Toyota delaying next Prius launch by at least six months
Filed under: Hybrid, Manufacturing/Plants, Toyota
Click on the photo for a high-res gallery of the Toyota Hybrid-X concept
For some time now the third generation Toyota Prius was expected to debut in the fall of 2008 carrying a lithium ion battery pack and and very possibly plug-in capability. In the past week it has been reported that neither the lithium energy storage or the plug-in capability would be there and now it looks the timeline has slipped as well.
Of course, since Toyota never officially announced a launch date they are refusing to call the slip to a spring 2009 debut a program slip or even acknowledge the new or old date. By the time the new Prius hits the market there will be several new competitors available including the Ford Fusion/Mercury Milan hybrids and the plug-in version of the two-mode Saturn Vue is due that same year.
It looks like Toyota's decision to stick with their local supplier might have come back to haunt them. Panasonic currently supplies the NiMH hydride batteries that Toyota uses and they have been focusing on LiNiCoAlO2 cathodes which are considered to be the least thermally stable of the currently available lithium chemistries. Other companies like A123 use materials such as doped iron phosphate and other materials that have better thermal stability. At this stage of the program Toyota might actually better off going to a new source for lithium batteries rather than reverting to NiMH.
[Source: Reuters]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-15-2007 @ 5:22PM
Joseph said...
NOOO!!!! I want a PHEV!!!! Toyota, you shall fear me one day...GM too.
Reply
6-15-2007 @ 7:56PM
Altairian1 said...
The Altairnative is clear: Nanosafe, available right here right now.
Alcoa, ISE, Lightning Electric from UK and Symphony are playing it safe. Phoenix MC SUV/SUT are already on the road. Zap is allegedly in talk w Altairnano for the Zap-X.....+ AEs,ElectroEnergy.
Hello Toyota & GM !
Want to stay in the game:Play it safe, NANOSAFE that is.
Reply
6-15-2007 @ 11:59PM
Murc said...
whoah, that one fugly car.
Reply
6-16-2007 @ 2:44AM
Der Alte said...
Yes...they could very well be forgiven if the reason was to re-think the look of the next Prius.
Toyota is going to look mighty foolish if GM beats them to market with a PHEV that has a decent electric only range.
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6-19-2007 @ 9:03PM
Bill said...
How much is that Nanosafe 35kW battery?
Anyone?
Reply
6-19-2007 @ 9:05PM
Sam Abuelsamid said...
Right now Phoenix Motor cars is paying $75,000 each for Altairnano batteries and the company is at least a couple of years away from making them in any kind of volume.
Reply
7-20-2007 @ 2:29AM
RB said...
The Toyota hybrids remain an interesting technology, but Toyota seems to be very far behind in development of the diesel technology. Diesels represent a greater opportunity for efficient energy utilization than the hybrids for the overwhelming majority of Americans. Ethanol is a foolish pipedream and shows no real promise. What the corn mafia does not want you to know is that ethanol (from corn) yields only somewhere between 5% and 26% greater energy than is used to produce it. the price is still too high, even with heavy government subsidies, and fuel economy too low. Even for ethanol, corn is perhaps the worst possible crop choice, quite apart from the ethical issue of using a food grain for fuel.
Toyota is going to have a rough period where they are heavily invested in the "wrong" technology.
Reply
12-14-2007 @ 9:04PM
Nathan said...
Looks like a suppository. Better get really good mileage.
Reply