The Plug In Prius

[Henry]

Lots of people talking about the Energy Efficient Cars - Saw this blog on The Free Press Web Site.  I highlighted the $10,000 Installation Of A Plug In Battery - Must mean a lot of gas savings required since it appears to say you only get 20 miles on a battery charge:

An orange extension cord snakes from the back of my house, tethering a neon-green Toyota Prius to an electric outlet on the wall.

      Whoo-hoo! When I unplug and head downtown to pick up pasta and Italian sausage for dinner in a few minutes, the car will run just about 100 percent on electric power instead of gasoline. The dashboard computer monitor will tell me I’m getting 100 mpg.

      This is not a standard Prius. Green Mountain Power had it converted to a plug-in hybrid with the $10,000 installation of a second battery that can be recharged from the electric grid. That’s Rebecca Towne of GMP in the photo, showing me the lithium-ion battery pack installed where the spare tire once lived.

    I’m driving the peppy little car this weekend as part of an inquiry into the technology, practicality and fun of alternative-fueled cars.

    An off-the-lot Prius draws some of its power at low speeds from a battery that is recharged as the car is driven. Priuses get the biggest bang from their batteries in city traffic. Frequent braking and deceleration are needed for the recharging.

     The extra plug-in battery allows the Prius to use its electric drive more often for longer distances. When the plug-in battery is depleted, the Prius goes back to standard operation.

    This particular conversion is from a Hymotion kit that promises up to 30 to 40 miles of operation in electric mode.

     I’ve tooled around Chittenden County in the last 24 hours on a regular round of errands, work and recreation. A dashboard screen lets me keep track of whether the car is using the electric motor or gasoline engine; how many miles-per-gallon the car is getting; and the state of the battery.

    Verdict so far:  The car is very fun to drive – a commentary on the Prius, not the battery. I notice what I suspect all new Prius owners do

It’s tempting to keep your eye on the mile-per-gallon reading instead of the road (other drivers, beware!)

Your right foot very quickly learns that decleration and very slow acceleration, and keeping the speedometer under 30 mph sends the miles-per-gallon sky high. During much of my driving around the city, the car said I was getting 100 mpg. (That doesn’t mean some alchemical conversion of gasoline or sudden efficiency of the engine. It just means that electricity is displacing gasoline at that moment.
 
And what about the plug-in. Well, the car did run silently and electrically for a time, but the plug-in battery was depleted in more like 20 miles than 30 or 40. That was a disappointment, but it’s possible as I adapt to the car, I’ll do better.

The recharging itself couldn’t be simpler. My extension cord connects to a plug in the rear bumper of the car. Rear lights come on to tell you it is charging; the go off when the battery is full. I’m told a full charge takes 5 hours. I’m just plugging it in before bed and it’s ready to go in the morning.
 
Coming tomorrow: Looking for a plug in downtown Burlington.

[mirjo]

I don't know, it seems like it might not be totally practical just yet. As much as we need alternatives, I really wonder just how this huge transition is going to take place. If these ideas had not been abandonned completely over the years and a more gradual transition could have happened over time I think we would see some far better solutions at this point. Right now it seems that everyone is simply in panic mode and trying to come up with whatever as quickly as possible to move us forward. The average family is not going to be able to afford a shoe box for $30,000+, I don't think. It's unfortunate that big oil has had such a hold on the government and everything else for so many years, because we are certainly paying for it in many ways.