THE HYBRID WORLD

• Future Hybrid cars
  The hybrid cars market is on upswing and is growing very rapidly. America spend on gasoline every minute is about $200,000. Not to say about dependence on foreign oil. Hybrid vehicles are beginning to enter the market, and represent the first step in reducing America's oil consumption. The upcomming hybrid cars for this year and future. 1. DaimlerChrysler is going to introduce diesel electric Dodge Ram pickup which would be giving boost to mileage by as much as 15% 2. There is no details for this vehicle but Mercury Mariner SUV is going to be launched in 2007 3. Saturn Vue SUV would give a boost to mileage by 15% and would be introduced in 2006. 4. The other vehicles released in 2007 would be GMC Yukon and Chevy Tahoe which could give upto 35% of mileage boost and Chevrolet Malibu as 15%. 5. 2008 Chevy Silverado would be giving 35% boost to mileage. 6. 2004 Honda Accord Hybrid likely to be realeased in december would give V6 performance. 7. Lexus RX 400h SUV would follow in early 2005 and would have double mileage as compared to RX 300.





• 2007 Nissan Altima hybrid car
  Sales of hybrid vehicles have increased substantially and in fact, it has doubled in the first five months of 2007 as compared to last year sales. Nissan announced that it is going to introduce its first gasoline hybrid passenger car which will start its manufacturing at Smyrna plant some time from next year.No, Nissan is not going to build its own hybrid system but will be licensing the hybrid system from Toyota Motor Co. Nissan promised a better fuel economy in its coming 2007 Nissan Altima hybrid car with a increased performance. This is going to be the third hybrid vehicle in US after Ford's Escape hybrid sport utility vehicle and Toyota's Camry Sedan, which is also going on production floor next year.Regular Altima has a base price of $24,530 and introduction of hybrid is most likely to add another $3000 to it. However there was no formal announcement about the pricing of 2007 Nissan Altima hybrid car. Nissan contract with Toyota restricts it with only 50,000 units per year.Nissan is entering into the market where the top spot is captured by Toyota Prius followed by Honda Civic. Lets see how it could penetrate the market currently captured by these two carmakers.












• TOYOTA PRIUS HYBRID

The Prius is a parallel configuration hybrid, a vehicle that can run on just the combustion engine, just the electric motor, or a combination of both. Toyota's design goals are to reduce the amount of pollution and to maximise fuel efficiency. To do this, it uses a gasoline(petrol)/electric hybrid powertrain, incorporating large batteries that are charged by the gas (petrol) engine directly or by regenerative braking. Either the engine or the battery (or both) can power the vehicle, depending on conditions. This gives it the acceleration and power of a standard car having a much larger internal combustion engine. Specifically, the Prius incorporates:

More efficient use of the internal combustion engine (ICE), reducing fuel consumption. The 1NZ-FXE engine uses the more efficient Atkinson cycle instead of the more common Otto cycle;
Two electric motor/generators, MG1 and MG2 are in the transaxle. The MG2 provides 50 kW (67 hp) @ 1,200 to 1,540 rpm and 400 N·m (295 ft·lbf) torque from 0 to 1,200 rpm, which significantly contributes to performance and economy. The MG1, with rpm from -10,000 to +10,000 rpm, provides the engine starter and counter torque for the electronic Continuously Variable Transmission;
50 kW IGBT inverter controlled by a 32-bit microprocessor, which efficiently converts power between the batteries and the motor/generators.
Lower coefficient of drag at 0.26 (0.29 for 2000 model), with a Kammback design reducing air resistance, especially at higher speeds;
Lower rolling-resistance tires on the 2000 model, reducing road friction;
Regenerative braking, a process for recovering kinetic energy when braking or travelling down a slope and storing it as electrical energy in the traction battery for later use while reducing wear and tear on the brake pads;
Sealed 168-cell nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery providing 201.6 volts; supplied by Panasonic EV Energy Co
Continuously variable transmission — the Prius uses a simple torque combining device, a planetary gearset. Through computer management of the electric motor/generator and secondary motor and the ICE engine throttle the effect is that the drivetraine behaves as though there were a continuously variable transmission. Toyota calls it the Power Split Device[4]. The electric motors and gasoline engine are connected to a planetary gear set which is always engaged, and there is no shifting.
Flexible resin gasoline tank, reducing the amount of hydrocarbon emissions in the form of escaped gasoline vapor; (US model only)
Vacuum flask coolant storage system that stores hot engine coolant when the vehicle is powered off, then reuses it to reduce warm-up time. (US model only)
EV mode (Europe and Asian markets only, aftermarket option in the U.S.) allows the driver to select electric-only mode in low-power conditions. The vehicle can only be driven a couple of kilometers (depending on conditions) on battery power alone before the gas engine is needed.
Weight reduction — for example the hatch and hood/bonnet are made of aluminium instead of steel.

Awards
1. 1997–98 Car of the Year Japan[31]
2.2 003 Scientific American names Toyota Motor Corporation as "Business Leader of the Year" ("Scientific American 50"; December, 2003) for its singular accomplishment in the commercialization of affordable hybrid cars.
3. Motor Trend Car of the Year 2004 (January 2004 issue)
4. Car and Driver magazine's Ten Best list for 2004.
5. North American Car of the Year award for 2004. Nominated in 2001.
6. International Engine of the Year for 2004.
7. "Best Engineered Vehicle for 2004" by SAE's Automotive Engineering International magazine.[32]
8. 2005 European Car of the Year (406 points, ahead of Citroën C4 with 267 points and Ford Focus II with 228).[33]
9. 2006 EnerGuide Award (Midsize)[34]
10.2006 Intellichoice Best Overall Value of the Year, Midsize [35]
11. 2007 Intellichoice Best in Class Winner :Best Retained Value, Lowest Fuel, Lowest Operating Costs, Lowest Ownership Costs[36]
12. Swiss government named Toyota Prius the world's greenest car in a draft study of over 6,000 cars.[37]