One of the world’s premiere auto shows, the North American International Auto Show in Detroit just finished up its 2010 edition January 24. This year’s show featured a 37,000 square foot exhibit on the Cobo Center’s main floor called Electric Avenue. No, this was not a Motown tribute to the Reggae/Ringbang singer and songwriter Eddy Grant. Electric Avenue was a showcase of the next generation of ‘green’ cars and it was telling that this technology was displayed on the same floor that had formerly hosted Hummers and the other big boys of the SUV family.

Not that long ago the only alternative energy vehicles on display at a typical auto show would have been the obligatory Toyota Prius and the Honda Insight. This year Electric Avenue had displays showcasing next gen cars such as the all-electric Nissan Leaf; the Audi electric concept, the striking E-Tron and the plug-in electric Concept ActiveE from BMW. The much ballyhooed and long-awaited GM entry, the Chevrolet Volt and an electric version of the Ford compact the Focus were touted as cars that will be available in the next year or so. Virtually every major auto maker in the world (and some you haven’t even heard of) had battery-powered cars at the show.

The Chinese battery maker BYD which has attracted Warren Buffet as an investor, is now making an electric car and brought the E6 to Electric Avenue. The Korean automaker Hyundai exhibited its hybrid concept the Blue Will. The more established European automakers like Mercedes Benz (ML450 hybrid, S400 Hybrid) and VW (NCC Hybrid Concept) though not officially on Electric Avenue had their green technology on display within their manufacturer exhibits.

Tesla Motors, the high-priced electric car company based in Palo Alto, California made EV news at the Detroit Auto Show when they indicated that Tesla would have an ‘affordable’ sedan in showrooms next year. Tesla is a bit of an ‘elder statesman’ in the EV world and has had an electric vehicle on the road for nearly two years now.

The two real incumbents in the alternative transportation business, Honda and Toyota, also brought new hardware to the Detroit show. Honda, which is trying to compete better with Toyota in hybrids introduced the CR-Z hybrid coupe which will arrive in dealerships within the year. Toyota, the leader in the current hybrid market, seems to be following through on their pledge to create a family of hybrids that could possibly carry the Prius name. It showed off a concept version of a car that is twenty-two inches shorter than today's Prius, which it called the FT-CH (Future Toyota-Compact Hybrid). The concept could become a part of the Prius line-up employing the same hybrid core-technology but at a significantly lower sales price. Toyota also said it planned a widespread release of the plug-in Prius in 2011, indicating that it would manufacture between 20,000 to 30,000 Prius Plug-ins the first year.

In a news conference Koei Saga, the head of Toyota’s advanced technology and battery development division announced that Toyota had set up a research division of 50 engineers to develop advanced lithium-ion batteries for future plug-in hybrids. Although committed to hybrid and plug-in hybrid technology he expressed doubt about the current prospects (no pun intended) for long distance battery-only cars. The cost and range remain the issues. The limited range of high-voltage battery packs is still the biggest hurdle which means that all-electric vehicles offer the greatest promise as small commuter-type or neighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs). Koei Saga was asked if longer range EVs were possible with current technology and he said it would only happen “if we forget about battery-life and if we forget about the cost incurred for replacement of those batteries.” Asked if the world’s vehicles would ever be exclusively electric, Mr. Saga said, “In my personal view, I think we will never abandon the internal-combustion engine.” He did envision a possible future for fuel-cell vehicles and internal-combustion cars that burn hydrogen, however.

Mr Hybrid
John P. Dolan