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Hi everyone, I hope your August wasn’t too much of a scorcher. Big changes in the ole’ Nathanson household this month, as my little one goes to Kindergarten, and our house gets a makeover that includes a prep for a plug in future! More on that, and a new addition to the Hybrid Scorecard, coming right up.
Excelsior,
Scott Nathanson
UCS National Field Organizer &
HybridCenter.org Administrator
In this issue:
“End of Hybrids” Myth Gains Rhetorical Steam
 If you remember last month, I talked about Ezra Dyer’s interesting and provocative editorial that began with “The hybrid age is coming to an end.” It was a well considered piece that, while I disagree with his conclusions, was based on pretty sound assumptions.
Unfortunately, sometimes small stories like these can grows legs of their own. Indeed, two stories, one in USA Today and another in the Wall Street Journal, cherry-picked some choice statistics to try and further the “hybrids are dead” argument. Still others started to drink this particular flavor of Kool-Aid and pushed the story forward.
Frankly, it’s up to all of us who care and understand this market to nip these types of stories in the bud. Here’s my succinct response (succinct at least for me) that I sent to USA Today:
Toyota is looking to double its total hybrid sales to 5 million by 2015, and manufacturers from Ford to Porsche have aggressive hybrid expansion plans in the pipeline. That’s not exactly the end of an era, is it? Contrary to your August 25 story, “As sales fall, is the hybrid car fad over?,” the sky is not falling. Model year sales through June are up nearly 9 percent over the previous year for hybrids. The only “fad” that has passed is the “cash for clunkers” program that temporarily inflated hybrid sales at the end of the last model year.
The continued overall success of the Toyota Prius, whose model year sales are up 20 percent through June, illustrates what it takes to make a successful hybrid. The Prius merits an industry-leading 9.8 out of 10 on the Union of Concerned Scientists’ Hybrid Scorecard’s environmental scale, and merits a “very high” for overall hybrid value. The sales success of the Ford Fusion Hybrid--a class-leader in fuel efficiency entirely omitted by your article--is another testament to the formula for hybrid success.
Far from a fad, hybrids are on a path to becoming mainstream on main street. Asking whether a car is a hybrid in 2030 will be akin to asking whether cars of today have an engine.
I’m pleased to see that our friends at Green Auto Blog and HybridCars have started pushing back as well. If you see an article or a blog parroting this “hybrids are dead” line, please let me know, and better yet, post a comment or write a letter debunking this erroneous story. This myth does nothing but set back progress toward cleaner vehicle options.
DCN Newsbytes
- Hyundai striving for 50 mpg by 2050: In an ambitious move, Hyundai has stated its goal of selling a vehicle line up in the United States that averages 50 mpg by 2050. In 2008, Hyundai’s average fuel economy was 30.8 mpg. The company's plans to reach this goal include a combination of internal combustion engines, hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and a small percentage of fuel cell and battery electric vehicles. Hyundai is looking to release its first hybrid, the Sonata Hybrid, in late 2010 with an estimated fuel economy of 37 mpg in the city and 39 mpg on the highway. Hyundai won’t be relying entirely on hybrids and plug-in hybrids to help the company reach its goal, but will focus heavily on optimizing current technologies in conventional vehicles to boost efficiency. More in the Hybrid News Center.
 New fuel economy labels: We’ll be talking far more about this next month, but I would be remiss not to mention the fact that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of Transportation have designed a revision to the fuel economy window stickers you see on vehicles in the showroom. The two competing designs are both more comprehensive, but one has introduced a new letter-grade system that gives an overall score on a vehicle’s efficiency and emissions performance. The designs are up for review and public feedback on the EPA's website.- Stimulus dollars spent educating future automotive engineers: In early 2010, the Missouri University of Science and Technology began teaching a course on hybrid and electric vehicles. Funded by stimulus dollars, the university is developing a new undergraduate minor in advanced automotive technology. The program already has six courses at both the undergraduate and graduate level. The university is also developing certificate programs to help practicing engineers move into the field of hybrid and plug-in technology, and is working with two other schools in Missouri to develop similar training. All of this work and training can help prepare future automotive engineers to work effectively in this burgeoning industry. More in the Hybrid News Center.
Preparing to Plug In
With our Thanksgiving table getting more and more crowded each year, and grandparents galore descending upon our house with increasing frequency, my wife Kirsten and I finally bit the bullet and began the process of having an addition put on our house.
We tried to “think green” about our construction plans, and with the help of a great green housing consultant, we worked to minimize our environmental impact while getting bigger. (We even invested in a new solar hot water heater that I’m really psyched about!)
 As we started having the wiring done for the addition, I started seeing articles like this one from the New York Times about the real-world challenges and benefits of the Prius plug-in tests being done around the country. As you know, we own a ’05 Prius, and most of the driving in the car is done by my wife on a six mile loop from Arlington to downtown D.C. Given the 13 purported mile electric range, we may be ideal candidates to get the most out of what this particular plug-in model has to offer.
But whether we go with a plug-in Prius, or a Volt, or a Leaf, or one of the other plug-in or electric models coming quickly down the pike, I realized that the time was now to begin to think about my driveway not just as a parking place, but as a refueling station. Indeed, while solar hot water heaters and better spray insulation are key to a greener home, preparing the house to most easily be part of an electric fuel future is a very exciting, and a little daunting process. Understanding Volts and Amps is a different world from regular vs. premium.
The first thing I learned is that most houses are wired for two different kinds of outlets. The regular one we all think of is a 110 volt (V) outlet. But if you’ve ever looked at the outlet for the clothes dryer, it has a different set of prongs, which takes 220V. So I did some looking around and saw that the Chevrolet Volt will come with both 110V & 220V cords, allowing you to plug the car into either outlet. However, it charges much faster with a dedicated 220v outlet. Tesla seems to be the same, and the company plans to include a 220V charge system with every vehicle purchase. Fisker says when plugged into a 110V household outlet, the Karma fully recharges in eight hours, using a 220V outlet will get the job done in three hours, and a solar roof panel aids with “trickle” charging while the Karma is parked. Toyota says the current plug-in Prius will take 3 hours to charge on a 110v system and half that time to charge with 220V. (Remember, the far shorter range of the Prius accounts for that relatively short charging time.)
 Then I learned that not all outlets are created equal. Volts are a unit of electrical potential, which can be thought of as a measure of the electricity’s “pressure” as it flows through a circuit. Amps (A), on the other hand, are a measure of volume—the amount of electricity that can be pushed through that circuit in a given amount of time. So a lower amp circuit cannot push out the volts as fast, and, for charging an electric car battery, that can have an impact on your charging time.
Indeed, I found out that while some plug-in and electric vehicles are being made to be primarily compatible with either a standard 110V or 220V outlet, others are pushing a dedicated charger system. Nissan notes that for the Leaf, “the home charging dock will require a 220/240V 40A dedicated circuit connected to a breaker. The charging dock will need to be hard-wired directly to the circuit by a certified electrician.”
Given that most houses are wired with 220V wiring rated to 30A system, I was a bit concerned that I would need to go ahead and try and get my wiring up to 40A for my outside outlet, which would be an additional expense. Then I saw from Tesla that some of their home chargers could be rated up to 60 amps! So, what to do?
As per usual, I took advantage of my coworkers and asked the engineering crew here at UCS for some help in figuring out what I should be doing to my house. It seems that while a number of home chargers will charge more quickly with a higher amp rating, this does not preclude the installation of said chargers at a lower amp rate. Indeed, this good article from Reuters notes that while most home charging stations are rated up to 240V/60A outputs, most of them will probably be installed on standard dryer circuits (240V/30A).
So, with that, I felt comfortable having the electrician put a standard dryer outlet next to my driveway for starters, as given our needs and use, I think a plug-in hybrid, be it a Volt, a plug-in Prius, or something else, is likely to be our Prius’ replacement. But just starting to understand the needs, and the language, of this “future fuel” was both a challenging, and very exciting experience.
Here at the Driving Change Network, we’ll certainly be keeping up with this far more as EVs and plug-ins hit the market. If you have any specific questions, please let me know and we’ll do our best to get answers for upcoming issues of the Driving Change Network newsletter.
Hybrid Scorecard: BMW ActiveHybrid 750i
Our intrepid Hybrid Scorecard team has once again crunched the numbers to bring you the scores on another new hybrid—the BMW ActiveHybrid 750i. The ActiveHybrid 750i joins BMW’s hybrid lineup as the automaker’s second hybrid. BMW had a rather lackluster appearance on the Hybrid Scorecard with its first hybrid, the ActiveHybrid X6. Is the second time a charm?
 Short answer—nope. On the Environmental Score, the ActiveHybrid 750i landed near the bottom with a score of 4.2. The ActiveHybrid 750i gets a meager 15 percent reduction in global warming emissions compared to its conventional counterpart, the BMW 750i. This is a slightly better reduction in emissions than another luxury sedan hybrid on the market, the Mercedes-Benz S400 Hybrid. But a 15 percent reduction in global warming emissions is less than half the reduction achieved by the 2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid and Lexus 250h, two other luxury sedan hybrids on the market. (It’s also less than the upcoming and even more luxurious Fusion/Milan cousin, the Lincoln MKZ hybrid.)
Looking at the EPA's air pollution score, the ActiveHybrid 750i earned a six (out of 10) while the HS 250h earned a nine and the S400 and Milan Hybrid each earned a 9.5. With an EPA air pollution score of six, the ActiveHybrid 750i falls in the same unfortunate category with the GM hybrids for poor smog-score.
As BMW did with its first hybrid, they decided to not downsize the engine on the ActiveHybrid 750i and instead chose to slap a full hybrid system onto the same hefty eight-cylinder engine used in the conventional 750i. And BMW is charging a whopping $17,400 for the hybrid system, putting the ActiveHybrid 750i in the “Very Low” range for Hybrid Value. “Very Low” is the worst rating for Hybrid Value and now three hybrids fall into that range (the other two being the BMW ActiveHybrid X6 and the Lexus LS 600h L).
On a somewhat brighter note, BMW only added approximately $2,900 worth of extra features on the ActiveHybrid 750i—slightly less than the overall average—giving it a Forced Features rating of ‘$$’. Of course any BMW vehicle is going to be loaded with fancy features, as consumers expect luxury from this automaker. Considering that the ActiveHybrid X6 has $10,000 worth of forced features, it looks like BMW is taking a step in the right direction with this model as far as add-ons are concerned.
You can get the full scoop on the BMW ActiveHybrid 750i on the Hybrid Scorecard.
"Who's Got Hybrids" Now?
This month we have a Prius edition for “Who’s Got Hybrids?”, and we’re showcasing owners of all three generations of the Toyota Prius. We’re really looking to add to the variety of our Who’s Got Hybrids community. Please help by sending in a photo and telling your hybrid story. And please ask your hybrid-owning friends to join us.
 John DeLand of Carlsbad, CA already has 15,000 miles on his Gen. 3 Prius and has zero buyer’s remorse. He gets around 45 mpg in the city, with lots of hills, and 55 on the highway if he’s slightly careful. He loves his car, especially the voice activated phone and navigation. He has two phones and the Prius handles them perfectly. The Gen. 3 Prius has plenty of power for this heavy footed guy. And the anti-lock brakes are great! He recently had an emergency swerve and the brakes work perfectly. His one wish is for the steering to be more solid.
 Pedro Solé of Hayward, CA thinks his Gen. 2 Prius has been a pleasure to own and drive. He’s impressed by how much intelligent design has gone into this automobile, and by the outstanding reliability. He wishes Toyota would come out with the plug-in Prius soon!
 Ruthie and Paul Premack of San Antonio, TX own three Gen. 1 Toyota Prius Hybrids and are very happy sharing them among four family members. One has more than 100k miles, and all three get great mileage (45 average mpg). One survived a Galveston hurricane and one survived being hit by a bus. Only one has had a battery pack replacement (it fell under warranty). Their son is six feet, six inches tall and fits in the car well! They drive their hybrids all over the country.
That’s it for this month, folks. Lots of good stuff afoot for October, so stay tuned!
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