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A tale of a car with two motors A computer allows the Toyota Prius to run on gas and electricity Wednesday, April 04, 2001 By Bob Podurgiel
Robert Moll of Mt. Lebanon gets a big charge out of his new car every time he drives it. In fact, he has so much fun behind the wheel he sometimes forgets the vehicle represents a sophisticated new approach to automotive technology.
"The remarkable thing about this car is how unremarkable it is," he said.
Although the Toyota Prius may ride and handle like a regular car, it is far from an ordinary vehicle. It's a hybrid gas-electric vehicle that employs two motors -- one gas, one electric -- extra batteries and a sophisticated computer system that work together to squeeze every conceivable mile out of a gallon of gas, even in Pittsburgh's hilly terrain.
Moll, a chemist for PPG Industries Inc., said he averages more than 40 miles per gallon even on short trips of a mile or two. And that's twice what he averaged in his old Ford Escort and three or four times what he would average if he owned a sport utility vehicle.
"I drive about 10,000 miles a year, so I expect to save about $500 a year on gasoline at today's prices," he said.
The money he will save on gas was only one reason he bought the hybrid Toyota Prius, however.
"There are a number of environmental benefits to driving a car like this, but I'm something of a technology freak. I've always been interested in new technologies," he said.
The car has earned a 10 rating from the federal Environmental Protection Agency's green vehicle guide, meaning it ranks among the cleanest cars on the road.
The Prius is considered an ultra-low-emission vehicle when it comes to emitting smog-forming pollutants, such as nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons, and emits far less carbon dioxide than a standard car.
Many scientists believe increasing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere contributes to global warming. And one of the chief sources of CO2 entering the atmosphere is the internal combustion engine.
The EPA estimates about 20 pounds of CO2 are produced for every gallon of gasoline a vehicle burns.
"It's controversial right now, but I believe CO2 is eventually going to be considered a pollutant and regulated," Moll said. "The amount of CO2 produced by a vehicle is directly proportional to the gas mileage. The higher the gas mileage, the lower the amount of CO2 produced."
Moll has been interested in environmental issues a long time and has been a member of the Mt. Lebanon Nature Conservancy since 1991. He was president of the local volunteer conservation group for two years and is now its treasurer.
While his new car's environmental benefits are important to him, Moll's eyes really light up when he explains the vehicle's technology.
The car uses a sophisticated computer system that constantly switches back and forth between gas, electric and battery power, depending on driving conditions.
It generally runs on the four-cylinder motor at high speeds or when accelerating and on electric when it goes in reverse, at low speed or decelerates.
The gas and electric motors work together to help generate power. At red lights, or during extended stops, most systems shut down to conserve energy. The transmission helps the car creep forward during stop-and-go driving, further conserving power.
One of the car's most intriguing features for Moll is how engineers figured out how to get power from the brakes. "There is power regeneration from the brakes. When you use the brakes, they help generate power for the system."
Interaction between the systems can produce some unusual results he found on a recent weekend trip to Indianapolis. "There was a car wreck outside of Indianapolis and a big traffic jam. I actually ended up with better gas mileage driving through the traffic jam than I did on the open road, because it was running so much on electric."
Moll also has been pleased with the car's performance on hilly terrain closer to Pittsburgh. "The acceleration is quite adequate. It's very quiet when going uphill, and it handles like a normal car. The electric and gas systems constantly switch back and forth. It's like driving a computer. The car almost drives you."
He can even monitor how those systems switch back and forth by looking at a screen in the center of the dashboard.
The display panel also continually updates the miles per gallon the car achieves and displays this data in a bar-graph fashion.
"If you are doing a lot of jack rabbit starts, the miles per gallon will be lower, but as you drive the car more efficiently, the miles-per-gallon rate increases, so the car itself actually teaches you how to drive it more efficiently," Moll said.
The gas and the electric motors sit side by side in the front of the car. The batteries tucked under the back seat make the car a little heavier than a standard compact car.
The Prius weighs between 2,600 and 2,700 pounds but seats five. Its trunk space is equivalent to that in Moll's wife's GEO Prism. The car needs no charge from an electric outlet as an all-electric vehicle does.
The gas tank holds 12 gallons, but the car burns regulator gas so efficiently, it can be driven more than 400 miles between refills, Moll said.
He paid $20,500 for the car at Rohrich Toyota Inc. on West Liberty Avenue, where such vehicles sell at the rate of about four or five a month. So far, he's put a little more than 2,000 miles on his and reports no mechanical problems.
Moll admits another reason for buying his Prius besides environmental benefits and money saved on gasoline. "I thought I would do something wild when I bought this car. I'm just having a lot of fun driving it."
People wishing to catch a glimpse of Moll's hybrid car can do so from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 21 at Upper St. Clair High School during an event called Watershed Awareness Day. The following Saturday, he will display the car in the morning at Mt. Lebanon's Bird Park in conjunction with the Mt. Lebanon Parks Cleanup.
Bob Podurgiel is a free-lance writer.
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