Toyota Decides to Jump on the PHEV Wagon for 2012

Toyota will reportedly start to make plug-in hybrids in 2012 with an initial annual production around 25,000 vehicles. This would allow for drivers to plug in and cruise (presumably at speeds below 45MPH) for about 15 miles before the battery has depleted its plug-in derived charge and reverts to traditional hybrid mode.

While 2012 is only three years away, Toyota has a firm base on which to develop a PHEV – the Prius. Taking the Prius platform and adopting it to PHEV would require some engineering changes – notably the ability to transfer more of that battery energy to the wheels. The Gen III Prius can output up to 60kW of power through the electric traction drive. Toyota would need to develop a system to expand that number up to about 80kW to allow a Prius to drive at reasonable rates

To get a good idea about what size battery they would need, I consulted a recent Argonne national labs electric vehicle study that showed a car with an 8kWh li-ion battery pack (5kWh usable) would be able to drive for about 15 miles at city driving speeds before using gasoline. This would seem to match up with Toyota’s 12-18 mile target. This 8kWh pack (by 2012) would probably source 1,500W/kg and have a specific energy of 100Wh/kg, and would weigh 100kg with the battery and electronics. Neither of which are unreasonable targets.

The Argonne study indicates that for the average driver, it would reduce fuel consumption by 62% over a conventional vehicle and a 48% reduction over a standard hybrid electric vehicle. This would almost double the MPG of the Prius from the current 50MPG to 97MPG. These figures are dependent on commute distance and driving conditions however – those with longer commutes or more highway driving would likely see reduced fuel economy.

via GCC

Possibly Related Posts:

• Lithium Supplies – Locked and Loaded
• Mitsubishi Demonstrates Ultracapacitor – Hype or Holy Grail?
• Panasonic announces 1.5kWh battery pack
• Sony announces LiFePO battery
• GM to Purchase Lithium-Ion Batteries from Hitachi
• Ford Escape PHEV program expands to Canada
• Argonne examines Hybrids and E-REVs and their fuel economy
• Toyota to lease Plug-in Gen III Prius Worldwide