$6000 for 50 miles of EV power for your Prius
Let Jungle Motors convert your hybridSo, you got a good deal on a used 2004 Toyota Prius and you want to convert it into a plug-in hybrid. Well, if you have an extra $6,000 in your pocket, Jungle Motors will convert your Prius (2004 - 2009) into a plug-in hybrid with up to 50 miles of EV range.
"Our new 10KW Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) battery technology and BMS now enable the Prius to travel up to 50 miles at up to 52Mph without turning on the engine," says Brad Sachs, director of Jungle Motors.
Soon, kits will also be available for other full hybrid vehicles as well.
Sure the kit is still a bit expensive, but if you have a solar-powered home, for instance, such a kit might be well worth the cost. In fact, how about a free plug-in conversion, via tax credits, for homeowners that go solar?
Labels: plug-in hybrid vehicles, toyota prius
posted by Dahcredyns at
3:52 PM
17 Comments:
$6000 plug-in conversion?
Considering earlier plugin conversions were cost as much as $10,000, were moving in the right direction.
This article doesn't speak about the Prius' limitation as to how fast the car go on all electric power. The Prius electric motor cannot drive the car at highway speeds. The 50 all-electric miles would have to be all city miles....
Vow, this is really a piece of good news. 50 miles range for only $6000? Unbelievable.
and that's up to 50 miles, in many conditions it could be much less.
still, according to the Synovate study, average consumers that are interested in plug-ins are only willing to pay about $1700 extra for a plug-in prius, so we still have some crunching to do.
i also worry that these costs might be subsidized a little.
i ran into the crew of Hybrids-plus, a plug-in conversion company in colorado, that claimed that A123 would not sell them the battery pack that they sold hymotion for the same price.
essentially, they claimed a123 was subsidizing Hymotion's costs just to gain share and be first to market, but they did so at a loss.
considering the small amount of conversions carried about Hymotion the losses, if true, were probably worth the costs.
on a side not, the hybrids-plus crew asserted that these kind of NiMH-Lithium combined plug-ins were not sound from an engineering perspective and that the potential for problems was greatly increased.
they suggested a plug-in conversion should convert the NiMH battery pack to lithium as well, not just add a lithium pack and couple it with the original NiMH pack, but that goes beyond my chemistry education.
There is also the question of whether the plugin in hybrid conversion runs the engine enough to keep the catalytic converter functioning properly. That would be my biggest concern with a conversion.
But I didn't read the article, so maybe they've got that covered.
i didn't check into them in any detail, i also wanted to learn about more about their warranty policies.
Chad,
It seems I might not be able to wait for the Volt after all. :(
It looks like I need to enter the car market this month and I would love it if I could discuss some options with you on this thread or however. I'm especially interested in a hybrid conversion option that I can buy sometime between now and 2011 when I was going to get a Volt anyway.
Quick Background: A controller arm is giving out on our '90 Maxima with 270,000 miles. We could spend $450 for the emergency work, but there is about $1,000 more work coming in parts that are nearing replacement.
Usage: Wife drives about 20-30 miles a day in West LA city street traffic. She's a visiting nurse. So her driving profile was PERFECT for a Volt.
Likely Option: So, I'm thinking a used Prius that I can convert to a plugin with 30 - 40 miles EV range either now or later. My wife doesn't care much for fancy cars, and technology is more exciting to me than social status cars. She is looking for something smaller, easier to park.
Q's: Is now a good time for a used Prius? Should I go for a 2004 or is some other model year optimal? Any other hybrids with conversion options out there?
PS. I kept on writing Volt when I meant Prius. Alas, my dream will not be as planned.
PPS Have you seen this study from EPRI looking at the emissions impact from plugin cars?
Environmental Assessment of Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles
http://my.epri.com/portal/server.pt?open=512&objID=243&PageID=223132&cached=true&mode=2
I guess another option would be something like a short term lease, that would allow us to get a Volt a few years down the road.
But I've never bought or lease a new car before, so I'm not sure if a lease makes sense for us.
alcatholic-
2004 and on is definitely the way to go because essentially all conversion packages work with any second generation prius. other than that, the escape hybrid is probably the second best option, but for West LA traffic, i'd go prius.
likewise, according to kelly blue book data, used hybrid values have dropped. of course, california is the by far king of hybrid sales, so it might not be as low here. it's just one of those things you'll have to shop around for to find the best deal.
in terms of conversions, hymotion is easily the elephant in the room, but there are other small players, but i'm not sure about their pricing plans, warranties, etc.
but it doesn't sound like you have to rush into the conversion just yet.
i have to go to a toyota dealership this morning, i'll see if they have any used prii.
alcatholic-
talked to a salesperson today about used prii.
he told me you're looking at about $15 - $20,000 - at least if buying from a dealership - for any second generation prius in decent shape (that would include a 3 year warranty on the engine). and, mostly likely, a base prius. well, probably a package 2. toyota didn't seem to make that many base prii.
for $15,000 it would probably be an older prius or one with really high miles. however, at least at this dealership, such vehicles rarely come around. usually they are only a few years old.
i'm going to keep my eye out because i'm going to do a story on used prii. maybe followed up by a story on prius conversions.
the salesperson i talked to was very interested in your plan. in fact, he wants to see your car if all goes forward.
lots of his customers, he told me, inquire about such conversions.
still, that's california. i bet you'd find a better deal in other states. have any trips planned?
OK, I'll let you know what I see in the used Prius field, as well.
BTW, I don't think the Jungle Motors story is panning out. This is what I'm seeing on their Sept 21 PR statement:
Price for the new 10KW conversion kit is $10,995.00 and until the end of 2009, installation is included. For further info, call Jungle Motors at (949) 443-0900 or visit our site at www.junglemotors.com.
And on their website product page I'm seeing:
Prius Plug-In Hybrid Kit for 2004 or newer Prius. Contains everything needed to convert your prius to a plug-in. Get over 100+ MPG with this kit. EV mode allows you to drive at up to 53MPH for 10-12 miles on battery only!! *Batteries not Included*
Price : $4,200.00
As for Hymotion, I need to call these guys to get a price.
http://www.galpinautosports.com/
No one has picked up the phone yet. But Hymotion's website does claim their plugin kits meet emissions requirements, so that would be good.
So, is a conversion $6,000 or $10,000? That would make a difference to me, given my preference for a Volt.
one big problem is the Lithium cells Jungle is using. Those yellow thundersky cells are the cheapest u can get.
does anyone know how much the battery itself costs?
in other words, is a significant part of the cost to covert to a plug-in ..basically the cost of the battery?
Larry, yes it is a battery that is a significant part of the cost of a vehicle. For plugin, it is something around 25%, for all-electric vehicle it can be around 50%.
alcatholic-
i haven't seen a lot of new pricing data on plug-in conversions. however, i do find it hard to believe that a quality conversion will cost less than $10,000.
at that price, you might as well wait for the Volt. of course, when will you be able to take delivery of a volt?
that will be another interesting question to soon ask, as i imagine the volt will be sold out for a few years based on their current production plans.
Well, given a $15K Prius and $10K conversion, that still beats a bolt by $10K, more if you look at out of pocket costs prior to the rebate.
Besides it is a two phase purchase with a Prius. And the longer I wait to do the conversion the lower the price in absolute and NPV terms.
What I am curious to learn about is whether the more advanced design of the 2010 Prius might be more PHEV compatible than the 2004 - 2009 Prii. That is especially true given the built-in EV mode in the 2010 Prius that doesn't exist in the 2004 - 2009. I wonder if that software feature alone could provide big benefits in the usability and effectiveness of a PHEV conversion.
the conversions for the third gen prius don't yet exist, but they're coming.
if you buy a new prius, you probably just have to wait a few years longer before your conversion. by then, however, conversions will probably be more technologically sound and cost-effective.
Thanks for the reply. I moved my question to the comments for your new conversion post. I'll continue over there.
Thanks!
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