See also our Frequently Asked Questions
- Memos to California officials: General Memo (Sept '04) and Detailed Memo (April '05) and National Policy Memo.
-
2004-05 Prius:
- CalCars PRIUS+ project;
- Yahoo Discussion Groups:PRIUS+ Plug-In Hybrid Conversion
Group for technical discussions about our prototypes; Gridable
Hybrids about PHEV technologies; Prius-2G for the latest
news about the 2004-05 Prius. See also PriusChat, HybridCars and GreenHybrid communities.
- How to enable the "EV-only" button (1.5MB pdf (doesn't give you a PRIUS+, just a one-mile electric range)
- EVWorld Electric Hybrids Department collects news on gas-optional or plug-in hybrids
- Oil & Security by former Sec. of State George P. Schultz and former CIA Director James R. Woolsey, Committee on the Present Danger, revised version August 2005
- Ending the Energy Stalemate by the bi-partisan National Commission on Energy Policy, December 2004 (see kudos for link to key page)
- Set America Free, Policy report by security-focused organizations
- American Public Power Association PHEV Symposium, November 17-18, 2005 includes links to 9 up-to-date presentations.
- Hybrid Electric Vehicle Working Group
Presentations, November 15, 2003 full-day "summit" workshop at EVS-20: view/download talks by 18
top experts who gave a picture of the state of the technology and status of
PHEVs.
- Implementation of AB1493 (the
Pavley bill to reduce greenhouse gas emissions): Following its enactment, the
California Air Resource Boards (CARB) considered ways to implement the law. The staff's
"Initial Statement of Reasons for Proposed Rulemaking" (long and based on complex assumptions),
showed plug-in hybrids as one of the most effective solutions. A PHEV reduces carbon dioxide
more than any other vehicle except an all-electric; fuel cell cars trail behind at about the
same level as non-grid-chargeable hybrids (assuming that hydrogen and electricity both come
from natural gas). CalCars testified at the implementation hearings,
September 23-24, 2004 in Los Angeles.
- Plug-in Hybrids: State of Play, History & Players, by Ben Ovshinsky
- CalCars Links: A listing, with annotations, of government, organization, industry and research sites for clean, efficient vehicles (last updated early 2004).
- Research Clips (OLD):
Compendium of national and California press clips from 2002-early 2004 on alternative fuel,
automotive technology and business subjects (2MB Word document, last updated in April,
2004).
-
Plug-in Hybrid Vehicle Research Reports
- Comparing the Benefits and Impacts of Hybrid Electric Vehicle Options, EPRI Report #1000349, July 2001, a 10MB document includes technology/cost overviews, focus group and marketing analyses (see EPRI's public documents page for more reports and information).
- Comparing the Benefits and Impacts of HEV Options for Compact Sedans and Sport Utility Vehicles, EPRI Report #1006892, July 2002, a 700K, 86-page "version 1.5" document updates, expands July 2001 doc (see EPRI's public documents page for more reports and information).
- Advanced Batteries for Electric Driver Vehicles May 2004, a 146-page EPRI report concludes that improvements in battery life and performance enable mass-produced plug-in hybrids to reach life-cycle cost parity with non-hybrids. Also see March 2003 22-page pre-print summary.
- Hybrid Electric Vehicle Alliance (HEVA), March 20, 2002 Meeting Highlights, a4MB, 123-page document includes seven presentations by experts
- Team-Fate Sequoia, UC Davis award-winning 2001 project converted a Chevy Suburban to a plug-in hybrid (one of several retrofits by the Davis team)
- Reducing California's Petroleum Dependence, California Energy Commission Aug 2003 report shows PHEVs are best alternative (see numbered pages 9 and 14 in report)
-
New Technologies Resources
- EV World free weekly summaries of industry news; $29 for membership and full archive -- well worth the cost
- HybridCars.com information, blogs, discussions
- HybridCenter.org information, blogs, discussions from Union of Concerned Scientists
- Hybrid Electric Vehicles information for fleet buyers at Center for a New American Dream
- Hybrid Information for fleet buyers from the Center for a New American Dream
- WestStart-CALSTART today's news and this week's news
- Electrifying Times coverage of electric vehicles
- Rocky Mountain Institute emergence of Hypercar concepts
-
Advanced Technology Groups
- Hybrid Electric Vehicle Working Group: work on plug-in hybrids 2001-2003
- Vehicle-to-Grid (two-way connectivity between utilities and parked cars with large batteries) -- many links at University of Delaware Research Center, especially "Vehicle-to-Grid Power: Battery, Hybrid, and Fuel Cell Vehicles as Resources for Distributed Electric Power in California;" and June 2005 V2G conference papers; see also demonstration project by AC Propulsion
- Hypercar Inc. (spinoff from early work at Amory Lovins' Rocky Mountain Institute) developed integrated and optimized technologies and optimized vehicles based on simulations, including the Revolution 99 MPG SUV (3MB PDF document) before the company evolved into Fiberforge, Inc., focused on lightweight composite materials. Book chapter from "Natural Capitalism" gives overview of the technology and its implications
-
Examples of "Pump-priming" and "Pre-sell" Strategies; Indications of Public
Support
-
Public Receptivity: "pledge" websites:
- Over 150,000 have signed national pledges since 2000 for Clean Cars and earthsmartcars
- Sierra Club 3-Year Campaign for improved fuel economy June 2002
- Arianna Huffington's Detroit Project SUV TV Ad Campaign Jan 2003 raised over $250,000 from 5,000 supporters in two months for TV air time
- Drive For America April 2003
- Golden Carrot Award: In 1993, 24 utilities joined the Super-Efficient Refrigerator Program, initiated by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), funding a $30M race, won by Whirlpool for designing and selling a chlorofluorocarbon-free fridge that exceeded the Energy Department's highest standards by 30% -- precedent for a new utility effort based on utilities' interest in promoting grid-connected vehicles and V2G technologies
- Greener Fleets: Fuel Economy Progress and Prospects, 33-page, December 2002 report by American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy
- Virgin Galactic has a waiting list of over 7,000 people interested in paying $190,000 for a suborbital flight on larger versions of Burt Rutan's SpaceShip One--a potential initial market of $1.3B.
- Eclipse Aviation raised over $230M, and collected over $65M in early non-refundable deposits from eager customers for delivery of small efficient $1.4M jets. In December 2005, its order backlog was over 2,300, two-thirds from fleets. It expects FAA certification in March 2006; see background article in Wired
- Segway Human Transporter: Inventor Dean Kamen pre-sold first 3 production units via high-priced auctions (unit #1 of this $3-5,000 item went for $160,100), then started taking pre-orders 8 months in advance, with incentives for first people ordering
- Moller
International is developing a four-passenger vertical take-off and landing
"Skycar." Over 100 customers reserved early delivery positions with first deposits
ranging from $5,000 to $100,000 (additional deposits tied to developmental
milestones).
-
Public Receptivity: "pledge" websites: