Also, Mazda has been quick to exploit the inherent advantage of the rotary engine over conventional ICEs for using hydrogen for combustion, thus also positioning the rotary as an alternative to next generation fuel cell range extenders, should the hydrogen infrastructure ever come to pass.

Further reading:
http://www.autobloggreen.com/2008/06/26/mazda-declares-it-will-consumption-by-30-by-2015/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mazda_Wankel_engine

“I wonder if Mazda is licensing the compound rotary engine from Moller International”

No. The first working Wankel engine was made in 1957 by Felix Wankel at NSU Motorenwerke AG, and they licensed it out to other companies. The original patents have expired, so it is no longer necessary to license it from anyone. Moreover, Mazda has been developing and using Wankel engines since 1967, long before Moller even considered them for his flying car.

“Toyota got caught with their pants down with the Volt hype, even moreso since it’s a car and no longer a prototype.”

Toyota already has demonstrated fully functional prototype plug-in Priuses, with more powerful motor/generators and a different ratio in the planetery gearset to achieve a 60 mph EV only speed. It is somewhat comparable to the other GM plug-in project, the Saturn Vue dual mode plug-in hybrid. Compared to the Volt, the plug-in Prius has certain advantages and disadvantages. The Volt will likely have a larger battery and will use less gas for short freeway trips. The plug-in Prius will likely cost less, and due to a more efficient mechanical power link will use less gas on longer trips. Both will dramatically reduce fuel consumption.

“Toyota has no Li experience”

Toyota was the first to use a LiIon battery in a car, in a model called “Matiz”, sold in limited numbers in Japan. An early precursor to “stop-start” hybrids, it shut off the engine at stoplights, using the LiIon battery to run accessories and “auto-start” the engine when accelerator was pressed.

“I’ve said it before, the first EV that can cart my family around (3) and be serviced locally gets my business. I’ll buy into the ‘Buy Local’ for EVs, like I do for my food/clothes, etc, once the reality is that they are actually being made and I can go down to my dealership and buy one.”

Yes, me too. I hope that is a Volt, but it does not have to be.

Great point Don. If the goal is to reduce consumption, moving from a 15 mpg truck to a 20 mpg truck, is going to do more then from a Prius to EREV.

Uncontested. Sorry, I’d never presume to even attempt approximating Statik’s skills (break into a chorus of “The Sun’ll Come Out, to—morrow…”).
I’ll try harder to be more optimistic. I’m pretty sure it was just a temporary “reality seizure”. But I’ll check my meds to be sure…
Be well,
Tag

The Mazda rotary was inefficient and unreliable when connected to a transmission and will still be inefficient and unreliable when connected to a generator. In the end Mazda should scrap the rotary and just put an efficient 4 cylinder on the car for the
generator.

I love how we have been part of the development of the volt and how GM has asked us for suggestions. No other car company has done this for their new electric vehicle projects and I think this will aid the volt in being very successful.

“I firmly believe that every one of them is another nail in our coffin.”

*** *** ***

I’ve heard many analysts say “who cares who makes them, as long as we have inexpensive cars to drive”. If that’s the case why didn’t the Japanese just import cars after WWII? At that time, anything built anywhere was better then their domestic brands. Not only should most American’s understand what the US automakers meant toward our manufacturing efforts in WWII, they should also understand what they could mean to our sovereignty. Think for a moment if all we had were imported or transplants w/no domestically owned manufacturers and none of them were interested in producing range extended electric vehicles. It just so happens that GM went this alone and that’s why this ball started rolling, but I can certainly see a scenario where this never happened.

My in-depth study of the Saturn Vue 2-Mode Plug-in leads me to the following generalizations:

1) The physics of electric propulsion efficiency does NOT inherently prevent the Prius or the Vue 2-Mode architecture from functioning very effectively as high-mileage, EV-only vehicles at highway speeds!

2) However, the electric motor sizing must be adequate to sustain highway speeds and both the gas engine & the electric motor(s) must be able to effectively propel the car independently of each other

3) Obviously, battery design & sizing has to be much like that of the Volt’s to assure long life, good acceleration, etc., and the many processor control algorithms must be designed to allow EV-only operation

4) Bottom Line: If the above criteria can be satisfied, the efficiency penalty of a full hybrid adapted to optional EV-only operation with plug-in battery recharging is fairly modest —perhaps only 25% or even less in terms of either EV-only range or equivalent mpg in EV mode!

I’m certain GM is aware of this and that it’s why they’re adapting the Saturn Vue 2-Mode hybrid for plug-in operation. Plus, the plug-in Vue, like other hybrids, are able to use both the piston engine and the electric drive simultaneously to obtain added pulling power. (Clearly, GM isn’t about to put ALL of its eggs in the E-REV basket!)

“… it would be just a small blimp”

When did we start going on about blimps? Is Goodyear going to make an E-REV blimp now too????

HAHAHAHAHA!