eliminating the "Hybrid" engine and battery from a Prius

To start with, you will need a completely different transmission.. The car won't move without the MG units in the transmission being functional and that requires the control and power electronics and some traction battery capacity.

 

Seriously!? There would be no benefit in doing so as mentioned above the car will not work without the HSD (Hybrid Synergy Drive) system it is an integral part of the car required for the operation if the vehicle. Granted if you could remove the HSD and all associated components and still operate the vehicle the weight savings you mentioned would not increase the MPG's at all over just driving a Prius. Maybe you are confused or do not need a Prius or a hybrid. Consider a Corrola or a Yaris with a conventional ICE and drivetrain.

 

This is not a practical project. Think of a Matrix with a Prius engine. You wouldn't like how slow it would be due to the Atkinson engine low torque at low rpm. The Prius is a fully integrated design. Taking out major functional parts leaves a non-functional car.

JeffD

 

Yes and no. Fixed throttle, yes, hybrid does not provide much. But with variations, which can be either braking or flooring, it will surely come up. And sometimes when flooring is needed you may be in trouble if you do not cope with sufficient power (e.g overtaking).

 

Get a gen 1 insight.

 

JMO, but buy a used, small diesel; i.e. VW Jetta; I'm not sure of their models. Seems this would give you as much MPGs and a lot less hassle. Just a thought.

 

This is like taking the chain off of a bicycle because it's too heavy and besides, unicycles don't need it.

 

yeah... get a corolla or a matrix or something like that instead.

Though I guess anything can be accomplished with enough time and $$

 

buy the yaris... i just traded mine in for a prius because i wanted BETTER mpg's. but the yaris will easily get you 40+ mpg's...

p.s. i set my cruise to 55 mph on my all highway commute and i get 67 mpg. and the hybrid traction motor does help out quite a bit on the highway

 

Hi John,
Yes this is possible, though not likely to be a success, in the sense of ever showing a savings. There is a Toyota sold in Europe, the Avensis line which comes with a few different engine/transmission options. The hatchback chassis is almost identical to the Prius (different rear suspension mainly). Any of the Avensis drivetrains will fit into the Prius. As far as I can tell none of those engines is sold in North America. Next best might be to replace the Prius drivetrain with those parts of a Yaris. It could fit with some work. (It would be almost impossible to get an emissions certificate in the U.S. with such drastic modifications.) Also the Prius Atkinson has significantly better efficiency at highway speed than the Yaris engine. Probably easier and cheaper to get a Jetta.

-mort

 

Another fallacy is that your 80's corolla would be allowed to certify as a new car today, which it wouldn't. Everything is heavier today, so you need more umph to make it go vroom.

And your 40's on the highway in the corolla is an EXTREMELY optimistic number. 40's in a prius is a conservative figure. And it gains you more room, more features, and more safety.

Abandon this project before Toyota hunts you down...

 

You're not going to get 42MPG on the highway with a 1985 Corolla engine inside a Prius. For the same reason you wouldn't get 42MPG on the highway if you put that 4AG in an 18 wheeler.

 

Your 1985 Corolla is a completely different animal and cannot be compared to the Prius. In fact, you car would not satisfy current safety and emissions regulations. This is the same lame argument people try to use when they compare their 1990 Geo Metro to a Prius.

Because I sense a sleazy purpose for this posting I will refrain from commenting further by simply saying, The Prius was designed to drastically reduce emissions output, reduce fuel consumption and be a useful family car. It has accomplished that and to date, no one else has exceeded the Prius in ALL of these categories and remained within a price point that a larger percentage of people in developed countries can afford.

Agreed on all point except the hypermiling component of gaining max MPG for any vehicle. There was a specific model of Corolla available that was rater over 40mpg highway so anything is possible. You can always trow a wrench into those old ratings but trying to adapt them to current testing procedures and well, the numbers drop like a rock... lol

EPA Fuel Economy Guide for 1985 (California) Vehicles
1985 (California) TOYOTA - COROLLA

City MPG: 29 Highway MPG: 33 Combined MPG: 30 Today's cost to drive 15,000 miles: $1666

Year: 1985 (California)
Make: TOYOTA
Model: COROLLA
Vehicle Class: COMPACT CARS
Engine Size: 1.8 liters
Number of Cylinders: 4
Transmission: L3
Drive System: FWD
Fuel Type: DIESEL
Four Door Interior Volume: 87 ft3
Four Door Luggage Volume: 13 ft3
Hatch Back Interior Volume: 85 ft3
Hatch Back Luggage Volume: 20 ft3
Release Date: 84 830

EPA Official City MPG: 34
City MPG (2008 computation method): 29
City MPG (before adjustments): 37
EPA Official Highway MPG: 36
Highway MPG (2008 computation method): 33
Highway MPG (before adjustments): 46
EPA Official Combined MPG: 35
Combined MPG (2008 computation method): 30
Combined MPG (before adjustments): 41

Annual Fuel Cost in US Dollars: $ 515 *
* Cost is based on driving 15,000 miles per year and uses the 1985 (California) gas price of $1.20 per gallon and the EPA Official Combined MPG of 35 mpg. Information from United States Evironmental Protection Agency
Abbreviations Used and Content Descriptions
Questions? Please refer to the FuelEconomy.gov FAQ
National Average Gas Prices: Regular - $3.089 Diesel - $3.333
Updated: 1/14/11 - Source: Energy Information Administration

 

if you're going to buy a prius which already gets 45-55pg on the highway, then spend all the time and money to retro fit it, how do you wind up ahead of the game?

 

Under the same conditions and speeds where you achieved 42 in your Corolla, you should be able to push an unmodified Prius beyond 60.

If you must modify something, I agree with the advice to start with an original manual transmission Insight. It is lighter, has higher basic MPG, and comes with a transmission that could possibly play along with your intentions. For your purposes, the Prius doesn't have a transmission. Or a starter, or an alternator.

There is some truth to this, but I'm not sure how you could do better. A manual transmission or mechanical CVT should be more efficient than Prius's eCVT, but the reduced range of gear ratios will seriously hamper the engine's efficiency.

And there is no way that your old Corolla's Otto cycle engine could compete with the efficiency of the Prius Atkinson cycle engine.

 

I just drove 500+ miles highway, and went 10 mph over the speed limit the majority of the time, I would say 75% going 75 mph and I got 50.1 mpg.

IT was AMAZING, i swear if I get good gas, my mileage can be amazing, even without trying.

I agree, I think you need to do some reading up on how hybrids work, A prius does seem as though it would benefit you, but not without the hybrid components.

 

I would advise doing the exact opposite, instead. Start with a Yaris and drop in a Prius engine and electronics. The Yaris uses the same engine block as the Gen II Prius, the differences are in the top end and software. This gets you the de-hyridized car you want with far fewer Power train difficulties than fabricating a transmission that fits the Prius body.

I still think it is mis-guided, but it might be about a order of magnitude less difficult.

Toyota NZ engine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia