... 9 miles....

What happened to 60? (That I thought I had read in an earlier announcement.) 9 miles is useless, my interest is gone now.

First 4WD Hypermiler

Have you read the FEH FAQ?

Live in Michigan? Let it be known in Michigan Roll Call

Read My Automotive Blog at Rich Rambles

Not to get too off topic but I also take exception to the impication that any non-white neighborhood is a high crime area. I'm the white guy on my street (I think there is one other) and my neighborhood is poor, but I've never had a problem with crime or violence.

However, I would imagine that for city-dwellers who have to park on the street (really common in Boston and NYC, I'd imagine also common in Baltimore and other older US cities) the plug-in would be sorta useless. Even if you could manage a spot right in front of your apartment, you're not going to run an extension cord across the sidewalk, up the wall, and into your window. It'd be a safety hazard if nothing else. And I agree, some bored kid is probably going to mess with it at some point.

However, for those of us who live in the ghetto but have off-street parking (my garage doesn't lock, but it does have an electrical outlet in there) it would be easier.

I'd love to see the plug-in system be an option, with far more powerful batteries that have a range of 40-50 miles in EV mode at lower (say under 35 miles per hour) speeds.

Should be about 4 miles per kWh - so 3 cents per mile EV at 12 cents per kWh.

The battery in the '04 Prius is 1.3 kWh, but it only lets you have a fraction of that for EV mode (max 500 Wh, but typically only about 300 Wh).

The 9 miles range would require 2.25 kWh, about $900 worth of lithium-ion.

http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/ecotech/ecot.htm

clett, thanks for the 4m/kwhr. I think I pay about 12 cents/ now, but it varies with the price of natural gas(despite the fact that we have a nuclear plant just 20 miles upriver-apparently most of the nuke power goes to industry under long term contract) I really can't complain about 12 cent electricity.

So the" new" lithium batteries can be repeatedly drained deeply-to maybe 20%?

Thanks,Charlie