Toyota Testing Plug-In Hybrids [Justin]
Via CalCars:
Toyota Motor Company said Tuesday that it was testing hybrid vehicles with rechargeable batteries in the United States and Japan, setting up a direct challenge with General Motors to develop the industry’s first plug-in hybrids. more
This is great news. Plug-in hybrids, which let you charge your car overnight and only use gasoline when the (larger) batteries run out, could reduce the average driver’s need to fill up the gas tank to just a few times a year. You get the efficiency of an electric car with the flexibility to drive long distances using the gas engine if you need to.
Right now, we’re waiting on higher-capacity lithium ion batteries; Toyota is testing lower-capacity NiMH batteries for now.
Hopefully we’ll see production models by 2010. You can follow plug-in hybrid news via the CalCars Yahoo group.
We used to plug our car in every winter night when we lived in Montana. You get used to it. My Toyota Corolla (stick/standard) gets 41-42 mpg on the highway; can’t wait until the hybrids’ bugs are worked out.