Toyota has confirmed that the first 500 Prius Plug-In Hybrids will be introduced to selected global markets from this month.
The green crusader made its official North American debut at the 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show today with the Japanese company describing the limited rollout as “a necessary first step” to educate drivers and consumers about plug-in technology.
The US will get 150 vehicles in 2010 while Europe and Japan will begin receiving their cut of the remaining 350 within weeks.
Toyota US said the program will allow it to gather real real-world vehicle-use feedback to better understand customer expectations of plug-in technology.
“On the technical side, the program aims to confirm, in a wide variety of real-world applications, the overall performance of first-generation lithium-ion battery technology, while spurring development of public-access charging station infrastructure.”
It said the cars would be distributed in regional clusters in New York, California, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania and Oregon.
Unlike the standard Prius with its nickel-metal-hydride battery pack, the Prius Plug-In Hybrid uses a lithium-ion pack with more energy capacity: around 4 kilowatt-hours compared to the standard pack’s 1.6 kWh.
This means the Plug-In can run at higher speeds and for longer distances than the standard Prius.
Toyota claims the Plug-In can operate in electric-only mode at speeds up to 100km/h and for more than 20km, which is more than 40km less than the Chevrolet Volt.
In July, Japan’s Nikkei news agency reported that Toyota plans to mass produce the Plug-In from 2012 with a starting price of more than $50,000 – again almost $10,000 more expensive than the Volt which will be launched in just under a year.
I like the Volt, I really do, I wish GM success with it. Though, the prius tech has been out there for longer so I trust it more if I *had* to buy one.
CA : Is that 50K USD for the Prius?
The Volt is a different kettle of fish to the plug in Prius. The Volt’s petrol engine acts soley as an onboard generator to charge the batteries and does not drive the wheels at all, whereas the Prius is relatively conventional in that the petrol engine kicks in to drive the wheels.
True they are different hybrid systems but the outcome is the same. Both cars can run in a pure EV mode. So if you only drive 20kms per day (or per charge) then the plug-in prius would not use any fuel. 64kms for the volt.
Personally the volt is superior in this case because you get a decent spec EV motor (110kw/370nm) compared to the (60kw/207nm) for the Prius.
Wow… Can do 20km on the freeway
POS hybrid electric crap cars…..
Has anyone looked into the long term use of these cars with their batteries and any relation to cancer? Like moblies etc?
of course not,
this big global green effort is about trees, not human life
What a load of crap.
Humans are inherently selfish, nothing anyone ever does is selfless. Never ever.
heheh…
Ditto that…
Do you sleep next to a clock radio, do the walls in your house have electrical cables, do you use a microwave, electric oven, does your car have a battery, starter motor, electric windows, seat, sunroof, wipers….
Are you typing this on a computer??
P.S. there is no proven link between mobiles and cancer.
Yeah right, why would you care. You are being poised every time you fill up your car. (http://www.caradvice.com.au/49.....echnology/)
You inhale pollutants everytime your drive behind another car. There are several studies about the negative health effects of cars already. (http://www.goodcleantech.com/2....._cause.php)
The question is do we really want to know, or do we even care?
I wonder if its all worth it…….
This new improved version would cost $3.80 to drive 100k’s (pre electricity price hikes which are coming)
plenty of cars out there now using under 4l of petrol to do the same would cost $4.40 for the same distance, and their purchase price would be less than half.
Thats a $90 a year saving on fuel……..not worth it IMO
Not to mention servicing and disposing of the shorter life span
Get one thing straight, the Volt is an EV, and the Prius is available as a PLug in and a Hyrid. The Volts petrol engine does not drive the wheels, the Prius’ does in hybrid mode. The plug in will be a step in the right direction but really needs to be more innovative than that.
Ive got no doubt the Volt is the better proposition.
GM needed it yesterday.
Best thing is it is styled in a manner that normal people would desire.
Prius just screams “I sit on a pillow when I drive”
Yes this is a step in the right direction, But I dont see how battery powered cars can be sustained from an eco point, which will then turn into a $ point.
EV’s will also cause job losses if they reach the ultimate goal with them.
Renewable energy and plugging in at home will see job losses to miners, coal truck and train drivers, console workers, fuel tanker drivers.
These are commonly unthought of issues that the government will have to be very mindfull of before outlawing the petrol engine
I see EV’s as a gap filler, and if gap filling is what you are after then I reckon Gas is the better option
If EV’s take over, petrol engines wil phase out gradually. People in the petroleum industry will retrain or retire (or die).
Same deal as with calligraphers, portrait painters, blacksmiths etc.
how many calligraphers, portrait painters, blacksmiths etc were put out of work versus the impact on coal mining and petroleum industry.
There are many times more people involved in the coal industry and petroleum industry as over the years our countries have become heavily geared/reliant on them.
Biro manufacturing would have created more jobs than it would have erased,
Portrait painting still exists so that seems invalid
Also manufacturing wheels for cars would have created more jobs than it erased, although black smiths still exist, and truth be told in the same numbers
Building a wind farm will not create more jobs than it erases in the coal industry.
Building a wind farm will not create more jobs than it erases in the petroleum industry
And lets not forget the Terrorist Industry which is party sponsored by the petroleum industry. It creates jobs for Paramedics, builders, Explosives manufactures the world over. Its all good :)