Jones Beene wrote:
> The Prius battery pack lifetimes are long, not
short. They last 200,000 miles, which is longer
than most automobiles, and they can be recycled.
You seem to be conflating the older and safer metal hydride battery packs,
which are reliable but comparatively heavy, with the newer lithium cells,
The Prius still uses the NiMH batteries. I do not understand this comment.
The lithium cells will provide a huge improvement in terms of
Amp-hrs per kg. but they operate more reliably with a full charge. And full
risk.
Well, the Prius does not use them, so the fact that some portable
computers have burned is irrelevant. That's my point. Toyota will not
use them unless the problems are fixed and the batteries are safe.
> The fact that batteries in some PCs have burned has little or nothing to
do with plug-in vehicles.
Other than it's the same basic technology?
It is a different technology. I do not understand this comment.
The Plug-in versions of the Toyota Prius now available use
old-fashioned lead-acid batteries. Range is very limited, of course.
You seem to be saying that the GM Volt plug-in hybrid will use
lithium batteries. Maybe, but the GM Volt does not exist yet, so it
doesn't count.
-Jed
