GM discards plug-in Toyota Prius as class below Chevy Volt
By Matt Jansen
GM’s Bob Lutz may not come out and say it directly, but his opinion shines through clearly in his response to Toyota’s announcement that a plug-in Toyota Prius will be on the roads at the end of 2009. Both companies are vying for squatters rights on who distributed the first mass-produced rechargeable car, and GM is still smarting from Toyota’s current domination in the hybrid car market.
It’s good to see such healthy competition in the automobile market, which has sold the combustion engine for a long time. Hopefully innovation spurred on by competition will usher in a revolution in the way we use energy for transportation.
Neither company is willing to let up on its timeline and Bob Lutz had this to say about the plug-in Toyota Prius:
“A plug-in hybrid with a limited range is a very nice thing to have. It’s wonderful that Toyota is working on this. If they have some test fleets out next year that’s great. But it’s not the same thing as a Chevy Volt, which is not a plug-in hybrid,” according to The Associated Press.
It may be true that the Chevy Volt will run 40 miles without gas, and that theoretically a person who doesn’t travel more than that in a day would never have to buy gas. But even so, at some point the owner would have to plug the car in to charge it. And there is a backup gas engine for range beyond 40 miles. That seems to qualify as a hybrid between gas and electricity, but the spirit of Bob Lutz’s message seems to be that the Chevy Volt is a leap forward in technology. I can buy that at least.
Toyota has a few things to say about the Chevy Volt too. Justin Ward, manager of the Toyota’s advanced powertrain program says “Toyota’s design of blending gasoline and electric propulsion will be less costly than the Volt’s design.”
He also adds “Toyota’s design of blending gasoline and electric propulsion will be less costly than the Volt’s design.”
Statements like that make it seem like Toyota wants to connect with a different segment of car shoppers, and that it wants to undercut the Chevy Volt’s price point.
While squatter’s rights do have some publicity implications, many buyers will wait to see how early adopters rate their experience before jumping in. The company that produces a reliable vehicle that performs up to buyers’ expectations will win in the end.
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Stumble It!
August 29th, 2008
Lutz is SO ignorant! His lack of knowledge shines through like pennies in the bottom of a swamp.
The plug-in Prius can exactly duplicate the performance of a plug-in hybrid or a plug-in full-function EV (such as the Toyota RAV4-EV); it’s all in the way the vehicle’s computer works.
The existing Prius’ computer starts the engine at 33 mph or if the catalytic converter is cold; the plug-in prius can just NOT start the engine (currently, it doesn’t start until 62 mph); in this case, the performance is exactly similar to the serial hybrid, such as the VOLT, with a similar sized battery pack.
But Lutz doesn’t realize that the size of the battery pack, and the motor-computer settings, can actually turn the Prius into a serial hybrid.
But what do you expect of the guy who pushed the Dodge Viper?? Complete ignorance about EVs. Why doesn’t he take advice? I hear Alan Cocconi is working on the VOLT, perhaps Lutz should be humble enough to take a lesson from someone who knows.
Disgusting when the reporter fawns over a slob like Lutz.
September 2nd, 2008
Geez, Let me get this straight. So with the Chevy Volt I can pick up my 2 kids from school and have room for their backpacks??? Bob Putz is much wiser not to address ANYTHING to do with Toyota. Those corporations have very little in common.
September 3rd, 2008
From the picture the car already looks crushed – sort of like a post-compaction EV1.
I think it will be one of the newer and smaller companies that truly innovates an electric car. With GM losing a billion a month, these smaller companies won’t have to wait long for an opening in the market. I’m expecting something very fast and very cheap.