@Nocreditreports That's very progressive of you. Too bad the real world isn't actually ready for that.

Resources, infrastructure, technology unknowns, etc. aren't ready for mass EV adoption like you're probably hoping for. These companies, Toyota in particular, are able to see that and have been proven right so far.

I drive a lot of vehicles. Many of them EVs. Guess what? Charging is a huge pain in the a$$. Chargers are often full, not working, or working at such a slow rate that they're basically useless. Home charging doesn't work for a large portion of the population (most of the U.S., in fact). And we have no idea how long batteries will actually last. Nevermine promised EPA ranges versus the actual real-world range that's usually far lower.

EVs are nice and all, but the reality is that they are not ready for the mainstream in the U.S., rural China, much of Europe, and many other locations. Big markets. Not podunks like the Netherlands or other small population, high-income areas.

Great, exactly as I have been suggesting for a long time. A small engine 750cc to 1-liter, 2 cylinder, 75 hp to 100 hp is sufficient. Keep the engine simple. Can run on biomethane, biomethanol, or hydrogen. A small battery pack of 12 to 15 kWh is sufficient for daily commuting. Keep the vehicle light and inexpensive. PHEVs today have too big and complicated engines and that is why they are expensive and heavy.

For most applications, the requirement of energy dense liquid fuels is not necessary.
Aviation and Maritime applications are definitely some of those that require energy dense liquid fuels and currently, best handled by hydrocarbon based fuels.

Actually a Range Extended EV may not need an ICE and could include an additional battery that does not have the cycle life of an LFP or Sodium Ion battery, i.e. greater than 4,000 cycles. It would have a high energy density (>500 Wh/kg) so the extender battery would weigh less than 100kg and used only 20% of the time.

There is another group of applications that do not require energy dense fuels, however, would require a large battery and long recharging times. Long Haul Trucking and Diesel Rail are some examples. This is where Hydrogen may be used.
Though, Compressed or Liquified H2 has problems with infrastructure costs and poor volumetric energy density. Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carrier (LOHC) is an option that would not require infrastructure changes and could use existing retail fuel distribution, providing a cost-effective way to transport hydrogen energy.
Companies like Honeywell, Enzo’s, and Chiyoda are investing in this approach.
https://www.offshore-energy.biz/eneos-to-use-honeywell-technology-for-liquid-organic-hydrogen-carrier-project/

However, this approach incurs ∼ 50% energy loss from the endothermic dehydrogenation and compression of hydrogen. MIT has proposed an alternative concept based on onboard hydrogen release, where the hot exhaust from the hydrogen combustion engine is used to partially power the endothermic dehydrogenation.
https://greengroup.mit.edu/lohc-powertrains-decarbonize-long-haul-trucks

Hi Bernard,
Please understand that charging an EV would make the most sense when there is a surplus of Renewable Energy in the grid. If the grid depends on fossil fuel to generate electricity during the moment when solar and wind is insufficient, then it would be better to use Carbon Neutral (CN) fuel in the PHEV at that moment. Also, when the grid is over burdened with maximum demand, then the PHEVs have the option to save the grid by running on its own power plant. This would save about $800 Billion in capital investment to upgrade the grid if 100% of vehicles are full BEVs.

By taking out 80% of the battery capacity of a BEV, the weight, cost, and space savings can more than justify a small 2-cylinder engine. No transmission is needed because it just produces electricity using its starter/motor/generator all combined into 1. In this manner, 1 battery pack from a full BEV can serve 5 PHEVs.
Having no capability to charge an EV at home can be solved by charging at work, from solar PV panels. During rainy days, the EV can be powered by its engine and CN fuel on board.

Roger,

If the problem is the grid, then let's fix the grid. Good news: that's already happening!

Hybrids have notoriously poor space utilization. Compare a Prius to a Corolla for instance: they are the same size on the outside, but the Prius has much worse trunk space. Any similar-sized EV puts both to shame, of course.

In other words, your "solution" of building-out more liquid fuel capacity means that everybody has to move-up a size class, which is very wasteful. They also need to pay much more than they would otherwise, including the current cost of EVs.

Why pay more to get less? Why create new infrastructure for toxic liquid fuels when a better solution is already available?

@Yoatmon, Bernard, Gryf, Gasbag, et al,
Incidentally, Geely and BYD recently came up with a car engine capable of 46% thermal efficiency when function as a range extender, for a PHEV with total range of 2,000 km or 1,250 mi range. This kind of efficiency rival thermal power plants and would make it more efficient and less costly for your PHEV to use its engine and Carbon Neutral (CN) fuel when the grid is deficient in Renewable Energy (RE), because electricity from the power plants must incur losses from transmission, distribution, and charging, while power from the PHEV's engine can be transmitted directly to the wheels. during cruise.

A 1,250-mi PHEV can generate electricity for long time to back up the grid during times of disasters with prolonged power outage from the grid. Natural disasters are increasingly common due to climate change and so are the frequency and duration of power outages. Where I stay, we recently suffered from power outage for TWO freaking days as the result of a very powerful storms that knocked out a lot of trees and power lines. For a PHEV designed to provide power backup for home and small businesses, this kind of power outage would be much more tolerable.

When going on a camping trip or doing contracting works in remote areas, the ability to provide extended electricity for the camp, including for portable A/C, lighting, and other power tools would be extremely valuable, and only long-range PHEVs can fulfill this kind of role.

CN fuels can be dispensed in existing gas stations, only needing compatible storage tanks and pumps... at a lot lower expenses than building out more Supercharging stations. Furthermore, PHEVs only consume 1/5 to 1/10 the fuel consumption of a compatible gas-only vehicles, so the added expense of compatible storage tanks and pumps would be much less than for fueling a fleet of comparable gas-only vehicles.

The trunk space of a PHEV can be made comparable to that of a comparable gas-only car when the engine in the PHEV can be downsized to 1/2 - 1/3 that of the gas-only car. Imagine having the engine, e-motor, inverter AND even the spare tire and other accessories adjacent to the downsized engine... in the front under the hood, with the battery pack under the front seats, and the gas tank under the rear seat, then the whole rear trunks space will be comparable to that of a gas car. Nothing to it!

Totally agree, SJC. Small cars won't sell well in N. America. That's why the Tesla Model 2 is DOA (Dead On Arrival) because it is too small, and likely the 2-seat Robotaxi as well.

The Tesla CyberTruck (CT) is also DOA because it is lacking an engine range extender and therefore not selling well, neither. A range extender doesn't have to be big, just enough to supply average power required for normal cruising, which is about 30 hp for vehicle the size of the CT,, so a 2-cylinder 750-cc motorcycle engine with 75 hp is enough, even for occasional towing when the power requirement can double. For frequent towing, a 2-cylinder 1-liter 100-hp range extender would be more durable. The e-motor is always standing by to supply for acceleration and climbing. The PHEVs can do everything all the time and can travel everywhere, perfect for all type of demands and all types of customers.
The full BEVs are deficient and hence are not selling well anymore.

Roger, the lack of a range extender is the least of the Cybertruck's problems. It probably doesn't even make the list.
You probably already know that Tesla's Model 3 and Model Y out-sell almost everything else in their segments in the US, despite the "lack" of gasoline engines, gas tanks, exhaust systems, and all those other things you think are necessary.