Carl Guardino says he's converted. Guardino, the president and CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, won't go back to conventionally powered vehicles now that he has tested a pre-production Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid vehicle (PHV).
"I'm not getting another gas-burning car," says Guardino, who started testing the Prius last year. The conventionally powered Volvo S60 he previously owned "didn't fit who I am in terms of my concerns about pollution and climate. And it didn't fit who I am in terms of cost efficiency."
If Guardino's opinion is any indication of broader public perception, then Toyota's new plug-in vehicle may be about to hit its target in the consumer space. The forthcoming Prius isn't an electric car, but it could give consumers the feeling of owning one, since it calls for them to plug it into an electrical outlet.
For Toyota, engineering a car that plugs into a wall socket could be a big step forward. On one hand, the giant automaker is dipping a toe into the electric car world. On the other, it's maintaining its bent for economic practicality.
The Prius PHV looks like a conventional Prius, except for the charge port near the left front wheel.
"There's a price point that our customers are comfortable at, and that's at about $26,000," says Bill Reinert, national manager of advanced technology vehicles for Toyota Motor Sales USA. "Beyond that, it's a very steep curve. The number of consumers who want to buy something past that price point diminishes pretty rapidly."
For Toyota engineers, that observation has become the key to the design of the new Prius PHV. Using economic practicality as a baseline, the engineers designed a "partially electric" car with a relatively small battery and less all-electric range than competitors offer. As a result, the new vehicle goes only 13 miles on a charge, but it offers dramatically lower costs and recharging time than competing electric vehicles and plug-ins. Rated at 5.2kWh, the battery offers about a third the capacity of the Chevy Volt 16kWh battery and less than a fourth the capacity of the Nissan Leaf's 24kWh battery. But it can be charged on a 110V outlet in a scant three hours.
Toyota engineers are hoping those figures will add up for consumers. They say the smaller battery means not only faster recharging, but also lower costs.
"The plug-in Prius is going to shake up the market quite a bit," says Dave Hurst, a senior analyst for Pike Research. "If they can bring this car in at the $28,000 to $30,000 range, they'll get a lot more people who can actually afford it."
So is the plug-in electric market right now kinda the automotive version of the Republican Presidential race? That is, basically a two-candidate/horse/PEV battle, in this case the Nissan Leaf versus this new Prius? If so, who do you think will come out on top?
This strategy seems like it could really take root with consumers, especially if the price is right and given Toyota's huge success with the original Prius. I think beyond the people who are totally committed environmentists, this slow-stepping into a pure EV vehicle might be the right strategy to ease people into alternative vehicles without having to make a total transformation all at once.
Alex: yes, in terms of what's available right now, it's a two-horse race. As Beth points out, the Prius' existing customer base, combined with a big price difference between it and the Volt, probably makes it the favorite. In the end, I believe it may also draw customers away from the Leaf. The fact that it can be plugged in is important to potential Leaf customers and others who watch their carbon footprint. Those buyers could use the vehicle in all-electric mode most of the time, then use the gasoline range extension capability on those rare occasions when they need to drive farther. The Leaf doesn't offer them that option.
Actually it is not a rare occaision for me to need more than 12 miles a day but the concept of this PHV seems very good to me. Most days I commute 12 miles round trip. Some days I add a few other miles to go to lunch. Sometimes there are errands in the evening. Being able to recharge before evening errands, which tend to be short trips, might keep me in all electric mode most of the time. But every few days, and certainly every weekend I have trips of 50-200 miles where a Volt or a Leaf would not do the job and I'd a second vehicle around just for that. With the gas backup in the hybrid, I would be able to manage with just one car. EXCEPT, during the summer on weekends, I end up pulling a boat about 50% of the time. Needing a tow vehicle sometimes, you either need to bite the bullet and put up with its poor mileage all the time, or bite another bullet and maintain, store, and insure multiple vehicles. Right now the savings in fuel are not enough to justify multiple vehicles, close, but not quite. At $10/gallon, I may give up the boat and SUV.
We had the Prius Plug-In Hybrid for a week of testing at the Design News sister site Automotive Designline. Click herefor our report on living with a plug-in.
If an international agreement to control tanker fuel quality and use were made..then the prius and leaf may be Carbon load better than any 30+ mpg North American mad car.
Actually, I think most people would prefer not "to arrive at your destination with the last watt coming out of your battery," but to arrive back home...
Speaking as a non-plug-in Prius owner, I personally would be more interested in a pure-electric drive-in-town car, and the Leaf would be a better match for that. That at least as a second car; as a one-and-only car, the Leaf wouldn't work for me, and I think not for a lot of Americans.
Oh, I forgot to add that I'm a little unsure about frequently deep-cycling Li-ion batteries. At least on laptops and cell phones, my experience is that they do gradually degrade. Toyota made it work for NiMH, but I guess we'll see how/if it works on Li-ion.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 3
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
23 
