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Toyota Plug-in Hybrid vehicles more efficient than Diesels

By Anthony Crawford |

Results from data collected from a fleet of Toyota Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles (PHEV) throughout London have shown that average fuel consumption in the city is 27 percent better than an equivalent diesel car.

Toyota are clearly excited by the findings as the real world data collected from a fleet of 20 leased PHEVs to businesses operating in London means that Plug-in Hybrid vehicles clearly demonstrate vastly improved fuel efficiency and lower emissions over diesels and other less practical personal transport technologies.

Toyota’s third generation Prius provides the basis for the PHEV and is equipped with an advanced lithium-ion battery that allows the car to be driven at higher speeds and over longer distances on electric power only.

CarAdvice has driven one of these Toyota PHEVs and was more than impressed as the vehicle accelerated to 100km/h without the need to engage the petrol engine. It’s was quite a revelation into just how rapid this kind of technology is advancing and how useable it really is.

Charging infrastructure is already in place across parts of London, which allow drivers of the PHEVs to simply top up the battery by plugging in at a dedicated power outlet at their workplace, or at street charging point or indeed, at home in the garage.

The Toyota PHEV program in London runs for three years, but the data collected so far, has been over a one-year period and the results are interesting, to say the least.

• Average journey distance has been 7.3 miles, with 59 per cent of all journeys covering between 3.1 and 12.4 miles
• Average speed has been 17.7mph, with 69 per cent of journeys at speeds less than 18.6mph
• Initial fuel consumption data indicate performance is 27 per cent better than an equivalent diesel
• Average recharging time is 72 minutes
• Where drivers have access to a domestic charge point, more frequent recharging occurs

Of course there are plenty of cities around the world that are as busy and as congested as London; New York, Paris and Athens to name just a few, and it’s these environments where PHEVs are the most efficient and could make a real difference to air quality through significantly less fuel consumption.

Toyota’s PHEV is capable of traveling 20 kilometres on its electric motor alone (EV mode) and depending on the charge and road conditions – at speeds up to 100km/h.

The data collected over the past year in London provides a seriously strong case for the use of Plug-in Hybrid vehicles in congested cities around the world given the potential for zero petrol consumption and exhaust emissions.

Is it time to introduce a zero emissions policy in the world’s busiest cities?


 

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Toyota Plug-In Hybrid Concept Vehicle
Toyota has revealed one of five Plug-in hybrid cars in Australia, as part of a global trial of 600 of these vehicles, which will gather data over the next two years and used in the development of the best possible solution, for low energy and low emissions transport for the future.

  • nemo

    27% better than what? If it’s 2L of diesel vs 1.5L of petrol plus electricity then that’s not saving at all.

    I love statistics

  • Ford Fairlane

    Is it time to introduce a zero emissions policy in the world’s busiest cities?

    NO

    Who would enforce it around the world?

    Julia don’t you get any ideas.

  • save it for the track

    Exactly. What exactly do they specify as an ‘equivalant diesel’? of course the problem in the EU with the popularity of diesels is the NOx output. Of course neweer diesels aren’t as bad, but there’s a lot of old generation diesels chugging around the EU.
    .
    How will the use of plug in hybrids affect a city’s power usueage on high power consumption days like heatwaves, when brown outs and black oiuts may occur? Also, mention is never made of a metering system. Surely, it will not be free for anyone to get power for free either in public or at a workplace.

  • Torque

    Data collected over the past year shows that,
    1. All fitness centre equipment should power generators to recharge electric cars.
    2. Meter maids should pedal generators located at curbside charging stations.
    3. Tree huggin’ hippies also say that organic bongwater in the prius cooling system improves efficiency – don’t believe them.

  • Allergy

    And do those figures include the energy cost of the new batteries that will be required in a couple of years time in the hybrid cars? I doubt it!
    It’s about time these studies become real world.

  • MK

    Who owns or holds the rights to the natural resources (Li, etc.) needed for the manufacturing of these batteries? And how much (volume or time wise) will it last?

  • Alexander

    It’s about time you come into the real world, Prius batteries are known to be good for more than 450,000km without any issues (with both the engine AND batteries), almost all EV/Hybrid manufacturers have a 8 year warranty, they’re guaranteed to work for that long at full capacity. After this they generally loose capacity at a rate of 10% a year, similar to combustion engines loosing power over time.

    The cost of replacing them also comes down over time, I distinctly remember when a Prius battery was around $10,000 to replace, today they’re available for around 4,000. It the same concept of a plasma tv costing $10,000 a few years back, today they’re less than $1,000

    • Alexander

      *in reply to Allergy.

  • Richard

    Fuel consumption savings are all well and good. BUT, how much extra does the Prius Plug-in Hybrid over a compariable diesel (ie Golf BlueMotion)?

  • Martin V.

    Yeah… I’d still prefer a diesel – more torque.

    • Alexande

      Have you seen the torque curves of an Electric motor? with above 80% charge a Prius motor/generator will output 400nm from 0rpm. Electric motors make full torque from 0rpm and will hold it much higher than a Diesel. The Audi E-Tron concept put out like 3500nm or something and the Tesla Roadster is known for its torque.

    • QAZ

      do your research before you comment. You sound like an idiot.

  • AR

    It is quite obvious there are still people in this blog who prefer to breathe diesel and petrol fume around the neighborhood. They cannot accept the huge environmental advantage and innovative technology of PHEV/zero emission vehicles.

  • Commentator

    Yeah but there’s going to be more environment destruction from the extra mining and processing of the hybrid gear, not to mention wether the cars are being charged by renewable energy. Have to calculate the big picture, not just at the products usage emissions.

    • AR

      I understand your point.
      But here’s the ‘big picture’ of careless oil drilling…..Do you remember the BP-Deepwater Horizon explosion that triggered the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in Apr 2010? Huge amount of marine and bird lives were lost. And the lost of income to the fishing industry in the nearby US coast.

  • Car Fanatic

    Alexander, 450,000 kilometers based on what?

    One example, two examples? Does that mean we should all buy Volvos because a P1800 did 2.6 million miles? Or a Mercedes 240D for doing 2.8 million miles?

    Now if thousands of Prius did 450,000 k’s that would be different.

    Hey maybe we should buy Volvos, after all one got hit by a train in Sweden
    And the Driver walked away slightly shocked.

  • Car Fanatic

    Only sound like one as opposed to you QAZ, who is one.

    Your village called, they want you back.

  • Jacob

    How about a diesel hybrid!

    It would be soooo efficient.

  • Alexander

    @ Car Fanatic, I posted a comment with links to various forum threads and articles with proof of Prius reliability last night which didn’t seem to gain moderator approval,

    On Prius Chat forums there are ’200,000mile club’ and ’300,000 mile club’ threads where there are in excess of 20 users with mileage above 320,000 and 482,000 with original batteries. There are also numerous articles around the Internet (including ones posted by CA) detailing high mileage Prii with original packs. A study by some American organisation also found the Prius a highly reliable used car to buy.

  • Car Fanatic

    Big deal, there are European owner clubs for owners who have exceeded 500,000 miles in Volvos, Mercs, VW’s etc and well in excess of 20 members in each. All on original engines.