4th generation coming 2015!

No, it was not.
There was actually pressure to kill the Volt as it was a money looser.
The Volt was pushed through the GM board of directors prior to the bailout by Bob Lutz.
This is after the BoD already had turned it down previously. Bob told the BoD, the second time, look at this little upstart company in California building a 200 mile roadster. If they can do that...

 

It has been quite some time since I saw it. As I recall, it was during, or right before the scene with the group of protesters marching at the GM facility.
It's possible I saw it in Revenge of the Electric car (which I thought was better as Chris got more access), however I'm pretty sure it was in the original.

 

So, 16kw Li-on=$7,500 is coincidental or inside info.

You know it was not about the 200 mile Roadster but Prius.

 

That's fallout from Volt, which is making itself more apparent as time goes on.

Prior to its rollout, everyone clearly understood the purpose of a PLUG-IN HYBRID. The act of augmenting the system in Prius would result in more battery use. It was that simple. There was nothing discussed about EV range. It was always seen as plugging in would deliver higher MPG.

Then came the hype. Volt would be an EV until the battery was depleted and the engine would never contribute any power directly to the wheels. Well, that obviously fell apart. Enthusiasts disregarded information about thermal limitations and efficiency considerations. They only cared about the purity of EV, even though it meant sacrifices. GM was happy to deliver their want.

Toyota chose to focus on need instead, placing a very high-priority on cost-containment. They didn't want to compromise on seating or cargo space either. The result was a configuration capable of actually taking on the true competition: traditional vehicles. MPG is boosted significantly over the regular hybrid, regardless of how far you drive, without the need for a massive battery-pack.

It's too bad so much emphasis on EV range has made that effort by Toyota so difficult to see.

Think about the complications that causes for the other automakers attempting to offer plugs with their hybrids. People won't have a clue how it actually operates and will likely draw incorrect conclusions based solely in EV range. That's really unfortunate.

 

No, I don't know that.
This isn't something I am just making up, this is reported directly by Bob Lutz.
Sure, they also wanted to leapfrog the Prius, but they Board, knowing about the Prius, turned down the Volt project.
It was only when Lutz went back a second time, browbeating them with the Tesla Roadster, that they approved the Volt.

 

I like that Toyota is focusing on the Hybrid system. Let's see what the new one is about and see if they can upgrade the entire Hybrid line. I think it is a total mistake on their part to discount EV though. Think about it. They think waiting and charging is no fun and there is range anxiety.

If battery tech improves and the cell becomes difference, they might eat their own words. Tesla upgraded the Roadster to have more of a range. I think the Tesla is built so that if the 'energy storage system' is improved (quick charge in 5 minutes with 300 miles+ and hardly any degradation) they could just do that upgrade as well. Heck, I think people could turn Tesla into a Diesel car if they wanted to by installing a generated and having it charge batteries.

Similar to what was saw with the Prius though. People started modding Gen 2 to add more batteries so there some flexibility there. But to completely denounce EVs altogether...yikes!

 

GM took anti-EV a step further. Remember? Heck, they were anti-hybrid too.

The difference though is Toyota is sighting purpose and still continuing to refine electric propulsion. They haven't abandoned motor or battery.

 

Customer: I drive 40 miles a day, and I hate paying for petrol
Sales: You are in luck! Consider these two cars:

1. Car#1 gets 62.5 MPG!!
2. Car#2 gets only 50 MPG, but the plug-in battery is good for 12.5 miles a charge

Customer#2: 12.5 miles on battery ? That is barely enough to register. Fuggetiboutit.

 

Car #3 goes 50 miles on a plug-in charge so the customer uses no gasoline on their 40 mile round trip.

Customer: 50 miles on the battery? That's awesome!

 

Customer: For under $30k, no sticking it to the taxpayer with subsidies, and no GM ? Sign me up!

 

That isn't a generic customer, that is you, which is fine.

Most Americans that qualify for tax deductions (for kids, energy efficiency, home use as a business, etc) will happily take it.
I certainly haven't seen anyone refuse to use ethonal or gasoline due to those subsidies.

 

I thought this Toyota infographic made the PHV concept easy to understand. It should have been a large poster inside every showroom.

 

Just read this; speaking of subsidies, seems a bit too much, and $7,500 at the other end!

 

This should have been marketed more. + add to the fact driving to the kids, local movie theaters, then grocery shopping. Honestly, the next PiP should have 20 miles and then 60 mpg+ I'll be happy And ditch my old PiP for it 20 Miles Ev only 4 KWH battery please Then we're talking about the EV race on a whole new level.

People are forgetting EVs cost money too, and only recently do we see less (or negative benefit) to charging versus fueling up. If Toyota can push more EV miles out of a smaller battery, they'll be light miles ahead of Tesla + Volt. Because imagine 4 times that range to get 80 EV miles, then have a 6 gallon take to get an additional 480 or so miles. It would crush everybody . At a fraction of production cost (+ charge cost) I'll dream on though... lol.

Doesn't the Volt have 8 gallons of gas it can utilize or something?

 

PHEV it is! This owner is not too happy right now. BMW i3 BEV Winter Test Drive Video

 

^^ A 50% drop in range in the Winter compared to Spring sounds like a lot, but that is probably what is needed for a buffer.

 

I'd request that we get back on topic ........... but since there is nothing to talk about pursuant to the thread topic, I suppose RV's and PiP's are as interesting as anything. Did anyone read the article about doubling the output of the battery chemistry that the Prius uses, with the potential of increasing 10 fold? The article discussed, in part, all the negatives about the Lithium battery.

I see where Honda's CEO stepped down because of the airbag fiasco. I can't see where that was his problem??? Perhaps Toyota's CEO should follow .... I think the "roll-out" of the G4 rivals the roll-out of Obamacare, and he seems to be more at fault. LOL.

 

Well, Toyota is too busy making robot musicians!

,

 

So, does this mean Toyota is going to "drop" in-car radios and simply have their robot orchestra drive along-side your vehicle as music source (wink,wink--obvious sarcasm intended)?