Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012

Back in the waning years of the previous millennium, the Toyota Prius
was born, becoming the first Toyota hybrid. Since then, of course, many
other Toyota and Lexus hybrids have hit the roads, as have many from
nearly every other automaker. But it’s the Prius—thanks to distinct (if
unsexy) styling and industry-leading fuel economy—that remains the
unofficial greenmobile for Toyota and the world.

Naturally, then,
the Prius is set to become the first Toyota to make the next big leap
in fuel efficiency for 2012 by going plug-in with the new Prius PHV, or
“plug-in hybrid vehicle.” And since 2012 is a long way off—in our
impatient minds, at least—we jumped at the chance to drive one of the
150 powder-blue preproduction Prius PHVs bound for the U.S. in 2010. All
are part of Toyota’s Prius PHV pilot program that places these vehicles
with various utilities and government agencies to gather data on
vehicle performance.

So how exactly does it differ? Other than
silver paint on the mirrors, door handles, and tailgate, the
blue-and-white “PLUG-IN HYBRID” lower door decals, and a cutout in the
left front fender that houses the plug, there are no visible
distinctions between the regular Prius and the PHV. Ditto the interior,
where a few PHV-specific info displays and a slightly raised cargo floor
for the PHV’s larger battery pack represent the only notable changes.

The
Prius PHV doesn’t differ much from the regular Prius from a dynamic
standpoint, either. No surprise, really. The Prius PHV is essentially
just a Prius whose nickel-metal hydride battery pack has been swapped
for a far pricier, far heavier, and far more potent lithium-ion pack.
(How potent is unclear, as Toyota won’t tell us how much it improves on
the regular car’s 1.3-kWh capacity.) The new batteries can be fully
charged in three hours from a simple household 110-volt outlet or an
hour and a half from a 220-volt plug. The battery swap allows for more
miles on electricity alone and a commensurate boost in real-world fuel
economy.

And so the parallel-hybrid powertrain design, the
squishy suspension setup, and the puny 15-inch wheels remain, giving the
PHV the same lackluster driving characteristics as its non-plug-in
sibling. That includes the way-overboosted electric power steering and a
brake pedal that has yet to deliver anything close to accuracy.

Going Farther, Faster on Electrons

The
most palpable difference between the standard and PHV Priuses, then, is
how a judicious right foot can direct the PHV to achieve and maintain
speeds of up to 62 mph using electricity alone. Like a regular Prius,
though, the PHV will fire up its internal-combustion engine if you’re
not careful. The PHV’s threshold is slightly higher than the regular
car’s, but anything more than genteel pressure on the go pedal—say, as
might be required to enter the freeway or accelerate up a slight
hill—and the 98-hp, 1.8-liter four-cylinder stirs with a decidedly
unsexy moan.

Keep your driving grandmotherly, though, and a Prius
PHV with a full charge can travel up to 13 miles in electric mode,
which becomes considerably more novel the faster one travels. Once the
battery pack is depleted, the car reverts to the conventional hybrid
function of the standard Prius.

Even under full throttle, the PHV
remains far from quick, with a 0-to-60-mph time of 11.3 seconds,
according to Toyota, versus 9.8 seconds for the non-PHV model. Blame the
heavier battery pack and its ancillary hardware—which add about 330
pounds—for the more sluggish time. But then, the Prius never has been
and never will be about driving delight, but rather is about maximum
fuel economy. At the end of the day, the PHV proof was not in the
proverbial pudding but rather neatly displayed on the dashboard. Over a
short city-and-highway loop, we were powered solely by electricity about
39 percent of the time, and we averaged 56 mpg, according to the in-car
readout.

Two things are worth noting here: First, in-car
fuel-economy readouts are notoriously optimistic. Second, the route was
heavy on hills and included several miles of freeway driving, during
which we frequently exceeded 80 mph. So although that 56-mpg figure
might not be entirely accurate, even with a 10-percent margin of error,
we recorded impressive economy for our usage. After our stint, our
driving partner took the helm for a city route and spent nearly
two-thirds of the time on the electron feed, bringing overall fuel
economy up to 68 mpg for the trip, an increase of more than 50 percent
over the last test figure we saw in a Prius.

Plug-In Prius Won’t Be a Match for Every Environmentalist

So
what’s the holdup? Bring it on, right? First, Toyota is dotting its i’s
and crossing its t’s before offering the technology to customers.
Toyota is using this limited PHV program to gather real-world data to
see if a 13-mile electric-vehicle range is sufficient to satisfy
customers or if perhaps it needs to look into more- or less-potent
battery packs. Toyota is also buying time to bring the price of the
Prius PHV closer to what it considers the hybrid “sweet spot” of $15,000
to $27,000, which, at this point, it surely exceeds on account of that
high-tech battery.

Once such targets are met and the final
product is introduced sometime next year, what will become of the
standard Prius? All signs indicate that it will soldier on and keep its
nickel-metal batteries for a long time. Toyota reps tell us, “In
conventional hybrid vehicles, Toyota will continue to use nickel-metal
hydride batteries in the near term. The technology has proved its value
over 12 years of mass production and is extremely reliable.”

Furthermore,
Toyota says, the viability of plug-in technology can depend on an
individual customer’s geographic location, drive cycle, and access to
charging facilities. We would add income to that as well, since the
Prius PHV will command a sizable premium over a comparably equipped
standard Prius, although if Toyota hits its price target, it won’t cost
as much as the Chevrolet Volt.
Assuming costs go down, Toyota says lithium-ion batteries could be
considered in the future for the many other hybrids found throughout the
Toyota and Lexus lineups. Still, we consider this just another rest
stop on the way to bigger and better technologies.

Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012

Toyota prius 2012