Report: Toyota could go to Sanyo for lithium ion batteries
Panasonic is currently in the midst of taking over Sanyo and is awaiting regulatory approval. Sanyo already has deals to supply lithium batteries to Volkswagen Group in the coming years. Panasonic EV Energy, meanwhile, is believed to be trailing many of its competitors in the race to develop automotive-grade lithium ion batteries. It's not known if Toyota would use the Sanyo batteries in upcoming non-plug hybrid models or in the plug-in version of the Prius.
[Source: Reuters]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Matt 8:55AM (8/20/2009)
Am I the only one that thinks this when I see news about Li-ion cells:
BAT-TE-RIE!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m99ybtk4QNs&eurl=http://video.google.com/videosearch%3Frlz%3D1C1GGLS_enUS320US320%26sourceid%3Dchrome%26q%3Dmetalica%2520battery%26um%3D1%26ie%3DUTF-8%26sa%3DN%26hl%3Den%26tab%3Dw&feature=player_embedded#t=13
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Chris M 9:02PM (8/20/2009)
LiIon batteries could end up in both non-plug and plug-in hybrids, provided they have a high enough cycle count. For non-plug hybrids, the advantage would be lower weight and smaller size, and it might end up cheaper as well - perfect for a future "Yaris hybrid" or "Scion hybrid". LiIon is almost a must for the more substantial energy storage needs of plug-in hybrids.
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