Extreme Hybrid goes 250 miles on gallon of gas
On Thursday, the AFS Trinity Power Co., a private corporation that develops energy storage technologies, announced it has filed a patent for a plug-in hybrid capable of traveling more than 250 miles on a gallon of gasoline or ethanol. After being charged overnight on regular house current the Extreme Hybrid can travel up to 40 miles on battery power alone before switching to standard gasoline/ethanol and battery.
AFS Trinity will be partnering with Ricardo, a major automotive design and engineering company, which will develop the XH's drivetrain. A similar plug-in hybrid, the Prius Amberjac, can be found over at AutoblogGreen.
[Source: PR Newswire via Yahoo!]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Ted K 3:44PM (5/05/2006)
This really shows, without a doubt -
The Prius does not obtain impressive economy. It can't. It's a pseudo-luxury gadget-mobile, not a penny-pinching commuter.
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PJ 3:56PM (5/05/2006)
Plug-in technology makes the difference here. Plug-in Priuses are capable of generating similarly impressive numbers, though nowhere near 250 MPG--I think 100 MPG is more like it.
You have to remember, too, that small, lightweight hybrids with little real-world utility do not sell. The Honda Insight is supporting evidence. It averages something like 70 MPG, but feels tinny and insubstantial, only seats two, accelerates slowly, and has little cargo space.
The Prius gives up 10-20 (EPA-claimed) MPG to the Insight, but feels as roomy inside as a Camry, has a useful trunk, rides comfortably, and accelerates adequately. In other words, it feels like a real car that just happens to go 2-3 times further on a gallon of gas than the average new vehicle.
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for improving fuel economy by sacrificing some power, curb weight, and road presence. But hybrids' success depends largely on them having effective real-world packaging that mainstream buyers can live with.
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amp 4:09PM (5/05/2006)
Is the 250 mpg figure for real, or does it include miles powered by electricity from the grid? Let?s say I?m going on a cross-country road trip of 1000 or so miles, will I actually see this kind of mileage using a prudent right foot? Or does the 250 mpg figure only come in to play when I commute 30 miles round trip during the week and plug it in every night? I?m guessing that it?s a combination of gasoline and electricity from the grid. In that case, this is not a true 250 mpg vehicle.
I have no doubt that a vehicle like this would cost less for me power than just about any other car. My commute is about 10 miles each way, and I take occasional road trips on the weekend. But my biggest beef with some of the super mpg cars is that they advertise these crazy fuel economy numbers that are simply false. Take a look at autoextremist?s 1000 mpg hybrid.
http://www.autoextremist.com/research/hand.shtml
If this AFS car really does an honest 250 mpg, that?s incredible (X-Prize anyone?). Even if it achieves this magic number through smoke and mirrors, it would still be a great alternative for many people. Just please stop calling it a 250 mpg hybrid.
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John 4:19PM (5/05/2006)
This is what the car looks like:
http://www.nih.gov/science/models/xenopus/images/frog.jpg
They need designers with better aesthetic skills.
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Tim UF 4:22PM (5/05/2006)
any word on the poower draw at the wall? if this thing is gona increase my power bill 1000% (
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Tim UF 4:25PM (5/05/2006)
somehow, the rest of my post got truncated:
(rediculous over exaggeration, i hope) than this hybrid isnt really worth it. these things have to be economically viable... paying for a 'performance hybrid (accord, highlander, rx400h)' etc makes no cents to (for) me
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MadeinDetroit 4:25PM (5/05/2006)
Am I wrong, or does that look like a '99 Olds Aurora when in that picture?
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Whydrive 4:35PM (5/05/2006)
You can get 250mpg in a 80s Chevy station wagon - just get a bunch of illegal aliens to get behind it and push.
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Bob-o 4:36PM (5/05/2006)
If I filled my car with 2000 lbs of batteries, I'd be getting infinite MPG.
Innovation has gone down the tubes.
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Corey W. 5:02PM (5/05/2006)
MadeinDetroit,
I was wondering if anybody else saw that, it was the first thing that popped into my mind.
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Lithous 6:13PM (5/05/2006)
"...similarly impressive ..., though nowhere near..."
Must be a description of a Japanese product. Only Japanese products are that overrated that they can be "nowhere near" yet "similarly impressive".
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PJ 6:47PM (5/05/2006)
Lithous, we're talking about one vehicle that's about 5 times as fuel-efficient as the average car (plug-in Prius) and another that's about 12 times as efficient (the AFS prototype above). Either feat is impressive. It has nothing to do with nationalism.
Besides, hybrids get praise for the complex engineering involved, not for the badge that's glued to the hood. If 100 MPG plug-in Ford Escapes were being highly publicized, would you be as quick to criticize them? If not, then the only national/brand prejudice would seem to be on your end.
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Buckus 3:06AM (5/06/2006)
The plug-in hybrid is a different animal than a true hybrid. The batteries get their charge from the grid, which, depending on where you get your energy from, merely displaces emissions. Additionally, true hybrids like the Prius ONLY use gasoline as their fuel; utility power is not part of the equation.
I'd like to see how that car fares on gas alone.
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Jake 4:12AM (5/06/2006)
Volkswage can do better, but hey this is Awsome!
If cars like this come out, well mass transportation will have to wait! But until then the city bus and light rail look a whole better finacially and enviromentally.
Jake.
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Peter G 9:42AM (5/06/2006)
"Is the 250 mpg figure for real, or does it include miles powered by electricity from the grid?"
Obviously that latter. I agree, they should not make these kinds of claims. A plug in hybrid can stand on it's own merit without resorting to what amounts to lying about fuel economy.
Hybrids essentially do nothing for highway mileage. They are mainly boosters for stop n go.
But a plug in that could do 40 miles before using gas means I could go months on a tank of gas. It is essentially an electric car with an engine for when the batteries run out of juice and that is very cool.
Bring on the plug in hybrids, but let us leave out the stupid MPG claims that include power from the grid in the MPG calculations. You can pull any number out of your ass then. I could drive this car a year on one gallon. Whoo hooo 10000 miles/gallon!
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David S. 1:12PM (5/06/2006)
I'd change the title of this entry; the car can't go 250 miles on a gallon of gas, period. The car can go 250 miles charged up every night, and may use some gas in the process too. They do claim, however, that the real cost (gas + electricity) is still significantly lower than even current hybrids: "At $3 a gallon, this costs about $48 a week for a conventional 20 mpg car and $36 if the car can get 25 mpg. The most efficient conventional hybrids get about 50 mpg which means $19 a week. By comparison, the Extreme Hybrid(TM) will use less than $8 per week total for fuel and electricity."
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MikeW 3:16PM (5/06/2006)
Doesn't the segway get 450mpg equivalent? Not sure which model is referenced, or what tire pressure 15-22
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Jon 1:59AM (5/07/2006)
Some thoughts:
I totally agree with those who point on the inacuracy of a single MPG rating for a plug-in car. There should be two ratings: MPG and MPkw.
Gas prices vary a bit between regions, but kw prices vary a lot (e.g., regions with hydropower vs. oil generation). That could greatly affect adoption in various regions.
It is very efficient economically to have cars charging at night when other uses are minimized; the grid is most economic when it is utilized continuously, rather than only ocassionaly, at near-peak capacity.
If everyone drives plug-in cars, kw prices may well go up, at least during a transition period, diminishing the cost savings. It could require further heavy investment in the grid and generation facilities.
There is an environmental benefit to displacing decentralized emissions with centralized emissions: ultimately, a single source is easier to control than multiple sources.
These are all just partially informed thoughts tossed out for consideration and not lines in the sand.
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ian drake 9:54PM (5/07/2006)
Anyone heard of flywheel batteries? They mechanical batteries that spin up flywheels in a vacuum with magnetic bearings and are very efficient. They can absorb energy very quickly and release it much faster than most chemical batteries (and without the heat).
Anyway the company in this article is the result of two companies with the word "flywheel" in their name. I wonder if some version of this technology is in their patent.
The major issue with flywheel batteries is the velocity of the outer edge of the flywheel is supersonic and containment during failure is problematic...but if use as a capacitor of sorts, the speeds can be lowered.
Very interesting stuff.
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WALTER LENARTOWICZ 6:31AM (5/09/2006)
WHY DON'T THEY MAKE A DIESAL GENERATOR (3 CYL KUBOTA ENGINE POWERING A GENERATOR ONLY, CHARGING BATTERIES, WITH 3 SOLAR PANELS ON HOOD, TRUNK, ROOF, FOR CHARGING BATTERIES WHEN PARKED, SYSTEM ) THAT WILL RUN ON TOTAL ELECTRIC POWER,. I CAN RUN MY TRACTOR FOR 9 HRS. MOVING DIRT, AT FULL THROTTLE 2500-2700 RPM FOR 5 GALLONS OF FUEL FOR 9 HRS. DIVIDE THIS UP AND YOU COULD EASILY GET 150 - 200 MPG.
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