Green Options

Toyota has big, big plans for the Prius, their flagship hybrid sedan. While they play the yes-no-maybe game with the Prius a brand name in-and-of-itself, they are taking the hybrid to the next level by offering a plug-in version of the Prius for the 2011 model year. Called the Prius PHV, it will have a short all-electric range as well as the ability to travel highway speeds under electric-only power.

I have many a fond memory of my friend’s old supercharged Toyota MR2. The peppy two-seater was a rarity for its day; an affordable, fun, mid-engine sports car from the generally conservative Toyota. We used to whip around parking lots, burning rubber, and raise a ruckus… until the car wound up on its roof due to, uh, mysterious circumstances.

So the news that Toyota might be considering bringing back the MR2, as a hybrid, fills me with mixed emotions, but mostly hope that the ‘yota might be making a comeback to old-fashioned fun [Ed. Note: Toyota could do for a good dose of that these days, what with all the recalls, lawsuits, and generally bad karma].

Just how popular is the Prius? If you ask Jim Lentz, President of Toyota’s U.S. arm, it is so popular that it could soon sell even more units than Toyota’s perennial best seller, the Camry. Are hybrid cars really that popular?

To date, Toyota has sold two Camrys for every one Prius, but with over a million of the peppy little hybrids sold, and sales growing stronger every year, the Prius may soon join the Camry on the podium of top sellers.

I’ve always found most body kits to be silly. Side skirts, fender flares, and front splitters usually do little more than add weight and make a slow car look like it’s trying too hard to go fast. But every now and then a good, clean body kit can improve the appearance of a car, and if done right, even improve its aerodynamic properties.

Hybrids seem to be especially popular to make body kits for recently, with both the Toyota Prius and Ford Fusion Hybrid receiving different takes on body enhancements. Toyota is taking the game a step further with its Aerius body kit which offers subtle improvements to the exterior without negatively affecting the drag coefficient.

A lot can be said about Toyota’s hybrid flagship, the Prius. Heck, a lot already has been said about the odd, egg-shaped, fuel sipping little car. Love it or hate it, the Prius has been a sales success story, selling more units than all other hybrids combined while creating a cult of hypermilers and green geeks.

Looking to cash in on the success of the Prius, Toyota is reportedly planning to launch an entire line of Prius automobiles, perhaps even as its own sub-brand. The first contender for a new Prius badge is likely to be either a wagon or SUV, directly addressing the whole lack of cargo room on past Prius models.

While Chrysler’s alt-fuel plans for the future—and its integrity—seem uncertain at best, its cross-town rival General Motors is trying to make good on its fuel efficient pledges in a different way. This includes (finally) offering a Hummer with E85 flex-fuel capabilities, as promised in 2007.

Oh, and for those who are wishing for a Volt sub-brand, keep wishing. GM has no plans of spinning off the Volt as a brand of its own (as Toyota might do with the Prius). That won’t stop the General from spreading its hybrid drivetrain across other models, however.

One deft criticism of electric cars is that they lack ambient noise to warn others of their impending approach. This is especially worrisome for the blind or elderly, and even early hybrids like the Prius are criticized for being too quiet in a world weened on engine noises. Then there are those of us who demand a growling engine as part of the automotive experience.

But that may all change in the not too distant future, as hybrid or electric cars may come equipped with artificial engine noises. You may even be able to customize the tunes coming out of your automobile.

This one really made me giggle.

Tuning powerhouse Tommy Kaira has given the third generation Toyota Prius an aggressive makeover that is purely cosmetic.

Rare earth metals are a key component in the clean technologies of today, with elements like neodymium, lanthanum, dysprosium essential to the creation of hybrid and full-electric vehicles produced by Toyota in the Prius line of vehicles and their competitors in the green car market, as well as for use in generators in wind and tidal turbines. But as the production of clean technology relies upon the use of these rare metals that we’re found little use for in the past, there’s a chance that the earth’s supply might be depleted before there is ample opportunity to take green technology to an all new level, far beyond where we are today.

Editor’s Note, 9/11/2009: based on remarks in the comments section (some unnecessarily mean), it is clear that I made a mistake concerning the actual rarity of “rare-earth” materials. Although they are abundant in the earth’s crust, it is the fact that it is exceedingly difficult to find them in high enough concentrations to make mining them profitable that makes them a concern for being resource-limiting. I’ve edited my post to make that clear.

As an electric car nut, one of the most common quibbles I hear often revolves around the perception that if we do make a wholesale shift to EVs, we are just trading one foreign, limited-resource addiction (oil) for another (lithium).

But, as it turns out, there is no shortage of lithium. Our own Karen Pease has written thoughtfully about this in the past, and today there is news that a single lithium mine in Nevada could produce enough of the stuff on its own to make 650 million Nissan LEAFs or 1 billion Chevy Volts (my thanks to the commenter at the end of the post over at greencarcongress.com for doing those calculations). And that’s just one mine in Nevada — mines all over the world also contain vast quantities of lithium.

And we all went happily down the road to our EV future. Nope. Lithium-shmithium. We may not have a shortage of lithium, but we are likely bound towards a future with a shortage of EV materials that you’ve never heard of — things with odd names like dysprosium, lanthanum, neodymium, and terbium.

In an effort to drum up attention and support for their algae-based biofuel, Sapphire Energy has announced they will conduct a coast-to-coast journey in their “Algaeus” plug-in hybrid. Part electric hybrid, part biofuel vehicle, Sapphire claimes the Algaeus will get 150 miles per gallon from its hybrid/biofuel drivetrain.

The Algaeus will visit 10 cities, starting in San Francisco on September 8th and ending in New York City on the 18th.