CARazed

Finally a hybrid worth buying. The 2011 Toyota Prius will be a plug-in hybrid which will get you around town at normal speeds on electric power. When the batteries run low the gasoline motor will kick-in taking you where ever you need to go. It’s expected to get over 100 mpg.

So don’t waste your money on a new hybrid.  If you need an efficient car today don’t get saddled with payments; buy a simple used high efficiency car and wait for cars like this upcoming Prius.

Just to be upfront, I think electric cars and plug-in hybrids. This post is in response to the folks that think hydrogen cars have a future. To be honest I was shocked to see this post on AutoblogGreen today; I thought they were the good guys.

#1 Commercial hydrogen usually comes from natural gas.

The vast majority of commercial hydrogen comes from processing natural gas. This is because it’s cheaper and easier to extract hydrogen from natural gas than through the electrolysis of water. [source]

But lets say for a minute that we were going to get our hydrogen from water. Why would we use that electricity to extract hydrogen? Why not just use it to charge up the electric car? Oh right… Energy company profits would be at risk.

#2 A new national hydrogen infrastructure would be needed.

To build a national infrastructure of commercial hydrogen filling stations would take decades and would probably rely on the current natural gas pipelines like Honda’s Home Energy Station [Official Site]. Why not stop using fossil fuels and stick solar panels on out homes instead? Oh right… Energy company profits would be at risk.

In Honda’s defense they have also been testing a solar powered system to make hydrogen from the electrolysis of water. Honda seems to be way ahead of the curve and have their irons in many fires. Smart people at Honda.

#3 The largest proven natural gas reserves are in Russia and Persian Gulf.

The largest natural reserves of natural gas in the world are located in Iran and Russia. [source] Why the heck would we want to choose to experience, peak oil, peak coal, and then peak natural gas. Why not start building the world’s largest renewable energy system right here in our own backyard? Oh right… Energy company profits would be at risk.

Conclusion

I’m really happy that Obama has assembled the team of smart people he has. Decisions like the DOE cutting way back on Hydrogen is incredibly smart.

Hydrogen fuel cells are sexy sounding technology for a fossil fuel sourced fuel. Eventually when it’s possible to make vast quantities of hydrogen from the electrolysis of seawater and the electricity used to make it comes from renewable sources (solar, wind, wave, hydroelectric) then the real green promise of Hydrogen might be realized. But this would take decades so it makes a lot more sense to stop throwing tax dollars away on it.

If the energy companies are so hot to see hydrogen happen let them pay for it. Haven’t we let them raid public funds long enough with their pocket presidents and oil wars?

Electric cars, while not super sexy today, are a better long term solution and plug-in hybrid technology is here RIGHT NOW! Plug-in hybrids are the best transition technology because for local trips they never have to fire up their gasoline engines. Who knows maybe someone will figure out a flex-fuel plug-in hybrid too… now that would be cool. Battery and charging technology is also advancing very quickly making quick-charge electric cars a more likely near-term possibility.

I’m not on anyone’s payroll and I write what I think. What you see here are my humble opinions. If you take a little time and do the research yourself you’ll see I’m right. In the end we can make it all happen by simply voting with our dollars. Choose to buy a new car when they deliver a car worth buying. I’m holding out for at least 100MPG.

Read an opposing opinion by the CEO of a hydrogen pipeline and storage technology company.

Read why Google supports Plug-In Hybrids

First, don’t think for a second that it is our patriotic duty to consume and buy bad products just to prop up corporations that make bad decisions. It should be our patriotic duty to make good choices for ourselves, family, community, and environment. If we are individually strong our nation will be strong. Making poor choices doesn’t help anyone.

Second, don’t help support bad business decisions. Vote with your wallet. It looks like Toyota is thinking it can’t sell the plug-in hybrid Prius that it has in development. Help companies like Toyota make the best long term decision and choose not to buy a new car until you can plug it in.

Read more on AutoblogGreen.

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles still burn gas and are not the ideal long-term solution to peak-oil preparation but they will be an important piece of the transition. They run on electricity until the batteries run low and then the gas motor kicks to provide power. With today’s infrastructure they allow long distance travel at a lower cost and impact than most cars. For local use they cost pennies on the dollar to operate because it’s cheaper and greener to power a car with electricity.

Hydrogen Fuel Cell technology is just not ready for main stream implementation, confirmed yet again by this Wall Street Journal article. Both GM and Toyota executives are turning away from their focus on fuel cells and toward readily available technologies like full electric cars and plug-in hybrids… also called range extended electric cars.

Since the driving range of full electric cars are limited by how much electricity their batteries can store and today’s batteries take hours to charge, auto makers are turning to mounting a small gasoline generator on board what would otherwise be a fully electric car. The first 40 or so mile you drive is 100% on battery power and then the gas motor kicks in to generate electricity and power the car. Since electric motors are high in torque the driving performance is comparable to a normal car. At night you simply plug the car in to top off the batteries. The electricity in your home is a far cheaper source of power than the gas generator can create. The overall carbon footprint is lower too.

GM hopes to launch the Chevy Volt by 2010 that leverages this technology. Toyota is also making strides in advancing their current technology to include plug in charging and longer range running on batteries only. If you’re considering a green car you might want to buy used for now and wait a couple years to see if GM, Toyota and others bring real plug-in hybrids to market. They would surely beat the current hybrids in efficiency at a similar price.

This latest Toyota concept car is an engineering exercise in light weight materials and extreme green technology. It’s currently making its first American appearance at the 2008 Chicago Auto Show.

It’s powered by a 500cc flex-fuel plug-in hybrid system. The body is made from a green bio-plastic sourced from kenaf and ramie plants and carbon fiber. The entire car, albeit sans doors, weighs only 926 pounds. Everything about this car pushes green technology to the limit. It’s nice to see Toyota really pushing the green envelope and I’m certain these technologies are a sign of things to come. The only trouble might be the length of the wait. More

Toyota will be showing off its new A-BAT Concept Vehicle at the upcoming North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit on Monday January 14, 2008. It’s a small compact truck hybrid truck that will use Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive® technology (4 cylinder gasoline hybrid) to deliver better fuel economy. It even has photovoltaic panels on the roof for… not sure what for… concept car kicks I guess.

From the press release it sounds a lot like Toyota looked to the Honda Ridgeline for inspiration. The A-BAT is said to have car-like handling, unibody construction, independent suspension (we think), and 19 inch rims.

The four foot truck bed is said to have more flexibility than a normal pickup with a two foot high (long) tail gate and a pass-through gate into the cab. The width of the bed can accommodate a 4X8 sheet of plywood. At first this truck might sound more suited for a weekend do-it-yourselfer than a contractor’s pickup but it also comes with AC and DC outlets for powering tools and other electronic devices. The battery pack that comes with the hybrid technology helps out with this.

No word on the exact MPG, price, availability, or even if this concept vehicle will make it to market. It looks pretty cool and far along in development so our bet is we’ll be seeing something like this in the Toyota showrooms in the near future. The Honda Ridgeline has definitely paved the way in this market segment and by adding a few more novel ideas and better fuel economy Toyota will probably have a winner. Comments?