Toyota Sends Plug-in Hybrids to University of California at Berkeley, Irvine for Further Study

With the success of the Prius hybrid, Toyota is now working on the plug-in hybrid and its feasibility in the US automotive market. Toyota announced today that it has given two plug-in electric hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) to the University of California (UC) at Berkeley's Institute of Transportation Studies and UC Irvine's Advanced Power and Energy Program.

The two UC schools have been working with Toyota under the auspices of the automobile manufacturer's sustainable mobility development program. In addition to the new PHEV research, the universities and Toyota have also worked on fuel cell technology and hydrogen fuels. Other groups involved in and providing funding for the PHEV research are the California Air Resources Board and the California Energy Commission. Funding is allocated through the State of California under Assembly Bill 1811, which is an incentive program for alternative fuels.

The UC Irvine will study challenges inherent in the new technology as well as adequate and effective methods of assessing the benefits of plug-in hybrids. Because PHEVs rely on traditional sources of electricity, including coal fired and natural gas-derived power generation, it is crucial to determine if PHEVs will offer any true benefit for consumers and the environment. UC Irvine will also work on ways to measure and test fuel economy and emissions in the new technology.

The work undertaken by UC Berkeley will center on the consumer reaction and acceptance of the PHEV. Since PHEVs will depend on charging batteries, some time and appropriate places will be needed to do that, and so the UC Berkeley team will study how consumers will deal with certain limitations and other considerations when using PHEVs. Also, UC Berkeley will research the typical time of day that PHEVs will be plugged in to charge, and whether that will happen at home or at the workplace for most people.