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3. Plug-in Drivers Get Charged
“Daddy, why is that car following us? Why are they honking?” Three year-old Genevieve cried out. “Everything is fine, sweetheart. They want to learn how we are getting 100 miles per gallon.” Her father, Sven Thesen, was calm and reassuring.
Genevieve and her younger sister, Sophia, returned to their tranquil state and smiled. They were getting used to the attention. In their eyes, their parents were becoming famous for driving a Toyota Prius modified to have extra batteries be recharged each night. Sven Thesen spent about $5,000 to upgrade their Prius to a plug-in hybrid.
Sven programs the nightly charging to start at 10:30 p.m. when electric rates are the lowest. Although gasoline prices are rocketing, short trips in all-electric mode only cost about two cents per mile. Charging is as simple as using a standard 110 volt outlet in the garage.
Sven and his wife Kate are environmentalists who are quite concerned about their daughters’ future and the future of all children. They educate others each time they drive.
Kate and Sven are determined to make a difference. They are rewarded by saving a fortune in fuel. On many trips, the car uses zero fuel. The Thesens share the plug-in Prius as their only car. In his previous job, Sven biked to the train which he took to work in the city. His wife is the primary user of their 100 mpg wonder, driving to her local medical practice. They go to a gas station only once a month.
GM and Toyota have announced plans to start selling plug-in hybrids in 2010. Hundreds of drivers are not waiting for the big auto makers. They are using plug-in conversion kits with advanced batteries to achieve over 100 miles per gallon. This chapter includes the stories of some early drivers of plug-ins including the inventor Andy Frank.
Learn about new plug-in hybrids, conversions, and the future of transportation in John Addison’s new book - Save Gas, Save the Planet
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