Gen III PHEV Range: You want 40 or 12 miles

Charge time would be around 9 hours at 110v for that size of a pack, but the batteries in question are capable of being fast charged completely in 25 minutes if you have a big enough plug (I /want/ one of those...). Really depends on the charging infrastructure available to you and the size of the charger in the vehicle.

Warranties are typically covered by the conversion company--my existing PICC system does have a 3 year warranty on the battery (pretty sure anyway) to comply with the necessary CARB regulations. You'd have to contact plugin conversions corp for more details on that. All I know is that it meets the necessary requirements for certification. My guess is that if after-market conversion companies can fulfill this requirement, Toyota probably can too. I believe Lithium is getting / has gotten to the point where it can be safely warrantied for extended periods of time.

Crash testing is another concern--yes that's probably why Toyota doesn't have a larger battery considering how large / volumesque (is that a word? It should be.) the existing 14 mile battery is in it...This 40 mile PICC system uses a much more compact battery thus how it is able to cram significantly more into less space without adding much weight at all in comparison.

Oh, FYI: Rumor has it that it was a stray negative sign in the code that wasn't suppose to be there that caused the prototype PICC 40 mile 2010 PHEV conversion in the MPG challenge to not be able to drive the whole challenge in pure EV mode (a problem which I'm sure has been corrected after a good laugh)--but that's only a rumor. Apparently the prototype system was pulled together only 5 days before the competition (talk about brand new...) so it should only get better from here on out I would guess yeah?

Andrew

 

Ewert brothers,
Congratulations on the achieved milestone.

 

If Toyota would make an everything package I would get their system and dump my Hymotion system.

 

I'd be satisfied with a EV-8 add-on. Low price, upgradeable, ROI within 5 years.

The combo of NiMh's (fast to load/unload) and LiPO's (slow load/unload that recharge the NiMh pack) to me is intelligent. Best of both worlds. Cheaper components.

Our car is a hybrid - I'm content leaving it that way - and simple cost effective improvements as / if gas prices double in the next 5 - 10 years.

I'm beginning to doubt gas will double in price again by 2020, with a huge die-off of North America's population. After all it has not varied much, between 2000 and 2010. Not like between 1990 and 2000.

 

Absolutely--no no, that would require a massive plug. I'm just saying that charging time /can/ be mitigated with newer battery technology and larger plugs to meet pretty much anyone's needs if you are crazy enough. Most people will want to charge at home with 110v or 220v. For a 40 mile pack that's going to be around 9 hours and 4.5 hours respectively. As long as the car is ready for me in the morning I personally don't care if it takes 4 hours or 10 hours.

Chevy and Nissan are running into this problem as well, but they can get around it by having special charging stations that support larger current transfer.

Andrew

 

It's better than that in most 240V cases.

If 9 hours is right for 120V which is usually limited to 20 Amp circuits, then 2.25 hours on a 240V circuit where 40 Amps and more are commonly available is reasonably easy. Most US homes built in the last 20 years or so can accomodate another 40 Amp circuit.

If your main panel is on your garage wall as is common now, then adding a 40 Amp circuit to an outlet on the same wall s the panel should be under $200. :rockon:

 

Yes, though some states in the US require a more sophisticated charging station if you use higher voltage. I was assuming that most households would have 110 most readily available but that's not necessarily the case .

Anyway, the moral of the story is that charging time does not need to be a problem--there are ways to charge the batteries as fast as you want so that really shouldn't be a big decision breaker for larger systems in my opinion.

Andrew

 

Actually you dont need to spend any money for a 220 plug. If your washer and dryer hookup is in the garage like my parents' house built in the late 70's or like mine in a room next to the garage built in the mid 00's, you already got your 220 high current plug there. I just went to my electrical panel and there it is, 2x30amp breaker marked "DRYER" All you gotta do is go and buy a 10' HD extension cord capable of taking 220V 60A and you're set.

 

You only need a 30 Amp cord because dryer circuits are usually 30 Amps. What you saw was two 120V breakers on opposite sides of neutral ganged together to make a 240V breaker for a 30 Amp 240 Volt circuit..

 

Probably not allowed in Alberta, you know redneck country

But then you can tell everyone you still producing CO2 though coal producing electica

 

Re: Gen III PHEV Range: You want 40 or 12 EV miles?

The great thing about a phev is you can plug it in, but you don't have to.

I think they have been trying to race each other to last place. I'd like around a 10 kwh battery pack, but I doubt I'll do a conversion. The reason why. The next great thing does not seem very far off. With all the government incentives to buy a phev from a car dealer, it may be best to wait three years versus modifying the prius then trying to sell the modified car to get a better one. It all depends on how fast

 

What is likely cost? I've not run the numbers but I wouldn't pay more than $2k probably for a 40 mile electric. I think the conversion will run a lot more than that.

 

Heh, I think it will be a very long time (IE: a brand new massive battery breakthrough and the necessary time to turn it into a viable commercial product and a miracle that the royalties aren't massively high--typically a 4-5 year process depending on the extent of the breakthrough) before you can get a 40 mile battery pack conversion system for under $2k... =).

These systems aren't necessarily cheap, but the idea isn't necessarily for them to pay for themselves at this point. It's more a statement--a practical (ie possible) way to significantly reduce gasoline consumption and emissions--if you will--without a major sacrifice. Systems like these won't pay off until batteries are significantly cheaper but they're getting there. I can only imagine what kind of awesome batteries we would have today if cars had stayed electric all along.

Andrew

 

Probably you should wait a couple of years and start shopping in the "Dollar Store".
Oh yeah!!, that would happen after you finish paying the "mortgage" on your 2010 I guess.