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HybridCars.com
HybridCars.com (www.hybridcars.com) has great Toyota Prius news, photos, videos and more
Thursday, Nov 12
Top 7 Aftermarket MPG-Boosting Prius Accessories
This replica of the OEM option—which was a de facto feature of Priuses in Japan but was disabled in North America—can be installed in minutes. Activating the EV mode via the button will put older models into gas-free EV mode for small stretches. The overall boost in mileage is modest, but it g...
Tuesday, Nov 3
Choosing Low Rolling Resistance Tires
For years, the Toyota Prius has come standard with the low resistance Goodyear Integrity. But those tires are notorious for wearing out fast, and that’s not the only compromise. "You can get a tire that will give you better mileage, but you are going to give something up," Matt Edmonds, vice...
Thursday, Oct 29
Michael Pollan Retracts Comment about Meat-Eating Prius Drivers
Gidon Eshel and Pamela Martin of the University of Chicago found, in a 2006 study, that the difference between a heavy meat-eating diet and a vegan diet was about 2 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per person per year.The professors found the difference between a Prius and a Hummer-sized...
2010 Hybrid Cars - The Year Ahead
Contents Plug-in Cars Finally Arrive Hybrid Sales Return to Growth New Models & Entrants The Prius Evolves The first hybrid gas-electric car in the United States, the original Honda Insight, reported its first 17 sales in December 1999. One decade and 1.5 million hybrids later, the a...
Wednesday, Oct 28
Consumer Reports Names Honda Insight as Most Reliable Car
Consumer Reports released results from its annual car reliability survey, and the 2010 Honda Insight scored the highest of any vehicle in predicted reliability. Hybrids dominated the list for reliability—with five of the eight most reliable family cars: Toyota Prius, Ford Fusion Hyb...
Sunday, Oct 18
Toyota Prius Plug-in
Toyota is targeting 2012 for the release of a plug-in version of the Toyota Prius. Toyota is currently running a national print ad promoting the company’s future eco-friendly technologies. As you would expect, it pictures a Toyota Prius glistening by a tree-lined lake, and brags about th...
Friday, Oct 16
Hybrids Dominate EPA’s Top 10 Fuel Economy List
The Toyota Prius was once again the leader, with fuel economy of 51 miles per gallon in the city and 48 mpg on the highway. Other vehicles in the top 10 include the Ford Fusion Hybrid and its Mercury Milan twin, the Insight and Civic Hybrid from Honda, and the Nissan Altima. The only non-hybrid o...
Friday, Oct 2
Subaru Fans: Where's My Hybrid?
In May 2009, Subaru announced plans to introduce a gas-electric hybrid car by 2012—but provided no details. Readers of this website responded with enthusiasm. Family Guy wrote, “I want it. My 2002 Outback will be 10 years old by 2012. Now, I can look forward to the possibility of replacing my S...
Monday, Sep 28
Legislators Debate Solo Hybrid Access to Carpool Lanes
Critics complain that states' carpool lanes have become clogged by solo-driving hybrid owners. Others argue that the incentives were successful in promoting hybrids in recent years, but given the popularity of gas-electric vehicles, the incentives are no longer necessary. (Hybrids...
Prius Takes Center Stage in Toyota Turnaround
Toyota is in the midst of its worst downturn since the company was founded in 1937—but it’s raising the price of the 2010 Toyota Prius by about $400. This apparent contradiction appears to be part of Toyota's core turnaround strategy: pump up the volume on marketing, and lead with the Prius.
Thursday, Sep 17
Car Culture Wars: Glenn Beck Ridicules Hybrids
In a comedy routine on his radio program, Beck said: “Last year, when gas prices hit their all-time highs, at over $4 a gallon, of the top ten best-selling cars of 2008, exactly none of them were hybrids, not even the hero of the environmental universe, the Toyota Prius.” In truth, when pick-...
Sunday, Sep 13
Are Lithium Car Batteries Overhyped?
Toyota believes that lithium batteries do not justify the higher cost, and that current hybrid battery technology—nickel metal hydride—is best suited for conventional hybrids. The company came to that conclusion after conducting three years of “secret tests” on 126 Toyota Priuses e...
Friday, Sep 11
Toyota Unveils Hatchback Hybrid Concepts for Europe
The Toyota Prius dominates the US hybrid market, and has been the No. 1 selling passenger car in Japan for the past four months. But Europe’s fuel-efficient offerings primarily are comprised of diesel vehicles, increasingly combined with micro-hybrid stop-start functionality. Toyota...
Thursday, Sep 3
August 2009 Dashboard: Altima Hybrid and Insight Post Strong Sales
Hybrid sales were nearly 50 percent higher than a year ago, compared to the overall car market which was up by only 1 percent. The Cash for Clunkers program, which helped the Toyota Prius so much in July, had less of an effect in August. The Honda Insight showed new life, boosting sales by 84 per...
Wednesday, Sep 2
Next Wave of Japanese Hybrids Heading to US
The small Toyota Yaris is due for a redesign for the 2012 model year. Following the trend set by the Prius, the Yaris is likely to get a larger 1.8-liter engine—to replace the current 1.5-liter 106-horsepower engine—and to add a hybrid option. Fuel economy numbers could top the charts. The Aval...
Friday, Aug 21
Exclusive: Toyota Explains Its Position on Electric Cars
While General Motors and Nissan will both introduce plug-in cars next year, and Ford will follow in 2011, Toyota does not plan to bring an all-electric car to market until 2012. Yesterday, The New York Times declared, “Toyota has fallen behind in the race for the all-electric car.” San Fran...
Wednesday, Aug 19
Toyota Will Buy Lithium Batteries from Sanyo
Currently, Toyota's sole supplier of nickel metal hydride batteries is Panasonic EV Energy Co, its joint venture with Panasonic. Sanyo currently supplies hybrid batteries to Ford, Geneal Motors and Honda, and signed a deal with Volkswagen to produce lithium ion batteries for vehicle...
Monday, Aug 17
A Wave of Anti-Prius Vandalism in Seattle?
Too early to call the incident a pattern. Vandals in Seattle are targeting the Toyota Prius in a “rash of attacks,” according to MyBallard, a local neighborhood website. The website reported that “a number of street-parked Prius windshields were...smashed” over the weekend, including one...
Friday, Aug 14
Prius and Insight Hybrids Earn Top Safety Awards
Honda Insight side crash test. Honda Insight frontal crash test The Toyota Prius, a midsize sedan with a combined city/highway rating of 50 mpg, is the most fuel-efficient car on the market today. The Honda Insight has an average efficiency rating of 41 mpg.
Thursday, Aug 6
Can US Automakers Catch Up to Prius?
The $2.4 billion in grants will support the deployment and trial of up to 6,873 plug-in hybrid or battery electric vehicles. It could take several months, or as long as a year, to deploy the trial vehicles. Meanwhile, Toyota sold 19,193 Priuses in the United States in July, plus an additional...
Tuesday, Aug 4
Clunkers Nets Big Fuel Economy Boost
In addition, hybrid car sales in July increased by 35 percent, while conventional vehicle sales rose by about 15 percent. Prius sales increased by a whopping 47.5 percent for the month and were up 29.7 percent from July 2008. The July hybrid market share hit 3.55 percent—a record for the United...
Toyota's 'DecoPrius' Winks at Hello Kitty Demographic
At a showroom in Tokyo last week, Toyota got in touch with its girly side. With the "DecoPrius," a candy-apple red custom Toyota Prius emblazoned with decorative rhinestones, the carmaker hopes to catch the eye of a demographic that is growing increasingly cold to a product that once exem...
July Hybrid Sales Reach Record High Market Share
Other big sellers in July were the Lexus RX450, Toyota Camry Hybrid, Nissan Altima Hybrid, Ford Fusion and Ford Escape Hybrid. Sales of the Ford Escape Hybrid increased by 80 percent compared to June, and more than doubled from July 2008.
Tuesday, Jul 28
Toyota Plans a Subcompact Hybrid
The Honda Insight has better fuel economy and a lower price tag—about $5,000 less—than larger competing hybrids: the Toyota Camry Hybrid and Ford Fusion Hybrid. But recent sales of all three vehicles have been nearly identical—suggesting that US consumers prefer the space provided by...
Monday, Jul 20
Lexus HS 250h
The HS 250h is the Lexus brand’s first dedicated hybrid, just as the Prius was for its parent brand Toyota. Previous Lexus hybrids were adaptations of existing vehicles, including the popular RX 400h crossover—replaced for 2010 by the RX 450h—the GS 450h sports sedan, and the full-size l...
Wednesday, Jul 15
Study: Hybrid Drivers Get More Tickets
For 2008 hybrid cars, Quality Planning found that the cost to insurers of providing collision coverage for hybrids was 13 percent higher than for conventional vehicles, while non-collision-related damage was 17 percent higher—with larger hybrids taking most of the hit. For example,...
Monday, Jul 6
Japan Hybrid Sales Bypass US
Sales of the Prius in Japan, when combined with Honda’s 8,782 sales of the new Honda Insight, was enough for Japan to become the biggest market for gas-electric hybrid cars in the world. June sales of hybrids in the US totaled 26,205 units.
Saturday, Jul 4
Toyota Plans for Plug-in Production in 2012
According to Nikkei, Toyota's plug-ins will run 12 to 18 miles on battery power alone at full charge. Plug-in hybrids can be cleaner than regular hybrids because they can run for longer periods purely on electricity—but the need for more batteries makes them expensive. The plug-in cars wi...
Friday, Jul 3
June Hybrid Sales Up from a Year Ago
The Toyota Prius led the hybrid pack with 12,998 sales, representing 49.6 percent of all hybrid sales in June. The vast majority of Prius sales—85 percent, according to Toyota— came from the new 2010 model. The introduction of the new Prius apparently affected sales of the 2010 Honda Insigh...
Thursday, Jul 2
Fisker Tries To Create Distance from Tesla
Three distinct markets of electric-drive vehicles are expected to gain momentum in the coming years: conventional gas-electric hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and all-electric cars. Many analysts believe that Prius-style hybrids will experience the most dramatic growth, followed by p...
Tuesday, Jun 30
Reviewers Hurl Criticism at 2010 Honda Insight
What’s the biggest obstacle to mainstream adoption of greener cars? Cost. The new generation of super fuel-efficient high-tech vehicles—including hybrids, clean diesels and electric cars—carry a higher price tag compared to their conventional counterparts. That’s why Honda desig...
Friday, Jun 19
Bosch: Electric Cars A Decade or More Away
The electric car will come, but in small numbers at first,” said Bohr. “It will occupy a niche and will not make a noticeable mark on the roads until after 2020." Bohr believes electric cars will be most successful in Asia's densely populated regions, and in some European and American cities....
Toyota Prepares for Prius Gold Rush
Meanwhile, the hybrid wars in Japan have now gone full-scale as the Toyota Prius and the new Honda Insight fight it out for the top spot. Prius handily won this last round, but all hybrid sales in Japan surged over the last 30 days to levels not seen since prior to the onset of the global economi...
Monday, Jun 15
Survey: $3 Gas is a Tipping Point
1 selling car in Japan in April, and was overtaken by another hybrid, the 2010 Toyota Prius, in May. The Japanese government offers generous incentives for hybrid-buyers—and gas prices are almost 80 percent higher in Japan than in the US. ...
Tuesday, Jun 9
Toyota Goes on the Offensive with Its Hybrids
Toyota is boosting production—and the image—of its star hybrid, the Toyota Prius. As the company celebrates big sales numbers for the just-released third-generation Prius in Japan, it is also fighting a publicity campaign in the US against competing green car technologies.
Thursday, Jun 4
HybridCars.com Launches Green Car Comparison Tool
lt;div class="figure inlineRight width-300px"> <img src="/files/comp-grab-400.jpg" alt="HybridCars.com Car Comparisons" title="HybridCars.com Car Comparisons" width="300" /> <p class="caption">Vehicles can be added and removed from the car comparisons us...
Wednesday, May 27
Comedians Produce World’s First Rap Video about Toyota Prius
The Casual Mafia’s tag line is “Making Funny Sexy,” and with the Prius rap video, they play with the idea that hybrids can be sexy and cool. The video makes specific references to the Prius’s silent electric drive, high mpg, tax credits, carpool lane stickers, dashboard navigation system...
Honda Fit Hybrid
On May 26, 2009, Japan's Nikkei business daily reported that Honda plans to roll out a gas-electric hybrid version of the Fit in Japan in fall 2010—about a year and a half ahead of the original schedule. Despite the global slowdown in auto sales, hybrids are hot sellers in Japan. In April, the...
Friday, May 22
Subaru Plans Hybrid Car for 2012
Auto sales in Japan and the United States have taken a dramatic slide this year—but hybrid gas-electric cars, such as the Honda Insight and Toyota Prius, have made a rebound in Japan in the past month or two. The Japanese government has introduced a number of incentives for hybrids and othe...
Monday, May 18
Hybrid Cars Are Red Hot in Japan
In April, Honda sold 10,481 units of the new Honda Insight in Japan—double its monthly sales target—marking the first time a hybrid was Japan’s monthly bestseller, not including minicars. Toyota plans to sell 10,000 Priuses per month in Japan, beginning this month when it introduces th...
Monday, May 4
Bright Spots in Hybrid Sales Numbers
April was the sixth time in seven months that Ford made gains in its market share, enabling the company to push past Toyota to retake its position as the nation’s No. 2 car seller. By offering a hybrid counterpoint to Toyota’s midsize hybrids, the Camry Hybrid and Toyota Prius, Ford exhibite...
Friday, Apr 24
Nonsensical Tax Credits Benefit Mercedes Diesel SUVs
The diesel vehicles were awarded the so-called “advanced lean-burn technology motor credit” as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. That legislation, which also created incentives for hybrids, set a limit of 60,000 for any manufacturer, after which a phase-out period begins. Toyota a...
Tuesday, Mar 24
HybridCars.com Gets 75.3 MPG in 2010 Toyota Prius
Akihiko Otsuka, chief engineer for the 2010 Toyota Prius. (Photo: Bradley Berman/HybridCars.com. All rights reserved.) A Different Kind of Race Top: Third-generation 2010 Toyota Prius. Bottom: Second-generation 2008 Toyota Prius.
Tuesday, Feb 17
Honda’s 60-MPG Surprise
When Honda announced that the new 2010 Honda Insight would “only” average about 41 or 42 mpg, some hybrid fans wondered what went wrong. Forget that Honda’s goal with the new five-door model is affordability, not maximum mileage. The major ding against hybrids has been extra cost, and Hond...
Tuesday, Jan 6
Annual Hybrid Sales Drop for First Time
Historically, hybrid sales have grown due to new product introductions. In 2008, the only new hybrid introductions were low-volume vehicles from General Motors and Chrysler. Throughout 2008, GM averaged approximately 1,000 hybrid sales per month—but managed to increase sales towar...
Saturday, Dec 20
A Week of Bad News for Hybrid Production
On Monday, Toyota announced that it indefinitely postponed its plans to build the Toyota Prius at a new factory under construction in Blue Springs, Miss. Just a few months ago, the Prius was on a roll as gasoline prices topped $4 a gallon. As sales soared, Toyota switched the $1.3 billion Miss....
Tuesday, Dec 16
2008 Hybrid Car - Year in Review
What kind of year has it been for the 2008 Hybrid? GM's product chief called global warming a "crock of shit." An eight-cylinder SUV Hybrid won "Green Car of the Year" award. Prius waiting lists returned and then evaporated. Plug-in Hybrid Mania.
Thursday, Feb 21
Taking the Prius Beyond 100 MPG
For Prius owners in California who want even better fuel economy than the 45 miles per gallon they are already enjoying, a Bay Area company, OEMtek, may have the answer. Milpitas-based OEMtek says it can outfit a Prius with a bigger battery pack and double its mileage to more than 100 miles p...
