i wonder, if you ride the regen brakes on a really long hill in this car, could you fill up the lithium battery all the way?

it would be cool to know how the car operates in conventional hybrid mode (how far will the engine recharge the battery?). would be cool to come off a long highway trip to have 12 miles of EV mode ready for you to use.

Well, I'd hate to trade in my brand new Gen III, but I'd do it in a heartbeat if I could plug in! Twelve miles is a 'good enough' start, let's just get some on the road and see how this plays out.

Hm, I was hoping for a larger EV range, but yes, this is a good start.

I, too, hope that the additional battery capacity can be utilized to store energy produced while operating the vehicle (regenerative braking or whatnot) unlike in the Chevy Volt where once it's done, it's done until you plug it in again (or so I've read).

When this hits production, I hope it can be available with all of the packages. I would hate to see a repeat and have to pick between solar roof, advanced technology, OR plug-in :-\

Count me as a vote for an "all-in-one" model!

Thanks for the news about Prius Plug-ins. For several years now I've been urging (via e-mail) Toyota to produce a plug-in version of the Prius, and most likely thousands of other Prius enthusiasts have been doing the same thing. Looks like Toyota is finally relenting.

Twelve miles of range in EV mode may not seem like much - but will (from my experience) provide more than enough range for an average local errand. I have a Zenn all electric vehicle, and my errands hardly ever exceed 8 miles or so, and I just keep it plugged in at home when it is not being used. That way the battery pack stays charged up, allowing for repeated errands during the day - and no gasoline is being burned.

Hybrid Warranty????

This information is worthless until you know how much the car costs. I know a lot of prius owners are not in it to make the money back on gas but it has to be close.

As usual, its what the PR doesn't say.

"The Prius Plug-in Concept's powertrain is similar in format to the Hybrid Synergy Drive used in the new Prius, but with the nickel-metal hydride battery pack replaced by a new, high-output lithium-ion battery"

Does this mean you can retrofit a Lithium pack in an existing Prius 3?
Is it just new software or is there a change to the mechanics to go at 62mph (100km/h) in EV mode?

Where is the plug?
Has anyone looked to see if the existing Prius3 already been designed for a plug?

Nice, it does not add weight nor give up the spare tire. It fits in the same location as the current NiMH pack.

Regen brake should be so much better! It would recapture faster and store more with less heat generated.

I'm starting to sour on the PHV Prius. Toyota waited too long to come out with it. With the announcement of the all-electric Nissan Leaf with 100-mile range on a single charge, why pay for all the complexity of a gas engine along with electric motors? My wife is a stay-at-home mom and only drives within 5 miles of the house all day. The Leaf would seem a better choice for people like her.

This is the point! CHOICE! some will want/need a plug-in gas -electric hybrid. Some will want/need an all-electric plug-in vehicle. 'bout time these types of choices get to us.

Precisely, CHOICE. I for one would have little interest in a PHEV vehicle from any maker unless the price was no different than a 'traditional' Toyota hybrid. I drive too many miles for a 12 or 20 or even 40 mile EV-range to have any benefit for me.

Now at 50-60 gas-free miles and a $30000 pricetag I'm beginning to be interested. The smaller all-EV's that will be coming out are immediately disqualified...too small and too basic.

The current HSD vehicles suit me much better.

How much do you drive, exactly? You must be driving 200-300+ miles at a time without stops?

What's so magical about a 50-60 EV range vs 40? That's only 25%-50% more range.

There's no way anyone's going to pull 60 kW out of that battery.
That's 300 amps at 200V, or 200 at 300 if they up the voltage,
so a system commeasurate with the listed motor output capacity
would have to be a total redesign rather than something
piggybacked onto the existing Prius design.
.
_H*

I drive 150 mi every day over the last 10 yrs. There's a dual 'trigger' for me. The EV range would have to cover about one third of my daily drive and the price would have to be about $30000 max for me to consider any PHEV.

A vehicle for me is simply a 'driving tool' that I hang up in the garage every night. Like most tools I simply want it to work every time at the lowest possible cost. It gets dirty, scratched and dented a little with repeated usage.

Which to choose? A $25000 HSD Prius or $30000 PHEV Prius? A $40000 PHEV Prius ( or any vehicle ) is out of the question.

I find this a hard statement to understand
You write you are Sr. Hybrid Specialist at Priority Toyota Chesapeake, and you think of the Prius it is just a tool that you have no passion for
I just do not get it

Well, I'm not sure he meant "just" a tool. It sounds from his sig that he works with many tools everyday in the garage, and he values a good quality tool - not flashy, a workhorse that takes a bit of abuse, but does what it does reliably and consistently, i.e. substance over style.

But I'm just speculating on what he said as well....

Unfortunately up here in Canada we also need cabin heat for about 6 mo of the year and big time cabin heat for 4 of those. I doubt -very much- the PHEV would work well during that time.

But it's still cool and useful.