Prius Plug-in Hybrid
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It's been a long time coming, but by June of next year, the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid will go on sale in the U.S. If you're eager to be one of the very first on your block to own the world's most popular hybrid vehicle--but you insist on being able to plug it into grid power--now is your moment. This Friday, April 22, is Earth Day. Toyota has chosen that day to launch its Priority Registration system for its first modern plug-in vehicle of any kind. Mind you, Priority Registration doesn't let you order a plug-in Prius. It just gets you into a queue that will have first access to the...
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Would Your Granny Buy A 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid? (Video)
It's all about video these days. We do video here at GreenCarReports (discussing whether a 2011 Chevy Volt will save you money, for instance) and so do many other automotive sites. But we have to admit, we never thought about bringing grandmothers into the picture. Which is exactly what Kyle...
John Voelcker -
Plug-In Hybrid MPGs: Is Parallel or Range-Extended Better?
These are exciting times to be a car shopper, as the choices in every possible category just keep getting better and more fuel-efficient. The options for ecologically sensitive hybrid buyers have taken a major step forward with the introduction of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt and the imminent arrival of...
George Parrott -
Is Obama's Goal of 1 Million Plug-In Cars By 2015 Feasible?
Since 2008, Barack Obama has consistently promoted the goal of having 1 million advanced technology vehicles on U.S. roads by 2015. The number refers to plug-in vehicles that use grid power, stored in lithium-ion battery packs, to operate their electric traction motors. Regular hybrids like the...
John Voelcker -
Renting an Electric Car: When Is It Smart, When Is It Dumb?
One way for potential buyers to get familiar with electric cars is to rent one. Several rental companies, among them Enterprise, have announced plans to rent 2011 Nissan Leaf and other electric models at selected locations. Renting an electric car lets you spend far more time in one than the...
George Parrott -
2011 Denver Auto Show: Toyota Displays CNG-Powered and Plug-In Hybrid Concepts
This year’s 2011 Denver Auto Show (DAS) has a lot to offer consumers from demonstrations to manufacturer ride and drives to concept vehicles that will “fuel the future.” Wednesday marked the opening of the largest Denver Auto Show in history at some 500,000 sq. ft and it also...
Jonathan McGrew -
For those who live in Colorado the environment is a pretty serious thing. We have all see the brown cloud that sometimes comes to visit downtown Denver due to the bowl effect of the foothills. We also know as consumers we can make a change in our lifestyles to help reduce emissions that cause that brown cloud and harm the environment. Sunday we reported on the Green Car Parade, one of the only (if not the only) of its kind in the U.S. where new “green” cars are featured. Some are greener than others, but the idea is to educate consumers on the choices that are out there for them...
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Video: Toyota Prius Cranks Up The Crazy With Two Record-Breaking Days
Spring has sprung for the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In. The highly anticipated hybrid recently began making the rounds with critics, so it's not surprising that Toyota chose the end of this month to tout the Prius brand by hosting a live, two-day event in which four Prii will be put through a number...
Richard Read -
2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In: By The Numbers, Would It Work For You?
Over six days of driving—limited to around-town trips—we put about 103 miles on a fleet-test Toyota Prius Plug-In, averaging 90.8 miles per gallon. In that time, we gave the Prius Plug-In five full charges and two partial ones, and according to the trip computer, we covered 77.7 miles...
Bengt Halvorson -
2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Impressions: Why It Needs An EV Button
For those who travel very short distances, the Toyota Prius Plug-In could almost be thought of as an electric car. With a battery pack that's about 5 kW-hr—many times that of the standard Prius—it can, within reason travel at highway speeds on electric power alone, or up to 14 miles or...
Bengt Halvorson -
Testing A Plug-In Prius Or Volt Gets Easier For Civilians
With cars like the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf already on sale, plus a handful of startups either selling or building battery-powered cars on U.S. soil, it’s safe to say that the electric car revolution is truly upon us. Sadly, the cost of entry to be a part of this revolution is still...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Toyota Prius Plug-In: Can It Measure Up To Chevrolet, Ford And Nissan’s Offerings?
Last week, I wrote about how Ford and GM have staged comebacks that hinged in part on the carmakers’ embracing of new electronics, launching greener cars with smartphone apps and wireless and voice-command capabilities. Toyota will soon be joining the crowd by offering all of the above...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
In the latest example of the opportunities created by the rollout of electric vehicles, smart grid networking player Silver Spring Networks announced it will unveil a prototype tomorrow of a charging station enabled with its technology for the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid (pictured). The company will show off the charging station at its headquarters in Redwood City, Calif. The charging stations are made by ClipperCreek and are a part of a smart grid and electric vehicles pilot announced last July, in conjunction with PG&E and Electric Power Research Institute. The pilot aims to...
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Hertz To Launch Electric-Car Rentals in NYC, Add Smart To Fleet
As it gears up to offer electric cars in selected rental fleets across the country, Hertz has dribbled out details of how its Global EV program will actually work. Today we learn that New York City will be the first region to receive the electric and plug-in hybrid rental cars, with rentals to...
John Voelcker -
2010 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid Prototype: Drive Report
The main thing to understand about the Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid is that it's not an "electric car" as many people use the term. Yes, it plugs in to any electric socket to recharge the 5.2-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack. And, yes, its Hybrid Synergy Drive system uses electric torque...
John Voelcker -
Toyota Smart Center Benefits Home Efficiency, Not Just Cars
We've seen Onstar from General Motors. We've heard about iPhone apps that allow you to keep tabs on how your 2011 Nissan Leaf or Smart Electric Drive are charging too, and some energy companies are wanting to develop services that keep you updated on the status of your EV. Smart-Grid technology is...
Antony Ingram -
Hertz To Rent Electric Cars Like Nissan Leaf In Selected Areas
Renting a car is one of the most common ways of driving a model you’re not familiar with. Now, as electric cars start to make their way into dealerships, they will be showing up in rental fleets as well. Hertz, the nation’s largest rental brand, announced last week that it would add...
John Voelcker -
Prius Plug-In Hybrid Now By June 2012, Cheapest Plug-In In U.S.?
Amidst a flurry of battery-electric vehicle announcements by automakers all over the globe, Toyota reiterated plans to launch six new hybrid models by 2012. But the company will push back the U.S. launch date for its first plug-in vehicle, the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid. Toyota had said this...
John Voelcker -
With several big electric vehicle launches due over the next few years and order books filling up quickly, we're sure to start seeing more of them on the roads. Research agency Pike Research has announced that combined sales of full-electric (battery electric, or BEV) vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) will take off over the next five years to hit 3.2 million units by 2015. These large numbers are partly down to the assumption that China will be a massive adopter of electric vehicles in the years to come. EVs are being championed over there to compensate for the poor air...
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Electric Car Buying Guide
We've been watching it roll closer for years, and now it's all but here: A new era of electric cars. Just three or four months from now, the first highway-capable electric vehicles sold in volume by global automakers will appear in showrooms in California and other regions. By the end of 2011...
John Voelcker -
2011 Chevy Volt: No $5K Rebate, HOV-Lane Access For CA Buyers
Now we know: The first two plug-in cars from major manufacturers will go head-to-head on warranties and lease prices: $350 a month for the 2011 Chevrolet Volt, $349 for the 2011 Nissan Leaf. Now the choice shifts to other measures, including electric and overall range, as well as the plug-in perks...
John Voelcker -
Report: Toyota BEV And Two Prius Variants Coming In 2012
Next year will see several major automakers test the waters with their new electric offerings, with cars like the new Nissan Leaf, Chevrolet Volt and Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid all available by then. However, the real electric onslaught is expected to come in 2012, a timeframe that will allow...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Why Can't Toyota's Plug-In Prius Recharge Its Larger Battery?
Toyota has come under some fire from electric-vehicle enthusiasts for what some perceive as a grudging, halfhearted approach to building vehicles that plug in. Its first U.S.-market plug-in vehicle--not including a thousand or so RAV4 electric crossovers a decade ago--will be the 2012 Toyota Prius...
John Voelcker -
Prius Plug-In Hybrid: It Won't Compete With the Leaf or Volt
We've been thinking a lot about the prototype 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid since our test drive of a prototype last month. And about the rest of the plug-in cars that will come to market over the next two years. To our surprise, we decided we don't think buyers will directly compare the Prius...
John Voelcker