special cell connections or special cooling of a Zebra battery and if several cells fail, it does not mean fire and a failed battery but only a loss of capacity. The cells are always hotter than ambient and can be cooled by any temperature air if needed. There is absolutely no maintenance, but it does need to be kept hot inside its case the outside of which does not get more than ten degrees above ambient. The energy used to keep it hot is no more than the energy lost by NiMH batteries while sitting or charging. By draining its own charge it could keep itself hot for about ten days. There is no loss of electrical capacity or charge in a ZEBRA cell cooled to room temperature, and it can retain this charge for decades. Special provisions or methods could be used to heat up an already fully charged ZEBRA cell for use within minutes. Slip a cell out of its thermos bottle and heat it up over a charcoal grill and then put it back into the thermos bottle is one very low tech method.

A Prius parked in an open space or carport coud have its computer programmed to put brief bursts of full engine power into the battery when the charge or temperature got too low. Most would be plugged in to take advantage of the low cost of electricity compared to gasoline.

There is no reason for any car maker to say that batteries for adequate distance are not available. The Prius is the best car on the market for demonstrating a long distance plug in hybrid with a Zebra battery. If the Zebra battery, which needs to be kept hot to work, was accidentally not kept on charge, the prius could operate with the NiMH battery and engine for a while with no delay to the driver. The Prius battery has considerable capacity of its own, and adding two or three more would give a range of at least fifty miles...hg...

Posted by: Henry Gibson | Jul 25, 2007 1:18:07 PM

Indeed, congratulations Felix!

You lead us all a long way since that first email in 2002 you sent me when I was rigging up my P1 for PHEV tests...

I just ran some numbers for the european market. Note that the average trip distances are significantly smaller around here (and with a 240 Vac voltage grid, recharge time is only 1-1,5 hour).

I assumed a DOC of 50% of the 2,6 kWh NiMH for the 13 km electric range, which turns out to be 0,1 kWh/km (city driving).

Other assumptions: Gasoline at 1,30 EUR/liter, Electricity at 0,20 EUR/kWh, Consumption during ICE mode unchanged at 4,5 l/100km.

With a 1000 EUR premium, the break even would be reached after 26000 electric (city) kilometers. Which, in turn, calculates out to 2-3 years ROI (average car getting moved 12-15000 km/a, with 70% of all trips within the 13 km range).

Of course, gasoline consumption is likely to be less than 4,5 l/100km (more than 50 mpg) due to the higher power rating of the battery (and less resistive loss/higher efficientcy too). Gasoline prices are likely to rise steeply, and electricity costs will probably also rise, but at a much slower rate [than gasoline prices].

Posted by: realarms | Jul 25, 2007 1:56:15 PM

"Really? Where did Toyota claim that?"

Just read the spec posted above. Maximum Output: 100 kW (134 hp)

"Please explain to me how a motor with a fixed power rating (in this case, 50 kW or 67 hp) somehow magically becomes more powerful now that there's more "fuel" available."

It is not getting more powerful but rather being used to it's full potential.

See HSD PSD simulation here:
http://homepage.mac.com/inachan/prius/planet_e.html

Make sure you set to THSII (HSD) and speed to MPH. Just click on the labels.

1) Set the ICE to 5k RPM. Let's assume it is making the peak 76hp at 5k RPM.
2) Now set the MG2 to 6k RPM. Prius would have the top speed of about 106 MPH.
3) Now, check out the MG2 power curve:
http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/tech/environment/ths2/image/high_04.gif
At 6,000 RPM, it can make about 45kW (60hp). Now, if the gas engine make 76hp and MG2 makes 60hp, you would have 136hp.

This isn't the case in the regular Prius because the HV battery pack can only delivery 21kW (28hp) to MG2. The remaining power comes from the generator which is indirectly coming from the ICE. So you have 76hp from ICE - 32hp taken away by the generator + 60hp (28hp from battery / 32hp from generator) from the MG2 = 104hp. Somehow Toyota spec say 110hp max. We believe the battery may deliver 34hp in a short burst.

With PHEV twin battery pack delivering 44kW (58hp), the generator does not need to produce the electricity. You have 76hp from ICE + 58hp (all from battery) from the big motor = 134 hp maximum output.

Posted by: usbseawolf2000 | Jul 25, 2007 2:14:57 PM

Here in Southern California, SCE tariffs top out at over 34 cents per kWh if you are 300% over baseline (as I am despite having only a single window unit air conditioner used < 10 days a year). If as estimated above the car uses 200 Wh per mile then the 8 electric miles will be 1.6 kWh or 54 cents. Meanwhile you are saving 43 cents for not using $3 gasoline. Hmmm...

Saving 43 cents of gasoline while paying 54 cents for electricity means this car does not make economic sense in California. There is a special rate for EVs so they will have to change the law to apply to PUHs. Then you need to get SCE to come out and install a separate meter (limited availability) in order to get the EV rate. However that brings it down to 15 cents per kWh off-peak (9 PM to noon) and 25 cents on-peak (noon to 9 PM). This will make it a little more attractive but still not a fabulous deal.

The problem is that California would be a natural market for these vehicles except that due to after-effects of the deregulation crisis of 2000-2001, California has some of the highest electricity rates in the country.

Posted by: Hal | Jul 25, 2007 2:15:12 PM

Henry Gibson,
Good hear someone else banging the drum for Zebra cells
its got to be the way to go at the moment , the only problem is that only
one company is making this type of cell in any quantity , Mes Dea in
Switzerland , and they earn their" bread and butter " income from
manufacturing ancillary components for the european auto industry,
so I would not expect them to play ball and make these batteries available
at the sort of cost they should be any time soon !

Posted by: andrichrose | Jul 25, 2007 3:00:02 PM

Well guys, says here that Plug in Prius is just for testing on public roads and won't be commercialized until the batteries advance:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070725/tc_nm/toyota_plugins_dc_2

Posted by: Elliot | Jul 25, 2007 3:16:30 PM

The part that interests me is the 62MPH. My commute is very long and mostly freeway. I have about 5 miles of city driving from home to the Freeway and another 5 from the Freeway to work. The engine on my Escape Hybrid kicks in quite a bit during the city part of my drive because I exceed 36 MPH which is where the computer starts the engine no matter what you do. With this, it sounds like my entire drive to the Freeway would be EV and (assuming the freeway drive is enough to fully charge the battery packs) the drive from Freeway to work would be completely EV. Is that right?

Posted by: DJ | Jul 25, 2007 4:44:44 PM

Somehow Toyota spec say 110hp max.

OK, so now you're saying that Toyota doesn't even know its own numbers that it publishes, and without any detail whatsoever from them about how this is working in the test model, you somehow can somehow just know that it's the case.

If it had that much better performance, why would they fail to mention it?

Where are you getting 44 kW coming from the battery pack? Where does it say that?

Posted by: db | Jul 25, 2007 5:01:57 PM

" without any detail whatsoever from them about how this is working in the test model, you somehow can somehow just know that it's the case."

I know it because of the great works done by people like Graham Davies on the classic Prius and others on the 04 MY Prius.

If you are curious, here is Graham site: http://www.ecrostech.com/prius/original/Understanding/Contents.htm

"If it had that much better performance, why would they fail to mention it?"

The battery was the limitation. It provides only 21kW to prolong the life or the cost of including twice the size or whatever the reason....

"Where are you getting 44 kW coming from the battery pack?"

I was just subtracting Total power 100kW - 56kW (ICE) = 44kW. 44kW must be from the battery. Where else can it be from?

Posted by: usbseawolf2000 | Jul 25, 2007 5:55:49 PM

Hal, if you're making the California comparison, do it all the way. When was the last time you got $3/gal gas in California? I'm sitting here in Palo Alto and gas stations down the street are definitely selling gas for $3.30+.

i love how people are always out to start bashing. yeah. remember people's reactions to the first ipod? the first prius? etc etc etc...and they were all wrong. we'll see who gets the last laugh. kudos to toyota for this – 8 miles is great, i would use 0 gallons of gas every day for going to work.

Posted by: lensovet | Jul 25, 2007 10:09:00 PM

I own a 2004 Prius and love it. My family's second car is a 1994 Honda Civic.

These PHEV specs look very encouraging. It's a nice incremental development. And the price sounds right, too.
If Toyota can really offer a PHEV-8 Prius for just $1,000 more than the regular Prius, I foresee twin Prii in the driveway of my near future! In fact, I might even have to sell the Honda.

Posted by: John L. | Jul 26, 2007 12:57:16 AM

The increase to 62mph is excellent news for calcars and other adaptors. Currently, "enhanced" Priuses (Prii?) are limited to about 30mph in electric mode. With the new version, Calcars will be able to make a fully functioning PHEV with a range of >50km and a top speed of over 60mph.

Questions on charging:

Will the car accept a charger on a timer - so that it can left overnight with the timer to come on at 1.30 am or whenever electricity gets cheap?

Will someone produce a system whereby a socket mounted device will only allow charging to the specific Prius connected?

Posted by: Alex | Jul 26, 2007 1:00:54 AM

It seems worth pointing out that electric range of PHEVs for early adopters need not be aimed at commute ranges average for the whole market. Some people have much shorter commutes than others, and they are going to be able to commute all-electric even within 8 miles range. Even if this is only 10% of all commuters, this is still a huge slice of the market, and for these people PHEVs with short electric ranges make much more sense than for the rest. Apart from that, this new Prius is for Japanese market where median trips are likely even shorter than 6 km quoted for Europe by realarms. Other developed countries may be trailing U.S. in the adoption of hybrids and PHEVs, but their driving range statistics are highly likely to favor PHEVs much stronger, as overall distances are shorter, and cities more concentrated. This makes it even more deplorable why European carmakers have not tried commercialising PHEVs so far, even though the concept was known for so long.

Posted by: pabram | Jul 26, 2007 1:53:01 AM

Even if gas is $3.40 rather than $2.95, 8 miles at 55 MPG is 49 cents of gasoline saved, but as I pointed out with existing tariffs that is essentially what the electricity will cost at least in southern California, for people who are consuming well above baseline.

Most people do the math for these vehicles on the assumption of 10 cent per kWh electricity but that is pretty hard to get in California. If they extend the EV subsidy to PHEVs, and you get a separate meter installed, and can charge off-peak, then you can approach this, 15 cents anyway, but that's going to be a considerable burden for most potential purchasers. Otherwise you are looking at 20 cents, 30 or even more for each additional kWh.

Posted by: Hal | Jul 26, 2007 8:48:17 AM

Hal wrote: "Most people do the math for these vehicles on the assumption of 10 cent per kWh electricity but that is pretty hard to get in California."

Well, I can get that price. In fact, I can get better than that price. My California house is equipped with a grid-tied solar photovoltaic array and a time-of-use meter. As it turns out, I over-sized my PV array a bit. I generate 93% of the power I use. However, because of the TOU meter, I cover over 100% of my annual electric bill with the power I supply to the grid. I'm generating more power than I use during the mid-afternoon, when rates are highest.

Unfortunately, the law does not presently require the utility company to cut me a check for the $200.00 in credits that I still have left at the end of the year. They write me a thank-you letter, zero my credit, and start over again.

I've been dreaming of a PHEV as a way to get back my extra money from the utility company. That day is getting close! Because of my PV system, I can essentially draw 2,000 kWh of electricity per year from the grid at night, for free. That would add up to about 8,000 miles/year of all-electric automobile travel!

The battery in this Prius-based PHEV-8 is clearly too small to accept all of that free electricity. I would need around a PHEV-25 to use my full allotment. But if the price increment for the PHEV-8 will really be as low as some of the posts here imply, I will go for it.

Posted by: John L. | Jul 26, 2007 9:48:40 AM

P.S., Hal:

If you are really reaching Tier 3 on your electricity bill, you too may be an excellent candidate for both a time-of-use meter (the utility company charges you about $300 to install one, but there is a payback) and solar PV power.

Posted by: John L. | Jul 26, 2007 10:05:08 AM

Yup, definitely depends on where you are. Here in BC we pay over a dollar a liter (roughly 4$ a gallon) and electricity is .06/kwh. One more thing to add in to the calculations would be the wear and tear of starting engines for short trip. Even with only an 8 mile EVrange, my car would only have to start its engine once a week.

Posted by: NeilPackrat | Jul 26, 2007 10:48:02 AM

Pabran: definitely agree that PHEVs should take off in Europe before USA:

- Fuel at $6+ per gallon
- Short commutes, in urban environments
- 240 volt power supply
- Lower carbon electricity generation than USA
- Very innovative car makers

But I'm still waiting.

Posted by: Alex | Jul 26, 2007 11:20:41 PM

Alex: I may not hear much out of Europe about PHEVs but I've heard lots out of Europe on BEVs. Perhaps because of the shorter trip length Europeans are less preoccupied with range?

Posted by: NeilPackrat | Jul 27, 2007 5:13:44 AM

At 8 miles / day and if we drive 300 days / year, that works out to around 2,400 miles / year, which may be around 20 % of our miles travelled.

8 mile range is definitely a good start. At this point all we need is a vehicle in the affordable price range.

Posted by: Max Reid | Jul 27, 2007 11:18:26 AM

My goodness, two people banging the drum for the Zebra! Must be a world record! Yes indeed, put a 120Wh/kg Zebra in your tank - terday! No reason at all why the Prius couldn't have one of their 21kWh units in there. A third the nickel utilisation of NiMH and for a really cheap follow on - the NaFeCl battery - Iron and Salt.

But ZnAir is still the best option, I would agree - see "The Zinc Air Solution" follow on to that Peak Lithium paper at www.meridian-int-res.com.

Posted by: Emphyrio | Jul 27, 2007 11:21:33 AM

maybe toyota can offer an upgrade option for higher capacity battery. (no nimh, lithium, flywheel etc...terminology so misleading. just tell us the warranty and how many miles it covers per charge on average.)

Posted by: bodyweapon | Jul 27, 2007 11:15:43 PM

just another thought from many previous comments about ~1000 USD option to get 8 miles.

From the economic point of view, let put it this way
assume you work 52*5 = 260 days a year.

that's 260*8 = 2080 miles a year
typical car mileage is 25 mpg (I know I am optimistic) at 3 USD a gallon
i.e. 2080/25*3 = 249.6 USD
for a 1000 USD investment, that's 24.96 % ROI
for a 2000 USD investment, that's 12.48 % ROI

I think the maths have worked out very well, the deal is even sweeter if I can recharge at both office and home. That can save even more $$.

Posted by: bodyweapon | Jul 27, 2007 11:27:02 PM

kudos to Toyota. I understand that this is a research product and not a production car. I also understand that the big improvement is in the drivetrain (electric now up to 62mph) and less so in the battery (for now). I expect that the results of this research will go into a future plug in, probably with a more cost-effective battery. I hope this happens soon.

We drive a hybrid now but I prefer that our next car be a plug in. I telecommute as often as I can but we still drive about 500 miles a week so a more efficient car especially makes sense for us.

The cost of the car is very important to me. Although a 50mi lithium ion pack would be nice, I can't really afford it right now. As I understand it, a large battery pack is not cost effective in the long run compared to a hybrid with a smaller pack.

Rather than finance a bunch of money on an expensive BEV with a large pack that I have to keep for a long time to make my money back, I would rather target more cost effective systems (with a little bit going towards technology investment) and upgrade more often. More bang for the buck and I still fund progress.

We do the same thing with our computers. Instead of buying the fastest thing on the block and then paying it off over the next 4 years, we buy the most cost effective processor (not too slow, not too fast), etc, pay it off easily and be ready to upgrade it again in 3 years. Compared to my debt-riddle neighbor, I have a fast computer and money in the bank. Same thing with our cars.

I am hoping for a future where we have full BEVs. I would like to see some of the cash being spent on fuel cells and ethenol be funneled instead into battery research. I support higher taxes on gasoline.

Don't get the wrong idea, but I am just wondering... I wonder if some people driving bevs with larger battery packs are (for now) doing more enviromental harm than people who drive small hybrids. Just a thought. Not saying it is fact and I would certainly want to er on the side of investing in more battery technology instead of less.

Posted by: Peter | Jul 31, 2007 1:42:22 PM

I'd like to emphasize that "this is only a test...this is only a test"...

In the actual event of a market-ready PHEV, the PHEV's battery should be able to be charged from ~10% to 100% of capacity without accelerated degradation in longevity. However, as it is now, this will shorten the life span battery.
As it is now, Prius' battery is only charged to 70% and discharged to 30% of capacity, meaning that only 40% of rated battery capacity is utilized on regular basis.

This is only a test, pending more durable battery technology.

Posted by: Roger Pham | Jul 31, 2007 7:37:25 PM

Has anybody done any calculations on the additional energy that can be captured with the increased battery power avaialble in this Modified Prius?
The current batteries can only absorb upto 20kW regen power even though motor drive can handle 50kW.This modified Prius has a larger pack and probabaly higher peak power rating. This should lead to better milage overall even if the batteries are not charged from utility supply.

Posted by: Soundar Manthiri | Aug 2, 2007 9:45:56 AM

Folks, the real reason the current Prius top speed in electric mode is battery limitation. Yes, the existing design of the HSD does not allow high speed, but this issue was resolved with a slightly modified design, apparently like what is used in the Lexus. Now if this design was after market modified with a hymotion kit, for $10,000, you would have a "real" PHEV.

As far as operating cost, the numbers are well known. Assume the car "burns" .35 KWH per mile, or gets 2.8 miles per KWH, and a KWH costs 13 cents, which works out to about 5 cents per mile. Now if your car get 30 MPG and a gallon of gas costs $3.00, you save about $1.50 per "gallon" "burning" electricity. If you drive 15,000 miles per year, and two-thirds of them are short commute miles where you "burn" electricity, then you save $500 per year. And you buy insurance, so to speak, against either higher gas prices, or a short-fall in gas supply. And you also improve local air quality, sound polution, and curtail our dependence on foreign oil. Not too shabby me thinks!

Posted by: Van | Aug 7, 2007 5:36:19 AM

and that appraisers were given either tacit or overt encouragement to appraise slightly higher than the deal

Posted by: sell my house fast | May 1, 2008 4:08:04 PM

We have inexpensive ($600/kw) Lithium-Ion battery pack available. It fits into plugin conversion kits. Here is the listing on ebay.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=200271706894

It would bring cost of the conversion kits to $3500

AutomationTech Inc

Posted by: JackC | Nov 10, 2008 11:41:58 AM