Bright Automotive's IDEA plug-in hybrid comes to DC April 21
Indiana's Bright Automotive is slowly but surely taking the Rocky Mountain Institute's lightweight hyper-efficient vehicle idea (read more here) and making it a reality. One thing that will stay the same, though, is the, ahem, idea. IDEA will be the name of the plug-in hybrid concept vehicle when it is unveiled in Washington, D.C. later this month. Clever, that means the car will be officially called the Bright IDEA. The plan is for the vehicle to get 100 mpge using a battery pack that is 40 percent smaller than other packs with similar range, and EV-only range should be 30 miles. The concept car was going to be unveiled at EVS24 in Norway in May, but Bright Automotive just announced that the new release date will be April 21 on Capitol Hill. Another important date on the Bright horizon: high-volume production (50,000 units a year) in late 2012.
I have one problem with Bright's 100 mpge calculation, through. Here's how they explain the number in the press release:
On a full charge, the IDEA will operate in all-electric mode for the first 30 miles before switching to hybrid mode for a full range of 400 miles. For a typical drive of 50 miles, the vehicle consumes ½ gallon of gasoline – equivalent to 100 mpg fuel efficiency.
Well, only if you drive those 100 miles in short spurts, recharging every time you go 50 miles. I'm still totally in favor of vehicles that can go tens of miles on battery power, but I don't like this sort of shady accounting. At least this isn't as bad as AFS Trinity's 150 mpg claims. More details on the Bright IDEA after the jump.
[Source: Bright Automotive]
PRESS RELEASE:
Bright Automotive Announces Name of First Vehicle and Accelerates Date of its Public Unveiling
Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle Being Built from Ground-Up by Team of Auto Industry Veterans; Concept Will Be Shown on April 21
ANDERSON, IN (April 6, 2009) – Bright Automotive, Inc. announced today that its first vehicle – a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) that will achieve 100 mpg for an average customer – will be called the IDEA. A concept version of the IDEA will be shown to the public for the first time on April 21, 2009 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.
"We named our first vehicle the IDEA because of the role it will play in helping revolutionize American transportation and moving the country toward a more secure and sustainable energy future," said John Waters, CEO and President of Bright Automotive. "We know it is possible to achieve dramatic, breakthrough fuel efficiency and deliver tremendous customer value. This is the compelling idea that drives our company and it is fully captured in our first vehicle."
Bright Automotive (www.brightautomotive.com) has the most experienced PHEV, hybrid and electric vehicle team in the industry. Waters developed the battery pack for General Motors' first production electric vehicle, the EV1, and other company executives and engineers have spent years working for major auto manufacturers and suppliers. Bright Automotive will begin high volume production by the end of 2012 – with an annual run rate of 50,000 units. To produce its vehicle, the company plans to create over 5,000 jobs by 2013.
Bright Automotive also announced today that a concept version of the vehicle will first be shown to the media and public on Capitol Hill on April 21. Members of Congress and companies involved with Bright Automotive will take part in a briefing on the IDEA and a public event.
Waters continued, "We created the IDEA by starting with a clean sheet, listening to customer needs, and using breakthrough technologies and materials. The IDEA will deliver superior fuel-efficient performance and a lower cost of ownership than competing traditionally-powered vehicles. At the same time, it will help to re-invigorate the American auto industry and create thousands of new 'green collar' jobs here in the U.S."
To achieve groundbreaking fuel efficiency, Bright Automotive is maximizing platform efficiency, by incorporating lightweight materials, advanced aerodynamics and low-rolling resistance tires to use less combined energy. On a full charge, the IDEA will operate in all-electric mode for the first 30 miles before switching to hybrid mode for a full range of 400 miles. For a typical drive of 50 miles, the vehicle consumes ½ gallon of gasoline – equivalent to 100 mpg fuel efficiency.
Bright Automotive was launched out of the Rocky Mountain Institute, where it had the great benefit of visionary leadership from partners including Alcoa, Duke Energy, Google.org, Johnson Controls, and the Turner Foundation. Today, with the most experienced EV and PHEV team in the industry, Bright is prepared to answer the nation's call for clean energy vehicles that are developed and built here in America.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
oollyoumn 5:05PM (4/06/2009)
I don't like the calculations either. The total energy used is not 1/2 of a gallon. If you made a steam powered car that burned a cord of wood to go 100 miles, but used a qt of gas to start the fire, you could say the car gets 400 mpg using the calculation method above.
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jzj 7:45PM (4/06/2009)
Here are the 3 numerical claims on the Bright Automotive vehicle website:
1. "Low-rolling resistance tires minimize friction, increasing fuel economy approximately 6 to 9 percent."
2. "A mere 10 percent weight reduction leads to at least a 7 percent increase in fuel economy."
3. "Mass decompounding and makes it possible for us to take the next step of incorporating PHEV technology, achieving an amazing 10x improvement in fuel efficiency over other vehicles in our market segment."
I believe that the first 2 figures are each inflated; that they are not additive; and that since their market segment -- apparently, hybrid midsize-SUVs -- includes the Escape which gets a combined 33 mpg, they must achieve 330 mpg.
Good luck with that.
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KenGirard 4:56PM (4/07/2009)
30 miles on electric, followed by 20 miles on 0.5 gallons of gas. This means that during the 20 miles when they are burning gas the vehical is getting 40mpg.
Lets extend it:
20 miles x 5 = 100 miles which would burn 2.5 gallons of gas using their numbers.
In a run from fully charged to out of gas would give an average of 43.34mpg.
If they cut the range to 300 miles they could then get it up to 44.44mpg.
If they cut the range to 200 miles they could then get 47.06mpg.
If they cut the range to 100 miles they could then get 57.16mpg.
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Bob Wallace 1:21PM (4/08/2009)
There does seem to be a need for a better mileage reporting system. Perhaps something along the lines of a standardized electricity/fuel chart.
Miles between charges:
10 - 2.5 kWh + 0 gallons
30 - 7.5 kWh + 0 gallons
50 - 7.5 kWh + 0.5 gallons
200 - 7.5 kWh + 4.0 gallons
(Just making up numbers here....)
Given a standardized chart people could compare cars and see which best fits their needs.
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entropy 6:34AM (4/24/2009)
it's not shady accounting... it's a bald-faced lie.
using their method of calculating "mpg fuel efficiency" you could theorectically get infinite mpg... just limit yourself to 30 miles on battery (30 miles divided by zero gallons used). it's absurd to be sure, but no less absurd than the b.s. term "mpg fuel efficiency" in which 30 miles on the amount of electric fuel in the battery pack plus 20 miles on a half gallon of liquid fuel magically translates into 100 "mpg fuel efficiency".
what's most surprising is that rmi is promoting this quote on their website... things must be slipping a bit over there.
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Chris M 2:43AM (4/09/2009)
I can understand the impulse to put their planned product in the best possible light, but if those fuel economy figures are perceived as being misleading or invalid, it could backfire badly on them. It would be better to just explain how it works, and let people figure out how much fuel savings they'd get based on their own personal driving habits.
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Eagle M 1:29PM (4/15/2009)
I don't understand what all the fuss is about - I don't think they're hiding anything - anyone who reads the release can tell that the first 30 miles = no gas, after that = 40 mpg. They're generalizing that the average driver goes about 50 miles in a day and recharges at night. Is this particularly difficult?
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Don 11:50AM (4/19/2009)
The problem of course that these kinds of cars epitomize the adage of "your mileage may vary." For me, commuting about 12 miles each way - mpg is infinite and the electricity is a relative bargain, even with a few extra errands on the way. For someone who drives cross country every day? More modest.
What is average? Most experts claim that the average commuter travels less than 40 miles a day on average, and that does fit average yearly mileage averages.
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Gladius 5:53AM (4/22/2009)
"your average COMMUTER" since when does that include minivan/light freight drivers?
A van that size will probably be used as much as possible all day and possibly all night. That's what companies do to optimize shipping costs. I doubt it will only be doing 50 miles per day, in fact, vans this size are typically used in cross country deliveries which, AFAIK, are slightly longer than 50 miles.
People in the market for a van this size are very careful with their vehicle selection, as it plays a big part in securing income. I think Bright are trying to capitalize on it being an EV, and are hoping that spiralling gas prices and the "save the planet" eco-mentalism will drag buyers away from the ubiquitus Ford / Mercedes / GM vans. The point is that if the van doesn't deliver (it's promises) it won't sell.
Don 8:54PM (4/22/2009)
Gladius, you do realize that on 4/19 none of us knew what the vehicle was going to be and that the expectation by many was that it would be an SUV cross-over style vehicle?
The choice to go for the delivery van fleet market may have been a smart one but it was not widely expected.
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NeilBlanchard 8:01AM (8/05/2009)
Hi,
Deciphering the mileage claims, it looks like this vehicle gets ~40mpg while running the ICE, and depending how you account for the ~30 miles of electric range, you can say it gets 70-100mpge. In other words, you burn ~1/2 gallon of gas to go 50 miles, and 1 gallon of gas along with the electric range gives you ~70 miles.
The shorter distance you drive it, the better, but even going ~110 miles and getting 55mpge is pretty impressive. I'll ask my brother, who drives a UPS truck, how long a typical delivery route is.
Sincerely, Neil
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Sethunya 1:53PM (9/03/2009)
"Displacing a van that gets 12 or so miles per gallon with a PHEV that can go 30 miles on a charge and then becomes a 40 mpg vehicle could be worth thousands of gallons a year to fleet operators. Another way to say it is that the van gets 100 mpg*
You know, these overblown claims of mileage really need to stop. Please speak in terms of what the average driver can expect.
If you drive this vehicle 100 miles, charged only at the start of the day, what mileage can you expect? My guess? Maybe 45mpg...
Is this bad? NO! But 100mpg expectations IS bad. Let's speak in an unqualified manner about PHEVs.
How many miles per tank can the operator expect out of this vehicle? The only way to come close to speaking intelligently on the standardized EPA/CARB tests is to test the vehicle fully charged and then test the vehicle with the all-electric mode inoperative.
By some calculation yet to be determined, much can be said about the real-world mpg that an everyday person can understand and count on.
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