http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=10946 Planet Ark Toyota delivers gas/electric vehicles to Denver
USA: May 24, 2001 DENVER - With rising gasoline prices and concern over air pollution as a backdrop, Toyota Motors yesterday delivered to the city of Denver 39 gas-electric hybrid cars that register 52 miles per gallon in city driving. The purchase of the 2001 Prius sedan models, which run on both an electric motor and a conventional engine, will bring to 14 percent the share of the city's light vehicle fleet that runs on alternate fuels, city officials said. "We're committed to making Denver an environmentally friendly city," Theresa Donahue, manager of Denver's Department of Environmental Health, said in front of City Hall where the vehicles were parked. The cars will be used by the Denver Fire Department, Parks and Recreation and other city agencies. The delivery of the cars in downtown Denver provided Toyota with a golden marketing opportunity. "Hopefully it helps spread the world that these vehicles exist," Greg Kitzens, assistant General Manager for Toyota Motor Sales USA, Inc., told Reuters. Only Toyota with its Prius and Honda Motor Co. Ltd. with the Honda Insight, have hybrid gas-electric vehicles for sale. Other automakers are not expected to have models available until 2003 at the earliest. Toyota also delivered seven RAV4-EVs, or electric vehicles, that get 126 miles (200 km) on "one tank" or charge, that will be leased by companies in the Denver area. PRIUS NEEDS NO RECHARGING The four-door Prius sedan, which seats five, does not need to be recharged because it generates power when the driver steps on the brake. Because of this, the car, which retails at $19,995, gets better mileage in the city than on the highway, 52 mpg (83 kilometers) compared with 48. Toyota is selling the Prius model at a rate of about 1,000 a month, in line with its annual target of 12,000, Kitzens said. About 4 percent of Prius sales in the United States go to fleets, but about 30-35 percent of sales in western U.S. states are for fleets, a Toyota spokeswoman said. The Denver region, which covers six western states, accounts for about 10 percent of Prius sales, Kitzens said, a higher count than would be expected in the sparsely populated Rocky Mountain region. While the Prius is a hybrid, the RAV4-EVs is powered solely by an electric motor. Seven public access charging stations will be built around the Denver area, including at Denver International Airport through a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy Clean Cities program, Donahue said. The RAV4, which looks like a small sport utility vehicle, is being offered for lease exclusively to fleet users. As of spring 2001, 821 RAV4-Evs have been delivered. It takes about five to six hours to fully recharge the battery. Both vehicles offer a smooth ride and if it were not for indicators in the Prius showing when the electric motor kicks in, many drivers would not detect the difference. Story by Judith Crosson REUTERS NEWS SERVICE Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Please do NOT send "unsubscribe" messages to the list address. To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
