The reality of plug-in hybrid conversions
A Toyota Prius prepped for plug-in conversionIt was great to watch an actual plug-in hybrid conversion this weekend at Hybridfest in Madison, WI. It was equally as great to speak with plug-in conversion specialists, such as Davide Andrea and Ann Colcord of HybridsPlus.
Unfortunately, however, it isn't all great news regarding plug-in hybrid vehicles.
--> Finish: Reality of plug-in hybrid conversions
Labels: a123 systems, hybridsplus, hymotion, plug-in hybrid vehicles
posted by Dahcredyns at
7:04 AM
1 Comments:
Full Story
It was great to watch an actual plug-in hybrid conversion this weekend at Hybridfest in Madison, WI. It was equally as great to speak with plug-in conversion specialists, such as Davide Andrea and Ann Colcord of HybridsPlus.
Unfortunately, however, it isn't all great news regarding plug-in hybrid vehicles.
While Hymotion has pegged the cost of a hybrid to plug-in hybrid conversion around $12,000.00, there are some serious questions regarding the math and engineering of a Hymotion conversion. Other conversion specialists insist the cost of a Hymotion conversion is a money-losing venture only made possible by Hymotion's relationship to A123Systems. This is probably why Hymotion isn't really interested in conversions for single consumers.
In addition, some question Hymotion's technique of combining two different battery technologies - NiMH and Lithium. Hymotion keeps the factory installed NiMH battery pack and adds a separate lithium battery pack - an engineering approach some question (Whether this is a valid question has not yet been proven or disproved).
On the other hand, HybridsPlus removes the factory installed NiMH pack, making a HybridsPlus conversion vehicle a purely lithium-powered plug-in hybrid. At today's prices, that pushes a standard HybridsPlus conversion to $32,000.00 - a price which does not include the vehicle.
So, how can the price difference be so great?
For now, Hymotion can probably afford to eat some conversion losses because each conversion is just a further validation of A123System's lithium technology, and A123System's lithium technology, not plug-in conversions, is the future. Hymotion might never, and probably will never, be profitable, but a giant contract with GM, Ford, or Toyota, for example, will quickly and swiftly wipe out all of Hymotion's losses.
Nonetheless, how many lithium battery packs would have to be produced to make plug-in hybrids more cost effective? A million? More? Are automakers ready to take such a risk based upon only such a small number of real world tests? One plug-in hybrid fire could make an early, large lithium contract a very poor business decision.
Or, is a breakthrough in lithium-ion chemistry the real solution?
Inevitably, it appears the reality of plug-in hybrids - based upon cost-effectiveness and safety- is easily a few years away from reality, and maybe even as far as the 5 to 10 years claimed by Ford's Alan Mulally. For the next few years, the best action towards achieving mass-produced plug-in hybrids is probably buying one of today's conventional hybrid vehicles.
Post a Comment
<< Home