Toyota’s plug-in capable Prius is getting a big boost for testing, hitting the open road a year ahead of schedule. Several hundred of the PHEVs will be put into government and commercial fleets for field testing by the early 2009. So in just a few more months, we might be able to catch one of the new models out and about.
The only problem is that while we know when field testing starts, we still have no idea when the model will be available for consumers. There has been no timetable created for retail sales, so we have to sit tight while they make sure that the Li-Ion batteries deserve a thumbs up.
Via AutoblogGreen, Toyota
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written by Chris, September 02, 2008
Good to see their ahead of schedule. Check out my take on this: http://www.oceanchampions.org/blog/?p=41
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written by plooger, September 05, 2008
http://www.time.com/time/busin...html?imw=Y
In August, he took matters into his own hands and had his 2008 Toyota Prius converted into a plug-in hybrid, which doubled its gas mileage ..... Although the Prius is already a hybrid gas-electric model, the additional battery that Cox had installed enables him to travel more than 20 miles on all-electric power.
In August, he took matters into his own hands and had his 2008 Toyota Prius converted into a plug-in hybrid, which doubled its gas mileage ..... Although the Prius is already a hybrid gas-electric model, the additional battery that Cox had installed enables him to travel more than 20 miles on all-electric power.
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written by Gene, September 05, 2008
Where do you think the energy comes from anyway.
In LA, much of the electrical energy comes from a huge coal burning power plant in Arizona. Thats is true in most places because 75% of the power plants are all coal driven.
Plugin electrics are actually run on COAL!
In LA, much of the electrical energy comes from a huge coal burning power plant in Arizona. Thats is true in most places because 75% of the power plants are all coal driven.
Plugin electrics are actually run on COAL!
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written by Jonathan, September 10, 2008
If you charge your car with solar panels...no more coal to worry about.
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written by Ken Grubb, September 11, 2008
EPRI studied the issue of PHEV impact on the power grid.
http://www.epri-reports.org
They concluded PHEVs will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve air quality, and the power grid won't go down. Spend an hour or so and read the Exec Summaries, the Press Release, the FAQ and the Technology Primer. It should defuse the sky falling coal argument.
http://www.epri-reports.org
They concluded PHEVs will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve air quality, and the power grid won't go down. Spend an hour or so and read the Exec Summaries, the Press Release, the FAQ and the Technology Primer. It should defuse the sky falling coal argument.
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written by tom engineer, September 17, 2008
US's grid has great nighttime electricity excess. As long as vehicle is charged at night, ZERO additional emissions are generated. Electricity otherwise would be wasted. This is an important point is that often overlooked when discussing Plug-ins
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written by kurdt, September 29, 2008
@Gene:
Nevermind San Onofre, which is far closer and uses nuclear. Besides, the dirtiest of US coal plants is still cleaner than a car's gasoline engine. There is a whole lot you can do when you have a professionally maintained and optimized large scale generator and no weight restrictions as far as generation and cleaning of the air.
So yes, while coal is dirty, if you consider the tiny amount of that plant's output that will fuel your car (there are 10 million folks in LA), I'm sure you'll find that coal is much cleaner.
And since it seems you haven't read any other stories on this site, the beauty of plug-ins are that they can be renewably powered. Even when they're not, they can be charged during low-demand off-peak hours when much of the electricity is going to waste anyhow.
Your sort of "plug-ins run on coal" FUD is just as bad as the story about how Hummers are greener than Priuses.
Nevermind San Onofre, which is far closer and uses nuclear. Besides, the dirtiest of US coal plants is still cleaner than a car's gasoline engine. There is a whole lot you can do when you have a professionally maintained and optimized large scale generator and no weight restrictions as far as generation and cleaning of the air.
So yes, while coal is dirty, if you consider the tiny amount of that plant's output that will fuel your car (there are 10 million folks in LA), I'm sure you'll find that coal is much cleaner.
And since it seems you haven't read any other stories on this site, the beauty of plug-ins are that they can be renewably powered. Even when they're not, they can be charged during low-demand off-peak hours when much of the electricity is going to waste anyhow.
Your sort of "plug-ins run on coal" FUD is just as bad as the story about how Hummers are greener than Priuses.
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written by Vince, October 30, 2008
There are already many retrofit plug-in priuses on the market with better specs! See for example http://www.spinnovation.com. How can Toyota make a product that performs worse than products that have been out there fr years?
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