Toyota has plans to offer Prius 2010 Lithium battery upgrade ??

[iFreedom45]

Hi everyone,

Does anyone know if Toyota has any plans to offer Prius 2010 customer a Lithium battery upgrade kit in the near future ?

I know the car just came out, but I am debating if I should wait for the Volt, Nissan Leaf or the upcoming Prius PlugIn or go for the Prius 2010.

The Prius 2010 only has a 1.6km rang on EV mode (battery mode) and this is really not enough for me as I do 90% of the time in city driving with very short distances.

I would need a car than could do more on battery alone, such as the upcoming Volt which is advertised, but I am really interested in buying the Prius 2010 NOW !!.


Do you guys know if Toyota or A123 systems will come out with such an upgrade soon ?

Thanks,
Dan

[Indyking]

I would not invest any money on the Chevy Volt, because of the doubts and criticism around the project and the poor reliability of the GM brand. The Nissan Leaf, for your needs, is definitively worth waiting, but remember that it is at least 1 year away from arriving in the dealerships, but most likely, the wait is even longer (I'm thinking 18 months is more realistic).

[jangell2]

Originally Posted by iFreedom45

The Prius 2010 only has a 1.6km rang on EV mode (battery mode) and this is really not enough for me as I do 90% of the time in city driving with very short distances.

I would need a car than could do more on battery alone, such as the upcoming Volt which is advertised, but I am really interested in buying the Prius 2010 NOW !!.

I'm a first time and new owner of a Prius 2010. The limited range is only when you use battery only and I can think of no good reason to select that. You've got a gas engine and an electric engine and the Prius automatically uses either or both and keeps the battery charged. Heck you're even charging the battery when you brake. In a regular car, braking is throwing away energy.

BTW, the volt that is coming out requires it to be plugged into a power socket when not being used to charge the battery, the Prius does not. The 250mpg they are bragging about goes down if you take long trips between charges since the battery is depleted and you go on gas exclusively. No matter the length of the trip, the Prius is using both. If you are away from home, how easy will it be to charge the battery in the volt? Better carry a long extension cord

I guess I don't understand why the range of the Prius is not good enough for you. It's rated at 48-50mpg and the gas tank holds (I forget exactly) over 10 gallons. That's the equivalent of a 25 gallon tank in a gas guzzler.

[Indyking]

Originally Posted by jangell2

I guess I don't understand why the range of the Prius is not good enough for you. It's rated at 48-50mpg and the gas tank holds (I forget exactly) over 10 gallons. That's the equivalent of a 25 gallon tank in a gas guzzler.

Because, according to the OP needs (short distance commute, in-town drives only), the Leaf will mean INFINITE MPG and ZERO emissions... So, the Leaf is a no-brainer for his needs, but the question is: does it worth the wait?

[The Electric Me]

Originally Posted by iFreedom45

The Prius 2010 only has a 1.6km rang on EV mode (battery mode) and this is really not enough for me as I do 90% of the time in city driving with very short distances.

Yes, The Prius EV mode isn't designed or intended to make The Prius a full time electric vehicle, it's designed to allow it to be an electric vehicle for a short period with very specific parameters applied.

Prius is a hybrid. I think you need to decide what you want. If you want a tangibly utilizable around the city commuter that runs on full electric then the vehicle you want is probably around the corner in the form of The Leaf or The Volt. A lithium battery, plug in Prius is also probably closer than Toyota is admitting, not wanting to hurt current sales.

But you are just kind of trapped. Sounds like the vehicle you really want, is just about to be produced, we might be a year, 2 or 3 away from really having options.

It's an interesting time for "alternative" automobiles. Things seem to be changing rapidly and I believe we are in a time frame where everything is in flux.

What I think for you immediately is you need to decide whether you want a Hybrid immediately, an automobile with a decade of support and refinement, OR you are dedicated to full electric, inwhich case there is a wait, and you will be riding the first generation.

As far as your original question about offering a 2010 Lithium Battery Upgrade? I honestly don't know. I would HIGHLY doubt it. The 2010 is selling very well. Why would Toyota publicly admit that they were going to offer an "upgrade" to Lithium. It would be like telling everyone buying or who has bought a 2010 that the product they just bought was already obsolete. Soon, eventually Lithium batteries will probably become the standard, but when your hybrid product line runs on Nickel Metal Hydride, and you are already having trouble meeting demand with a production chain you've built for a decade, you probably aren't going to announce plans to change every new Prius you have just sold.

If Toyota EVER offers a lithium battery upgrade possibility for The Prius it will just happen, and I think it would happen AFTER Lithium becomes the standard, not before.

[ksstathead]

jangell2, be aware that braking is still a waste of energy, just not of all the energy, as some of it (30%?) makes it back to the battery during regen braking. All of the energy is lost when braking under 7 mph and in emergency stops, since compression braking is used.

Also, Prius is a gas car that gets really great mileage due to its HSD and battery. OP is looking for a largely grid-charged solution. I don't think the Prius is designed for that. OP, if you buy a Prius, you won't be happy or have the best mpg if you regularly run in EV MODE. It's range is just too short as an EV. You might do well to consider a Gen II Prius plus a PHEV conversion, but even then you'll need to use the ICE more than in a Volt (or in a BEV, which has no ICE).

[Codyroo]

A) Do you have a place to "plug in" where you live to charge up your electric car?
If you don't own your place (let's say you are living in an apartment), do you have permission to plug in?
C) Will you be moving such that you might move into a place where you CAN'T plug in?
D) Do you drive on roads that have a speed limit < 35 mph (55 kph)?
E) For those final 10% trips, do you have alternate transportation with greater range?

You might consider a Zenn.

ZENN Motor Company

Cost ~ $10k

http://www.zenncars.com/media/documents/PCMagazine.pdf

Or a Zap car around 12K

http://www.zapworld.com/electric-veh...rs/xebra-sedan



Otherwise, you likely would want to wait a bit. The fuel mileage you'd have with the Prius with such short trips would be disappointing (although, likely better than what you would otherwise get with most passenger cars).

[jangell2]

Originally Posted by ksstathead

jangell2, be aware that braking is still a waste of energy, just not of all the energy, as some of it (30%?) makes it back to the battery during regen braking. All of the energy is lost when braking under 7 mph and in emergency stops, since compression braking is used.

Yes I am aware of that, though did not know the figures. They guy who invents a system to recover all the energy from braking (or any other function that loses energy) and makes it economically feasible will be a very rich man.

I also didn't catch that the OP wanted all electric. I wasn't thinking enough outside my own box. I'm too thrilled with going from 15mpg (or less) to 48-50

[iFreedom45]

Originally Posted by jangell2

I'm a first time and new owner of a Prius 2010. The limited range is only when you use battery only and I can think of no good reason to select that. You've got a gas engine and an electric engine and the Prius automatically uses either or both and keeps the battery charged. Heck you're even charging the battery when you brake. In a regular car, braking is throwing away energy.

BTW, the volt that is coming out requires it to be plugged into a power socket when not being used to charge the battery, the Prius does not. The 250mpg they are bragging about goes down if you take long trips between charges since the battery is depleted and you go on gas exclusively. No matter the length of the trip, the Prius is using both. If you are away from home, how easy will it be to charge the battery in the volt? Better carry a long extension cord

I guess I don't understand why the range of the Prius is not good enough for you. It's rated at 48-50mpg and the gas tank holds (I forget exactly) over 10 gallons. That's the equivalent of a 25 gallon tank in a gas guzzler.

Hi,

Thanks for your reply.

From what I understand, the Prius 2010 will use allot more gasoline to warm up the engine everytime you drive short distances (stop and go all the time).

I drive 3 km (1.9 miles) to go to work 3 times a day = (6 trips a day). I will also use the car allot in the city 80-90% of the time for short drives.

My old Toyota Matrix 2003 was rated at 6.9l/100km by EPA, but I was actually doing more like 10l to 12l/100km (1gallon=4.5l), because I was driving short distances all the time (stop and go) .

I would really prefer a car that can do more distances on electric only. This would probably be cheaper on gas, and this is the point of buying a hybrid car.. right !

By the way, from what I read, the GM volt is an electric car with a gasoline engine that is used to recharge the batteries when they are depleted at more than 50%.

Dan

[radiocycle]

Well, I was trying to hold out for a PHEV but with the age and mileage of our current cars I figured I just couldn't wait for an 'unknown' amount of time. I went for a 2010 Prius and very glad I did!

I, still to this date, have a $500 deposit down at the local Toyota dealer waiting for the first plug-in to come along. But I figure I'll just trade this one in when the PHEVs become widely available to the public.

In the mean time, I'm so digging my first Prius and glad we went for it! Why put it off?

radio