Hybrid taxi use, feasible? - GreenHybrid

AL. · #1 (**permalink**) 11-08-2005, 10:21 AM

NYC approved all 6/7 hybrids for taxi use (prius, highlander, rx400h, civic, accord, escape/mariner).
The current stretch crown vics get about 9-10mpg (5-6 during the summer with the AC blasting) vs the EPA 18mpg.

1. what mpg, approximately, do hybrids get in extreme city driving (averaging 6-7mph) with the A/C on max. (with the hybrid on the least conservative setting)
2. do 2-3 adults fit in the back somewhat comfortably?
3. can they withstand stop & go driving carrying 3-4 people (i know nothing about CVT's strength)
4. are hybrids readily available and do they go for sticker price (ford will end crown vic production, and there are over 10,000 of them as NYC cabs at the moment)

thanks in advance, AL

AZCivic · #2 (**permalink**) 11-08-2005, 11:29 AM

San Francisco is already using them. Check out this thread:

Green Hybrid SF Taxi Thread

It includes a post by one of the cab drivers there. He seemed to really enjoy it.

dcf · #3 (**permalink**) 11-08-2005, 01:05 PM

Is it cool to refer to other blogs here? HybridCars.com has a blogger who drives prius's (priae?) as taxis (taxae?) in Vancouver, at http://www.hybridcars.com/blogs/taxi

To quote:
"Andrew Grant is the world's first hybrid taxi driver. He introduced his Prius taxi to the not-so-mean streets of Vancouver in 2000, and logged 200,000 miles in just 25 months. Andrew's Prius was snatched by Toyota. The automaker wanted a chance to study the durability of the hybrid batteries and other components, which held up amazingly well. See this video for details. He's now driving his third Prius. Andrew has taken a break from taxi-driving, and now works as a professional coach helping his clients achieve personal excellence in various fields of endeavor."

AL. · #4 (**permalink**) 11-08-2005, 01:54 PM

thanks for the posts.

if i'm not mistake, batteries are like automatic transmissions; heat is a killer. NYC isn't fortunate enough to be on the Pacific. It gets to 100F in the shade on a regular basis here (central park may say 92F, but 98% of the city is asphalt and concrete, not grass, ponds and trees).

I noticed there are people in arizona who get great mileage (i assume the AC is on, too) but i know nothing of how the cars components are handling the heat.

if a crown vic's tranny gives up at 2am on sunday you can have a rebuilt on put in by 6am for $700. Taxi owners can't afford not only to pay $2000 for a tranny or battery, but they can't afford to have the car in the repair shop for 1-3 days.

thanks again, al

Schwa · #5 (**permalink**) 11-08-2005, 02:27 PM

There are lots of Prius II taxis here around Vancouver, I saw 5 just the other day on a short trip downtown. Victoria has mostly Prii taxis as well.

As far as heat goes, the battery packs are themally managed, and draw air from the cabin, so if the A/C is on then the battery will get cool air if it needs it, and the Escape has separate A/C for the battery pack that runs whenever it needs to cool down. A battery shouldn't fail nearly as easily as an auto tranny, even when abusive driving is involved, and the eCVT in the Prius/HH/Rx and Escape is probably more reliable than any other type of transmission available. If a company manages to keep a car long enough to kill a battery they are not difficult to replace, we had our Prius I battery removed, serviced and replaced in under a day and part of that time was to let some sealant cure. The main issue would be battery availability, by now there should be adequate supply, even in the used market with car accidents.

AZCivic · #6 (**permalink**) 11-11-2005, 05:55 AM

Quote:

Ford unveils mini-fleet of hybrid NY taxis
Thu Nov 10, 2005 1:33 PM ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co. on Thursday introduced a mini-fleet of hybrid taxicabs to serve New York City, part of its push to promote cleaner, more fuel-efficient vehicles.

Initially, only six Ford Escape hybrids will enter New York's taxi fleet. But city officials said the entire fleet of about 13,000 vehicles may be converted to gas-electric hybrids within five years.

"Hybrids save our customers money at the pump, and they reduce America's dependence on foreign oil," Chief Executive Bill Ford said at an event to unveil the vehicles at a Ford dealership in Manhattan.

"We're headed toward a world where cars will be smarter, safer, and more fuel-efficient, like the hybrids," he said.

The Ford hybrid sport utility vehicle gets as much as 36 miles per gallon in city driving, double the mileage of the taxi fleet's current Ford Crown Victoria model. A test model drove more than 500 miles on one tank of gas in New York, the CEO said.

Ford, which posted a $284 million third-quarter loss, is betting on hybrids as a cornerstone of its turn-around strategy.

The Detroit-based company recently said it is planning to boost global production of more fuel-efficient vehicles tenfold to 250,000 a year by 2010. The No. 2 U.S. automaker has doubled its hybrid vehicle team even as it is laying off staff in other departments.

Ford currently offers two hybrid models, the Escape and the Mercury Mariner. The company will offer hybrid capability in half of its models by 2010. © Reuters 2005. All Rights Reserved.