Scion iQ EV To Launch In 2012, Only 50 Mile Range

once again, you are paying for the battery.

It is like if you are paying for lifetime supply of fuel:
Option a. 10 gallons of fuel lifetime = $10k upfront
Option b. 20 gallons of fuel lifetime = $20k upfront

And an 3+1 seater city car, should have 20 gallons of fuel lifetime because bigger is better.

 

Because American "cities" are large. Most of us live in the suburbs, work in the suburbs - but regularly go to the city or to another suburb. I'd like all those trips to be gas-free.

Only for real long drives should I need an ICE.

Remember 50 miles range = Just 20 to 25 miles from home.

 

in that case you probably dont need city car... ie Leaf will serve you better.
In Europe, I spend half day runing few km up and down.

in fact, even Prius PHEV data has shown that most their trips were 2 miles or under.

 

A 50 mile EV range car does not have to suit *everybody.*
The detractors should just realize that the world has a lot of car buyers, and a 1% world market share is a lot of cars, while 10% is huge -- and yet 90% pick something else. While I agree that many americans who are single household, single car owners may not choose this car, I think a large fraction of 2 car households would find this car's range is not a deal breaker. And while families with 10 children exist, the large majority of families are 1 - 2 children.

 

Yes - that is why I have a Leaf (see my signature).

I was telling you why in the US, 50 miles is kind of small - esp. given we don't know whether that 50 miles is LA04 or EPA rating. If it is LA04, we should discount that by about 30% to get EPA rating.

I think for people who can get away with smaller range, Mitsubishi i would be a better fit.

 

I'm not so sure about that large fraction part. Anyway, the larger the range, the larger % of trips you can make without gas. Thats why I chose Leaf instead of Volt - even though both of them easily cover my commute distance without gas.

In anycase we are just talking about a few thousand cars a year ... and I'm sure there is a market for iQ EV.

 

iQ is premium small car, like 500 for instance... as such, it is actually priced higher than Yaris in Europe... Mitsu is cheap small car with EV added.

Two very different vehicles.

EV's are cars like any other... you buy them based on many factors, which include battery, motors, suspension, looks, interior, etc, etc.

 

And the more money spent on batteries that are unused day after day. Big(er) batteries suffer from diminishing returns.

For sure in my home one short range and one long range car would fill everything two long range cars currently service.

 

I posted this elsewhere - that is like saying unless you have 5 people in the car & full cargo all the time, all that space is a waste.

For most people thinking of 2 EVs, the long range one would be an S and the short one Leaf ... people like me want something close to Leaf's range (or a bit higher) and a PHEV.

What is your idea of short & long range ?

 

^^ Are you asking ranges or cars ?

1. Most efficient ICE car available. Today that means Prius. Once a week I drive 700 miles to an area not serviced by public transport.
2. EV with 50 mile range to service all the suburb/city driving my wife does.

I'll look at the iQ when it arrives, but I prefer Prius C or Yaris size cars.

 

Have you noted how much you drive daily over a few months ? Compare how much gas you would burn with a PHEV instead of hybrid ...

 

More than the EV, more than the Prius for the jobs each one can do.

 

But in Europe and Japan the IQ is badged as a Toyota.

Girlfriends Car

 

Those are projector headlights. Are they HID or Halogen?

 

Just basic Halogen units. We have the base model lol.

 

Surprising the base model has Halogen projectors. Is there an option to equip it with HID?

iQ EV should come with LED headlights.

 

The car is expensive for what it is (even by UK standards) and starts at £9,995 for the base model. This does include sales tax (vat) at 20%.

The base model is pretty base but does have the projector headlights, alloy wheels, a/c and electric windows. The fuel economy, low tax and minute dimensions sell it. Remember that most of our towns and cities were designed hundreds of years ago, so are often narrow and parking is at a premium.

Toyota iQ Specification, Colours and Engines | Toyota UK

http://www.toyota.co.uk/cgi-bin/toyota/bv/frame_start.jsp?id=ConceptCars-ev

 

sure... if difference between two seater and 5 seater was 10k.
but it isnt.

on the other hand, you pay for MPG savings in EV upfront. So if you are not going to use it (and in city car especially)...