Honda is moving closer to the grid. Honda is working on on a plug-in hybrid, and an all-electric car. It will take a while until they are ready, if you want one, you need to wait until 2013. Toyota is a step and a year ahead: ToMoCo will begin mass production of plug-in hybrids and electric cars in 2012.
According to The Nikkei [sub] Honda President Takanobu Ito announced the plans at a news conference today.
Honda claims its plug-in hybrid will be able to go 60km or more on a single liter of gas, besting the Prius hybrid, which gets 38km per liter. Once the Prius can be plugged in, that advantage will most likely evaporate. Toyota says its forthcoming plug-in hybrid, will get 57km to the liter.
Honda will release its electric car in the U.S. first. California, the most populous state in that country, will require automakers to increase sales of zero-emissions vehicles starting around 2012. Honda is considering manufacturing the Insight and its two other hybrids in the U.S.
Kudos to ToMoCo for beating Honda to the plug-in and electric game. Here’s hoping this isn’t another rush to get a product to the market without sufficiently testing it, resulting in numerous belated recalls, lawsuits, and congressional hearings a few years down the road.
Well, that has nothing to do with the quality of the cars. It depends on the mood of the UAW lord in the White House.
Toyota beat Honda to the hybrid punch too – just not in the US where Honda sold the original Insight first.
Step 1: GM announces fancy concept
Step 2: Toyota builds mediocre car from concept
Step 3: Honda builds mediocre car from concept
Step 4: GM announces fancier concept
Step 5: Toyota builds improved car
Step 6: Honda builds improved car
Yawn.
It won’t happen. Did you know that Henry Ford and Thomas Edison talked about a BEV with a 100 mi. range in 1914?
“The Automobile’s Forgotten Secret” by Ralph Kinney Bennett on Wednesday, July 14, 2010
http://american.com/archive/2010/july/the-automobiles-forgotten-secret
That is the door of what car? Inquiring mind want to know (as well as how it applies to an EV).
I think that’s the Honda EV-N Concept. It’s an EV concept car btw. If you clicked on the picture there’s a credit page to a website. If you go to the website and search for Honda EV you will find this: http://www.wearesuperfamous.com/2009/09/honda-ev-n/ And there will be the door picture that you’re asking about.
Nissan is beating Toyota and Honda to the punch!!