2011 Sienna Hybrid to get Lithium from Sanyo

[usbseawolf2000]

Tokyo - Toyota Motor Corp plans to source lithium-ion batteries from Sanyo Electric Co for its popular hybrid cars that run on gasoline and electricity, Japanese media reports said Wednesday. Sanyo's lithium-ion batteries are lighter and more powerful than the nickel-metal hydride ones installed in Toyota's popular Prius and other hybrid models.
Toyota was expected to introduce minivan hybrids in 2011 and procure batteries for about 10,000 units a year, Kyodo News Agency reported.

Li-ion battery will be used as HV battery, not for plug-in purpose. Wow, Lithium HSD.

Toyota to get lithium-ion batteries for hybrids from Sanyo : Cars General

Toyota to buy batteries for hybrid cars from Sanyo | Industries | Consumer Goods & Retail | Reuters

[a priori]

Are you certain these 10,000 minivan hybrids are going to be Siennas? It sounds to me as though the 10,000 minivans are going to be sold in Japan, so I'm guessing they may be the smaller minivan (forget the name) sold in Japan.

[Tideland Prius]

Estima? Alphard?

Hmm... interesting. Panasonic's gonna have to come up with something if it wants to keep a contract with Toyota.

[bwilson4web]

Estima ... <grumble> <grumble> <grumble>

The last time I checked, it would cost us nearly $50,000 to import one. $35,000 for the vehicle, $10,000 for shipping and import duties and $5,000 for Japanese lessons. <grumble> <grumble> <grumble>

So one of my day-dreams:


+



The tricky part is rotating the differential 180 degrees so we can drive forward. The other thought is the early VW vans had geared rear wheels. This would also reverse rotation at the cost of more rolling drag.

Bob Wilson

[usbseawolf2000]

Estima and Alphard are possibilities. Sienna is getting a redesign for 2011 so I think it is the most likely candidate.

[Mike Dimmick]

Originally Posted by Tideland Prius

Estima? Alphard?

Hmm... interesting. Panasonic's gonna have to come up with something if it wants to keep a contract with Toyota.

Panasonic EV Energy is 60% owned by Toyota, 40% by Matsushita, Panasonic's parent company. They're not going to starve their own child.

Toyota need a deal with the new owners of the NiMH patent, Samsung and Bosch's joint venture SB LiMotive, to allow larger NiMH batteries to be used in full EVs and plug-ins. My recollection is that some analysis has been done on how much capacity the battery needs in a charge-sustaining hybrid, which indicates that there are diminishing returns as you increase the capacity (hence size and weight) of the battery. Prius won't benefit much from a larger battery, unless converted to a charge-depleting, plug-in vehicle.

Li-Ion has an aging problem. The chemistry deteriorates with age, not just cycles. It also deteriorates more with higher discharge rates. Lithium-Cobalt chemistry, used in most laptops and mobile phones, has the high energy-density that's discussed, but it's not practical for EV use as it can't manage high power, which causes it to overheat. Lithium-Phosphate (e.g. A123's system) has lower energy density, though still greater than NiMH, but not by nearly as much.

The Prius HV battery only weighs about 40kg (Gen 1 and Gen 2). That's around 3% of the car's weight, and roughly what a child weighs. Savings from switching the battery to a lighter chemistry would be minimal.

More about Lithium Ion here.

[usbseawolf2000]

The weight saving may be minimal with lithium but the space/volume should also be considered. With the need for flat floor for the minivan, the placement of the HV battery is critical. I wonder where the HV battery is in Estima and Alphard.

[clett]

The big gain in switching to lithium-ion is efficiency. The roundtrip of energy in to energy out for NiMH can be as low as 60-70% at high currents, while modern LiIon can manage 95-98% efficiency. It would help harvest a lot more regenerative braking and require less cooling.

[zenMachine]

Bob,

That's one hell of a wet dream!

[bluetwo]

Here's a little something: Toyota Sienna Hybrid - Review | Hybrid Cars

You guys might've already read these but oh well, not everyone has.
Soccer Moms Rejoice! Hybrid Minivan on the Way. | Hybrid Cars

New Buick Hybrid SUV ­ Plug-In Hybrid Buick From GM - Popular Mechanics

HybridMinivan.net - Hybrid Minivans