Hybrid News: Toyota, Hybrid Technologies and OEMtek
Wednesday July 30, 2008
- --In the midst of this automotive sales slump, not all things are looking down. According to a recent Automotive News release, Toyota is planning to boost Prius production by 70 percent after the planned remodel next year. That would bring the yearly Prius production total to a minimum of 480,000, most of which are built in central Japan.
- Averaged 147 MPG in urban driving; (<34 MPH, 30 miles per day, 90+ days and ~3000 miles)
- Averaged 102 MPG in highway driving. (cruise control at 65 MPH, 45 miles per day, 90+ days and ~4000 miles)
- Averaged 125 MPG in combined urban and highway driving (~7000 miles in 90 days)
- Range of 1000 to 1500 miles to ‘empty’ the fuel tank
--Have you heard of Hybrid Technologies? According to CNW Research's recent newsletter, this company offers about a dozen products, from mopeds to passenger vehicles, and their calling card is clean lithium battery power. The cars they currently offer: LiV™DASH, LiV™FLASH, LiV™SURGE, LiV™WISE, and the LiV™RUSH sporty convertible with 100+ mile range.
--OEMtek can extend the range of regular hybrids by turning them into PHEVs. Their after-market solution offers an additional 9kWh of energy storage which pushes a Ford Escape Hybrid's or Prius's economy into the 100+ mpg range. Dubbed the BREEZ, it's a plug-in battery that fits directly over the spare tire and utilizes Valence Technologies lithium phosphate batteries--and look at these numbers (according to the OEMtek website):
Price: $14,500 with a 12-month warranty. Though the price is steep, with a pretty long payback period (at 15,000 miles/year on a Prius, it would be about 14 years), we like the idea--and we've inquired whether they offer a BREEZ for the '08 Altima Hybrid. We'll let you know what we learn.
OEMtek Prius at the 23rd International Electric Vehicle Symposium - photo © OEMtek
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