Just got to work this morning and there was an update for our electronic parts catalog, once it was done and the program started, it displayed the Prius Plug-In as one of the vehicles to select. I quit keeping up with Toyota about the same time I bought my S2K, so this was news to me. Just thought I'd share that little tid-bit, that Toyota is apparently production ready for the plug-ing.

 

Until some one figures out how to charge a battery as fast as filling a gas tank and make it last 300+ miles with A/C and such batteries are worthless and shouldnt be put in cars.

 

Huh? How about 70 miles round trip and charges in about 8 hours. Sounds like a pretty solid commuter car to me. Then again, that has nothing at all to do with a plug-in hybrid scheme. That is an addition of more battery storage which extends the battery only distance but the car would still recharge from the engine like a normal hybrid.

 

My wife works for an electric utility that has a fleet of "green" vehicles with the company logo on it. A couple are aftermarket plug in Prius conversions. She took one on a trip and when the tank was empty it computed to 90 mpg. Not sure what the added cost of the electricity was.

But Toyota should be able to extend the range between fill ups and make ridiculous milage claims with one when they have it ready for sale.

 

I really think Toyota is doing this only because they don't want GM to beat them to the punch with plug in hybrids. However, Toyota's method is stop gap. Just as people scorned the mild hybrids that GM initially released (the ones with the 8hp alternator/motors) as mild hybrids, the Prius plug in system that Toyota is releasing is a "mild" plug in. Unlike the Volt it can't operate solely on batteries. It can make short, low speed EV only trips but it can't actually drive on the highway without needing the gas motor. The Volt is truly an electric drive line (in a sense it isn't a hybrid) with two sources of electricity to power than electric drive (a generator or batteries). The Prius was always designed to blend to motor types in one gear box. It does that very well but it isn't well suited to use only one or the other.

 

True, but being able to restore the electrical supply from the grid rather than a less efficient and more gas engine recharging the batteries will no doubt extend the range, and also increase the milage and efficiency.

On the EPA sticker it will probably be able to boast a nice leap forward from what is percieved by many (rightly or wrongly) to be the most efficient car out there. And the fact that it can be had at probably a little more than half the price of the Volt is not good news for GM.

 

All very true. I wonder what the new mileage sticker will say. I don't think the price will be little more than half. It sounds like, thanks to the tax incentives, the Volt will probably sell for low to mid $30s. I think the credit is $8k and the latest news is GM will sell the car for $40k thus making the price around $32k. The most basic Prius is around $23k but I would guess the plug in Prius would start out on the fully decked out model. I mean we see Honda doing that with the Civic hybrid and Ford does the same with the Fusion hybrid. The high line Prius starts at $28k and can easily go over $30k with options. $34k was the highest I could do without adding paint protection. Of course that's a bit like the $40k Accords that are never sold in real life.

Anyway, at $28k it's not a long jump to $32k and that $28k doesn't include any markup for the plug in capabilities. I suspect Toyota will strategically undercut the Volt's subsidized price. At least I would expect that until Toyota figures out what the market thinks of the Volt vs the Prius-Plug In. If the PPI is a big hit I can see the price rising the next year. I know it's a bit unfair to compare the subsidized Volt price to the unsubsidized Prius but for the time being those are the real numbers to the buyer.

It will be a very interesting competition.

 

Becuase none of this is helping us to stop using oil.

 

According to this article Toyota is claiming a 14.5 mile range. I recall reading that the car was supposed to be able to travel up to 60mph on electric power alone.
http://www.wired.com/autopia/2009/12/toyot...-in-prius-2011/

14.5 miles is pretty short but still for someone with a 15 mile commute each way that at least means half the trip will be battery only so long as they stay off a flowing freeway. I'm curious about the 60mph top speed. First, that was a number I recall reading so it I may be remembering wrong. It also might just be someone else's swag. The part I wonder about is, if that is the real number, does that mean 60mph but only on a down hill slope? Would that mean any speed up to say 30mph is gas free but from 30-60 would depend on how hard you press the gas?

I don't know. I know with the Volt it's 100% electric until the batteries are down. With the Prius I doubt there will ever be a 100% electric mode. On the other hand, I suspect the plug in Prius will be better sorted as it's not radically different than the regular Prius. The Volt certainly is a generation beyond the current hybrids.