Toyota Hybrid Camry Details

Ten days after it revealed the first locally produced Hybrid Camry, Toyota has today detailed the intricacies of the styling and design of Australia’s first hybrid vehicle.

The new front bumper shares styling cues with the third-generation Prius for both functional and symbolic purposes.

The larger, more rectangular lower grille directs additional cooling air into the hybrid-equipped engine bay, while the radiator grille and boot-lid are finished in satin chrome to differentiate it from petrol models.

The signature blue tinted headlamps likewise identify it as a member of Toyota’s hybrid family, while the clear-cover rear combination lamps include LED lights which use less power and contribute to lower fuel use.

To accommodate for the batteries positioned above the rear axle, boot capacity has decreased from 535 litres in the standard petrol model to 389 litres, but Toyota insists it is still large enough to carry four golf bags.

Aerodynamics have improved thanks to the front’s square corners which stop turbulence around the front wheels and send a smooth air flow down the sides of the vehicle.

Covers under the engine, rear floor and fuel tank create a flat underbody which contributes to a drag coefficient six percent lower than the standard petrol model (down to 0.27), making the Hybrid Camry Australia’s most aerodynamically efficient locally manufactured car.

Toyota Style Australia (TSA) corporate manager of design, Paul Beranger, said while the car was not styled in Australia, local design information was sent to Japan over the past two and a half years to develop a car with considerable Australian input.

“In the case of our new Hybrid Camry we provided specific DNA and hybrid information along with detailed Australian design trend information.

“Toyota Australia is communicating new and advanced technology to customers without alienating them from the basic image that Camry represents. We are integrating mainstream with new technology.

“We have to ensure that our car appeals to existing owners, as well as early adopters at a realistic price,” he said.

Beranger explained extensive local research three years ago asked prospective Hybrid Camry drivers whether they wanted to be seen to be driving a hybrid car or simply as another Camry owner, and found that they wanted their own identity without standing out as a market leader.

“Therefore hybrid differentiation and identification is important to the owner as it is a strong communication image for them.

“This will change as people become familiar with Hybrid as a mainstream model.

“So the design will evolve, but right now we know this design meets Toyota’s objectives by fusing the premium image of the conventional Camry with the innovation of a hybrid vehicle.”

Beranger said Toyota’s styling emphasis in Australia was shifting towards functionality, practicality and personality, giving each car its own character while at the same time strengthening the family resemblance across the range.

He admitted one of the more difficult tasks in developing Hybrid Camry for the local market was the increased focus on road and wind noise, which becomes more obvious with the quieter hybrid drive system in action.

2010 Toyota Hybrid Camry To Be Offered In Two Trim Levels

TOYOTA AUSTRALIA’S upcoming Hybrid Camry will be offered in at least two specification levels, both pitched to the upper end of the mid-size market segment.

An up-spec Hybrid Camry with leather upholstery, power seats and a large integrated sat-nav screen was revealed to the media earlier today at Toyota Style Australia’s Port Melbourne headquarters.

At the Hybrid Camry’s official reveal 10 days ago, a car with leather trim, manually-adjusting seats, no sat-nav and a downgraded stereo system was unveiled by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, confirming that the company’s new hybrid will be sold in two slightly different flavours.

Both the cheaper model and the range-topper are equipped with dual-zone climate control, keyless entry, keyless ignition and rear parking sensors, and both share the same new bodywork.

The fresh front fascia design was penned at Toyota’s Japanese styling studios, but with local input. Toyota Australia consciously sought to develop a new face for the Hybrid Camry that showcased the car’s technology without alienating traditional Camry customers.

The sharper bumper design, blue-tinted headlamp clusters and narrower grille are certainly different, but don’t take the hybrid too far away from its conventionally-powered stablemates.

The redesigned nose offers aerodynamic improvements too. Not only does it funnel more cooling air to the engine’s radiator and the water-cooled power inverter, but its smoother lines work in conjunction with flat underbody panels to reduce the Camry’s coefficient of drag to 0.27; making it the slipperiest production car built in Australia.

A bootlip spoiler smooths airflow over the rear of the car and helps cut drag. The ten-spoke alloy wheels are the same design as that fitted to the Camry Ateva, but are shod with friction-reducing low rolling resistance tyres.

Extra sound-deadening has been added to the Hybrid Camry’s body, along with an insulated windscreen. Intended to keep the cabin extra silent during battery-only operation, the weight of the additional insulation is not considered to significantly impact fuel economy

Suspension settings and steering feel are also radically altered, the Hybrid Camry moving to electric power assistance and boasting a retuned suspension that’s described as a significant improvement over the standard car’s hardware.

The car’s hybrid battery pack has been relocated to the boot area, along with a conventional battery used to start the petrol engine and run the ancillaries.

Sitting between the rear wheels, the battery pack and its attendant cooling system severely reduces luggage space from the standard Camry’s 535 litres to just 389 litres. The 60/40 split fold function of the rear seats is preserved, but the pass-through area is only large enough to accommodate skis or a narrow surfboard.

The Chevy Volt’s 40-mile Predicament

Chevy Volt Chief Engineer Andrew Farah last Friday crashed the weekly classic car night at Bob's Big Boy hamburger joint in Burbank, California.

From its inception, the Chevy Volt was designed to travel 40 miles without using a drop of gasoline. General Motors drew the line in the sand, citing studies that show the majority of US drivers, on average, travel less than 40 miles per day. In a refrain repeated over and over again by GM executives, and bandied about in advertising, the company has held firm to its promise of 40 miles of electric driving before the small onboard engine would be called into service.

However, one year prior to its release, journalists are discovering that the Volt will fall short of the 40 miles of all-electric range under a number of conditions.

Edmunds’ John O'Dell yesterday took a brief test drive of the Volt, and grilled Volt Chief Engineer Andrew Farah. O’Dell discovered that the 2011 will indeed deliver 40 miles of battery-only range on the EPA city cycle, a driving circuit with an average speed of just under 20 mph. But the Volt’s battery range will be diminished under these conditions:

• Aggressive acceleration
• Sustain high-speed driving
• Exceptionally hot or cold ambient temperatures
• Driving in hilly or mountainous terrain

O’Dell writes, “If you pull out of the driveway with a full charge, hop on an uncrowded freeway and motor away at 65 miles an hour, you won't get 40 miles on battery power alone.”

Toyota Will Sell Prius Plug-in Hybrid in 2011

In two years, consumers will have at least three plug-in car choices from major automakers.

After years of taking a wait-and-see approach to plug-in hybrids, Toyota yesterday officially announced its plans to produce and market a plug-in version of the Prius in significant quantities. According to Executive Vice President Takeshi Uchiyamada, the company will sell "several tens of thousands" of plug-ins a year globally beginning in 2011.

The announcement comes as other global automakers, most notably General Motors and Nissan, intensify marketing efforts to promote their plug-in cars, which go on sale in late 2010. By the time the Toyota Prius Plugin Hybrid becomes widely available, consumers will have at least three choices from major global automakers for cars that primarily drive on batteries charged at home or work. The top three reasonably priced plug-in cars will represent a range of costs and electric driving range.

The most expensive is likely to be the Chevy Volt, a plug-in hybrid offering up to 40 miles of all-electric range before an on-board engine sustains the batteries charge for an additional 300 miles. The Volt is likely to sell for about $40,000.

The pure electric Nissan Leaf will offer 100 miles of driving range, so 100 percent of its driving will be electric. As an electric car, rather than a plug-in hybrid, the Leaf will not have an engine, and therefore will be limited in range to about 100 miles before needing to be recharged. It’s expected to sell for about $32,000.

The Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid will likely be the least expensive, perhaps in the high-$20,000s, but will offer the least all-electric range, approximately 14.5 miles at speeds up to 60 miles per hour. (Previously, Toyota said the Prius Plug-in would have an all-electric range of 12 miles.) Short commutes could be zero emissions, but the Prius Plug-in Hybrid will rely on its gas engine more than the other vehicles—although it will be fully recharged more quickly.

All three of the vehicles will be eligible for tax credits, as high as $7,500. The Prius Plug-in Hybrid, which will use a 5.2 kWh lithium ion battery pack—compared to the Leaf’s 24 kWh pack and the Volt’s 16 kWh—will not qualify for as high a tax credit as the other vehicles.

Electric cars from Ford, Mitsubishi and others will also be in the running.

Prius Plug-in Hybrid plug

In the race for electric and plug-in hybrid cars, Toyota will be able to leverage its commanding lead in conventional hybrids. In September, the company announced that cumulative global sales of the Prius topped 2 million units—far more than all other hybrid cars combined. Yet, GM, Nissan, Ford and others recently have taken aggressive steps to take a leadership role in the next generation of alternative vehicles, the plug-in hybrid and electric car. Toyota’s announcement about the Prius Plug-in Hybrid indicates that the company will not easily relinquish its market advantage—and perhaps more importantly, its image—as the leader in green cars.

Danish Prince Is First to Sample Fisker Karma Hybrid

Want to be the first non-employee to take a crack at Fisker’s new Karma hybrid? You’d better be the crown prince of Denmark. Seriously.

Given that the United Nations chose to hold its climate change conference in the Danish capital of Copenhagen, Fisker Automobiles decided it could gain some exposure by loaning a Karma to Denmark’s royal family. As a result, Prince Frederik used the slinky four-door hybrid to roll into today’s conference proceedings.

We’ve yet to have a crack at the Karma ourselves, but the sedan can purportedly travel 50 miles on electricity alone, before a small gasoline engine (which, at one time, was GM’s 2.0-liter turbocharged Ecotec I-4) comes on line to add an extra 250 miles of travel. Production will reportedly begin at a production line in Finland later in 2010.

New hybrid buses (quietly) travel Rockland's roads

In the past several weeks, the county has been rolling out its new electric hybrid buses. Six of the buses have been rotating along different routes, such as the 59, 93 and 95, while 10 more buses undergo final inspections.

"By the end of the week, they should all be out on the road," said Irwin Cohen, Rockland's travel-demand management coordinator.

The buses, powered by a clean diesel hybrid electrical propulsion system, mark the county's first advance toward transitioning its entire Transport of Rockland and Tappan ZEExpress fleet of 66 buses to electric hybrid by 2016.

"It's exciting for those who use the system, and it's exciting for those who may not use the system but may benefit from the greener buses that use less fuel and cleaner fuel," County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef said Tuesday.

The county spent $8.8 million — an average of $550,000 per bus — for the 16 hybrids, which were built by Gillig Corporation of Hayward, Calif. The Federal Transit Administration paid 80 percent of the cost, while the state Department of Transportation picked up 10 percent. The balance was covered by transportation funding that comes to the county from Mortgage Recording Tax revenue.

Nine more hybrids — six for TOR, three for Tappan ZEExpress — will arrive late next year. Federal stimulus money and federal grants will pay for them. Additionally, Coach USA and Monsey Trails, which serve commuters, have also ordered six hybrids.