Entries Tagged 'hybrid vehicle' ↓

An anonymous source has e-mailed what appears to be a digital press kit produced by Lexus for next week’s Geneva Motor Show. The pages of the kit reveal photos and details of the Lexus CT 200h five-door hybrid, set for a debut at the Geneva event.

Based on the LF-Ch concept from Frankfurt, the five-door hybrid is driven by a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine and magnet synchronous electric motor, which channel momentum to the front axle via a electrically-controlled contiously variable transmission. The motor is powered by a nickel-metal hydride battery. The car features four driving modes: EV, Eco, Normal and Sport. Coming in smaller than the Prius, the CT 200h measures 4,320mm x 1,765mm x 1,430mm (l x w x h).

Because we are talking about Lexus, the powertrain is hybrid, first violin being the 1.8 VVT-i engine and accompanied by an electric motor. The exact power is not specified, but in the brochure tis said that this model will have three running modes: Eco, Normal and Sport and that it will prove that hybrids can be athletes. The transmission will be continuously variable and will be called the E-CVT.

GM has taken a long time to bring a strong hybrid offering to market, and recently chairman Bob Lutz made it clear that the company’s decision to pursue hybrid cars is bittersweet. The 2010 Chevy Volt is a popular topic, made obvious by the amount of buzz streaming across the Internet and its already extensive waiting lists of orders.

With all of the positive publicity why then is Lutz down on hybrids? He says that GM loses money on many of its hybrids and will continue to do so in the intermediate future. Marring the future of hybrids further he also predicted that they will own a small piece of the overall car market, at 10% or less over the next 10 years!

That’s a cynical viewpoint, but perhaps based on some realistic experience. Lutz later said “for the next 10 years, that’s the way we see it! That would would be over 1.2 million units per year; at today’s price premium for plug-ins, that’s even an optimistic estimate, I think,” according to GM-Volt.

He also clarified later that he was referencing PHEV hybrids like the 2010 Chevy Volt and all electric vehicles like the Nissan LEAF. It seems that government requirements are driving a lot of GM’s research in hybrid vehicles, which wouldn’t be surprising considering how much money the company accepted in loans from the United States republic.

GM may also be benefiting from Toyota’s recent battle with defective gas petals which created mass recalls and destroyed part of its bubble of perfection. Where consumers once considered Toyota the only viable source of hybrid cars with its Prius model, they now may be considering competitors more seriously.

Exact pricing on the Chevy Volt isn’t available yet but it’s expected to be around $40,000 with about $7,000 in tax credits. They will likely be in production by the end of November 2010 but most of those will be snapped up quickly so realistically an average consumer may not have a chance to get one until 2012.

Source : taintedgreen.com

Toyota to manufacture full hybrid Auris in the United Kingdom

Toyota Motor Europe (TME) today announced plans to manufacture a full hybrid version of its C-segment hatchback, Auris, at its UK-based facility in Burnaston, Derbyshire. Production of Toyota’s first European-built full hybrid will kick-off at Toyota Motor Manufacturing (UK) Ltd (TMUK) in mid-2010. Engines will be produced at TMUK’s facility in Deeside, North Wales. The announcement, which coincided with a site visit by UK First Secretary of State and Secretary of State for Business, Innovation & Skills Rt. Hon. Lord Mandelson, underlines Toyota’s commitment to expand its offering of low-emission hybrid vehicles to customers in Europe.

‘With today’s announcement, Toyota has taken a significant step forward in ensuring that full hybrids become more accessible to a wider range of customers. Such efforts are crucial if we are to see more low-carbon vehicles on European roads,’ said Tadashi Arashima, CEO and President, TME.

‘Our decision to produce a full hybrid in the UK reflects both our confidence in the quality and commitment of the TMUK workforce and the strength of our long-standing partnership with the UK Government. Today’s announcement is positive for Toyota, our UK suppliers and the local communities here,’ he added.

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My Iris reported that TATA Motors has plans to use its Nano platform to build electric and hybrid cars and to produce more high end models.

TATA Group said TATA Motors should target exports of the car in the developing countries like Brazil, China, Indonesia and Russia where the growth rate is over 10%.

The introduction of Nano was compared to that of the Ford Model T, the car that completely revolutionized the automobile industry. Nano is also expected to create a new distinct category in the auto industry – the People’s car.

A true Indian car, Nano has 97% local content. Before Nano, Maruti 800 was the cheapest car in the Indian market priced at around INR 2 million.

Toyota Motor Corp. will boost hybrid battery production capacity as much 10 percent over earlier plans next year as orders for its Prius model rise, the Nikkei newspaper said.

The automaker aims to increase manufacturing capacity to 1.1 million nickel-metal hydride cells in 2010, the paper said, without saying where it got the information.

Toyota originally planned to boost production capacity by 300,000 batteries from 700,000 a year, the report said. Panasonic EV Energy Co., owned by Toyota and Panasonic Corp., will make the batteries, the paper said.

Toyota increased output of the Prius in Japan this month as orders rose 75 percent since the hybrid went on sale in May.

Thailand aims to lure automakers to relocate their production of new-technology vehicles by offering tax incentives for projects worth at least 10 billion baht, the Board of Investment (BoI) said yesterday.

The board, chaired by Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, yesterday agreed to designate the new segment of vehicle production eligible for BoI privileges.

“We want to attract new investments from automakers to use Thailand as their production base for exports of new-technology vehicles such as hybrid cars,” said BoI secretary-general Atchaka Brimble.

“These vehicles must be models that have never been produced locally.”

According to Dr Atchaka, there are foreign automakers that have expressed interest in such projects in Thailand but she declined to elaborate.

Under the criteria endorsed by the BoI, companies need to invest in a new production line with the capacity to make a minimum of 100,000 units in the first five years of operations.

Investment, including land and working capital, must be at least 10 billion baht. Interested automakers must submit their proposals to the BoI by 2010 to obtain the privileges, she said.

The incentives include a waiver of tariffs on machinery imports and a temporary waiver of corporate tax for five to seven years, subject to project value and timing of the proposal submission.

Toyota Motor Corp, which has produced hybrid cars in Thailand, would not qualify under the new scheme because the Japanese company had expanded existing production lines for hybrid models but has not made a new investment for production relocation, she said.

India’s Tata Motors would be eligible but has yet to show keen interest to invest in such a model in Thailand.

Dr Atchaka said that US-based Ford Motor Co was considering increasing its investment in Thailand among other countries in the region.

In a related development, the BoI yesterday approved privileges for six investment projects worth a total of 12.88 billion baht.

The first project was a joint venture worth 2 billion baht between Italy’s Faber Industry, a major producer of compressed natural gas (CNG) cylinders, and Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation to produce 200,000 units a year of CNG cylinders.

Other projects approved were:

- A joint venture worth 2.48 billion baht between Thai Summit Auto Parts and a Japanese company to manufacture 1.34 million chassis units and 547,000 axle housings per year.

- A venture by MTP HPPO Manufacturing Co to produce tap water for industry worth 1.12 billion baht.

- A waste-water management project worth 1.13 billion baht.

- A plan by Mab Ta Phut Tank Terminal Co worth 1.88 billion baht to offer transport services for liquefied petroleum gas.

- A venture by Rayong Terminal Co worth 4.2 billion baht to offer transport services of 3.2 million tonnes of LPG per year.

According to a BoI report, applications for investment privileges in May showed a promising trend, with 84 projects worth a combined 29 billion baht seeking approval.

The applications increased from 58 projects worth 24 billion baht in the same month a year earlier.

However, application values in the first five months of this year were down by 9% to 166.6 billion baht compared with 183.6 billion in the same period last year.

source:Bangkokpost

Toyota Motor Corp has received more than 80,000 pre-sale orders for the new Prius in Japan, Executive Vice President Akio Toyoda said on Monday, unveiling the third-generation model.

Toyota, the world’s biggest automaker, said it was targeting monthly sales of 10,000 units in Japan.

The car, which will start at 2.05 million yen ($21,620), will be sold alongside the entry-level grade of the second-generation Prius, which will cost 1.89 million yen, equal to Honda Motor Co’s new Insight hybrid.

BLUE-WILL – Hyundai charges in with advanced hybrid concept

* All-new concept car to be unveiled at Seoul Show
* Lithium-Ion batteries and a 1.6-litre direct-injection petrol engine
* Solar panels boost battery range

Hyundai has revealed the first pictures of an innovative plug-in hybrid concept car. Due to be revealed at the Seoul Motor Show which opens on April 2nd, the “BLUE-WILL”, has exceptionally advanced technology crammed inside its striking bodyshell.

Recycled PET soft drink bottles were used to make the material for the headlamp bezels while use has also been made of bio-plastics: PLA for the interior while PA11 was specified for the engine cover. These materials are made from plants extract rather than fossil fuels and are bio-degradable.

The BLUE-WILL concept is powered by an all-aluminium Gasoline Direct Injected 1.6-litre engine which is coupled to a Continuously Variable Transmission and a 100kw electric motor which is at the heart of Hyundai’s parallel hybrid drive architecture.

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Let the hybrid price wars begin.

A few days after Honda announced pricing for its new Insight hybrid in the United States, making it the first sub-$20,000 hybrid on the market (at least before destination charges), a report has come out of Japan that Toyota has plans for a cheap hybrid of its own.

According to the Nikkei business daily in Japan, as reported by Reuters, Toyota plans to develop a new hybrid that will sell for less than $20,510. It could be priced 20 to 30 percent cheaper than the Prius, and come to market as early as 2011.

Earlier this week, Honda said the 2010 Insight would be priced at $19,800 in the United States, or $20,470 including destination charges, which is nearly $2,250 cheaper than the outgoing Toyota Prius; pricing for the new Prius, due this spring, has not been announced. In Japan, the Insight costs around $20,000, and demand has been so overwhelming that Honda has increased production beyond the original 200,000 it had planned to make over the next year.

Even though the Insight gets far fewer miles per gallon than the new Prius, Honda is counting on customers preferring to pay less up front for a hybrid. Its new ad campaign, which kicks off on Monday, is called “Hybrid for Everyone.”

source : nytimes.com

Honda’s much-anticipated Prius fighter may double as a recession fighter.

The Japanese automaker said today that when the 2010 Honda Insight hybrid hits dealer lots in two weeks, it will carry a base price of $19,800. That puts an end to months of speculation over just how much less expensive the new Honda would be than the Toyota Prius, currently the top-selling hybrid in the U.S.

At under twenty grand, the Insight will be the least expensive new hybrid available in the country; even the more feature-laden EX version of the Insight, which includes alloy wheels and paddle shifters, will be under the Prius’ $22,000 starting sticker. By pricing it so low — almost $4,000 less than its own Civic hybrid — yet delivering a car that looks and behaves remarkably similar to the current Prius, Honda is making a risky bet that cost-conscious consumers will be lured to choose its hybrids over non-hybrid alternatives. Meanwhile, with a new far more fuel-efficient 2010 Prius set to hit showrooms in June, the Insight could lose out on buyers who care more about green (as in ecology) than green (as in dough).

Honda apparently has its eyes trained on a broader swath of customers. The Insight, said Dick Colliver, executive vice president for Honda’s U.S. sales arm, “brings the cost of entry for hybrid technology within closer reach of an entirely new car-shopping audience.” The automaker hopes people who otherwise wouldn’t have considered a hybrid will choose the Insight because it’s cheaper to buy and operate than comparable vehicles.

The Insight first went on sale in Japan last month, where it sells for 1.89 million yen ($19,260). So far, 18,000 have been ordered, according to Honda, and 4,906 were sold and registered in February, making it the top-selling hybrid in Japan for the month. The company has said it hopes to sell 200,000 of the vehicles globally each year, with about 90,000 selling in the U.S. during the first 12 months of sales. By comparison, Toyota sold 241,405 of the Prius models in the U.S. last year.

The down economy could put a dent in Honda’s sales plans, however. The value of used hybrids, an important indicator of demand for the vehicles, has slumped considerably as consumers turn to cheaper options. According to research firm Kelley Blue Book, used hybrid prices are down about 25% since last summer, more than any other category of vehicle, and fell 2.5% in February alone.

And while the Insight measures up pretty well against the Prius and even more expensive hybrids on cost, it still is quite a bit higher than fairly efficient non-hybrid competitors such as the Toyota Yaris ($12,205 starting price) and Nissan Versa ($9,990).

That’s a particularly sensitive point considering the relatively low price of gasoline of late. “Demand for fuel efficient vehicles has dropped significantly as more and more consumers base their purchase decision on vehicle transaction price as opposed to fuel economy,” said Juan Flores, director of vehicle valuation at Kelley Blue Book.

When gas is costly, hybrids can more easily justify their cost differential in gas savings. But with the national average for a gallon of go juice at $1.94 (down from over $4 last summer), that savings payoff take a lot longer.

The Nissan Versa, for example, gets 27 mpg in city driving and 33 mpg on the highway, and it costs $9,810 less than the Insight. At current gas price levels, according to one of the niftiest of the many nifty hybrid cost calculators available online, the Honda Insight, which gets 40 mpg city and 43 highway, would save drivers about $315 a year compared to the Versa based on normal driving. That means it will pay for itself in a mere 31 years, or about three times the expected life of the vehicle.

Consumers clearly don’t base all their car-buying decisions on price alone. If they did, it would be Kia, not Toyota, atop the global sales heap, and BMW and Mercedes-Benz wouldn’t have a leg to stand on.

Still, by framing the Insight’s marketing around rational price concerns rather than emotional hot buttons like saving the planet — while at the same time not making the vehicle as efficient as the 2009 Prius (48 city/45 highway/46 combined), much less the upcoming 2010 Prius (Toyota said it will get 50 mpg combined) — Honda seems to be locking its new vehicle into a mathematical computation it can never win.