Availability/ordering date for the PHEV Prius

Both Toyota and Ford will offer plugins in 2012. They both believe the "blended" approach is superior. US government Department of Energy research confirmed it as well.

Here is a piece from DailyTech article:

Mr. Marakby's team at Ford believes this is a far better approach than the one GM is taking. Series hybrids suffer the same temperature issues as battery electric vehicles, while power-split designs do not.

Mr. Marakby remarks:

If you look at the battery technology and whether its a battery electric or an extended range battery electric or a series plug-in, you are relying heavily on that battery. You're counting on that battery at all temperature conditions and all driving conditions.

It's not just the temperature issues, but performance. If you want maximum torque as you're getting on the highway and your battery can't provide it and you're relying the battery that's an issue. And it get worse at colder temperatures and hotter temperatures.

So, with a blended plug in you don't have these issues, you can run 100 degrees (Fahrenheit), you can run 120 degrees (Fahrenheit) -- any temperature you want. If the battery can't provide it during that short duration of when you need that the engine will complement because you have a full mechanical drive.

 

Yep, Price and Availablity/Ship date for the PHEV Prius is still unknown along with the final specs. I'm guessing that the current PHEV Prius lithium battery pack will drop in weight at least a little in the production model. As for which Prius model (III, IV, or V) the PHEV will be available on - who knows? What other posts, the PHEV Prius seems like it may be more of a standalone model.

Regarding PHEV competition in 2012, should Hyundai be counted out yet? The Sonata Hybrid will be shipping with a Lithium back this fall. It seems like Hyundai could just increase the battery pack size a little and now they have a PHEV Sonata?

 

Toyota's priority now is an affordable compact hybrid. Once the price comes down further, it will just make PHVs more affordable.

 

If its a 2012 model year release, we can expect orders to take place in the fall of 2011. Expect long waiting lists. I think it'll be as hectic if not more like when the Gen II was released.

 

Just my opinion, but I think Toyota just blew it. I was on the fence in regards to the Leaf vs. the PHEV. If the PHEV could be ordered in Q2'11, I was leaning towards going in that direction. But Q2'12? This is sounding like yet another '2 years away' mirage. Sorry, but the distant promises are starting to get old. If the Leaf is real and I can get one in Q1'11 like they say, I'm tempted to go with it.

 

I drove one (PHEV) Prius "prototype" Sunday at the California Center for Sustainable Energy Street Smart Event in San Diego.
They let me take it a few miles up and down the main road. I only got up to about 35 or 40 mph but it it was very nice to drive. :mod:

 

I think this is to late. The G3 will then be near 4 years old and only a coupe of years to generation 4 of Prius.
And toyota will loose many sales to leaf and other cars...
One year to late Toyota

 

I agree - June of 2011 would be more reasonable. I suspect that they aren't able to get the quantities of Lithium batteries that they need to fill production for the car. GM and Nissan have mentioned similar problems.

 

June 2012 is definitely late. The Leaf and Volt will have been around for 1.5 years by then plus a bunch of others coming on the market. A lot of people will have seen the Leaf by June 2012. I've been hearing about a plug in hybrid for so long and Toyota has been making the Prius for over a decade. I'm surprised it's still two years out until we can get some on the road. It's hardly as if they are revolutionary, either, as hobbyists have had their own versions for years now.

 

If you like your Gen II Prius and just itching to spend money to convert to a 'plug-in' or full EV (miEV or LEAF?) why not shell out some of your hard earned cash to convert your Prius to plug-in? You will get 100 MPG no problem. There are at least two options out there for around $20K or less, depending what you want. Even some Totyota dealers are installing them. I bet that your total cost will be less than buying a new EV - even after rebate(s) - if any.

 

The 'fly in the ointment' with Gen II 3rd party conversions is that in the end you are participating in a science fair project. My Gen II is my only car and I can't afford to have it down. I was tempted by PICC's offering but they are located hundreds of miles away and when I emailed them for a hint as to whether they would be opening up support centers near me they didn't respond. That's comforting! I want a company I can depend on. I trust Toyota and Nissan to support their products.

I'm disappointed in Toyota. The 'two years out' mirage is getting old. I don't think they're serious about competing in the PHEV market.

 

This is also why I'd never go for one of these third party setups and why most people wouldn't. I wouldn't want to put one of our needed vehicles into a low-volume exercise like that.

 

Based on my experience with these kits, I would agree about the science projects, at least with the Enginer kit, which is the only one that is affordable. HOWEVER, I know these kits inside and out and I can't see any way that one could fail and actually cause your car to be undriveable. Typically, in a failure situation the PHEV will simply quit working and the car will drive just like a stock Prius.

I have seen some reports of the kits setting a code in the vehicle computer, causing it to stop running. This is a rare circumstance and typically is caused by the PHEV kit delivering too much power, and I've only seen this mention in cases where people have installed two converters for extra power. Even in this case, you can always restart the car and it should drive.

I have a new Enginer kit on order that I hope to receive soon for my 2008 Prius. They are now on their 3rd or 4th generation of these, and the quality has improved a lot. Many of the old problems are fixed and I would bet most people will have no problems.

I agree that Toyota is taking way too long to jump into the PHEV market. So for the time being, we'll have to stick to the aftermarket kits.

 

I actually won an 4KWH Enginer kit on eBay for a great price but canceled it later (before delivery, of course). I did so because of the nature of my work commute - 3.2 miles in a 25-45mph speed zone. All it takes is for the ICE to do its warm-up cycle and my MPGs crash. With a PHEV I would be golden. With a Gen II PHEV it's hard to not hit the 34mph EV limit and warm-up cycle.

So that's why the factory Prius PHEV was so attractive to me. 61mph EV capability! A 12-14 mile range would be fine for me, and I can even recharge at work. But Toyota won't give me one until 2012.