Plug In Kits for Hybrids The battery can be charge in a home electrical outlet. More often than not, plugin kits for hybrids are used to convert Toyota Priuses to PHEV’s.

What Are Plugin Kits For Hybrids?

Plugin kits for hybrids are used to extend the range and ability of a standard hybrid vehicle, allowing the environmentally friendly car to be converted into a plugin hybrid. This means that the hybrid car can then use electrons as a source of fuel rather than just relying on gasoline. Plugin kits for hybrids require a battery as part of the conversion kit, which is charged at regular intervals, in order to provide fuel for the hybrid vehicle. The battery can be charge in a home electrical outlet. More often than not, plugin kits for hybrids are used to convert Toyota Priuses to PHEV’s.

Plugin Kits For Hybrids Terminology

A common term you may hear, or read, in conjunction with the plugin kits for hybrids is PHEV. PHEV stands for Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle. PHEV’s typically achieve about twice the fuel economy of a conventional motor vehicle. PHEV’s can average anywhere from 30-50% better fuel economy than a standard hybrid car. Depending on the battery size and design of the conversion kit, in individual plugin kits for hybrids the car can usually be driven anywhere between twenty and sixty miles using just electrons for fuel, without the need for gasoline before the battery will need a recharge in the home electrical outlet.

How Are Plugin Kits For Hybrids Used?

At the start of this new environment friendly technology, plugin kits for hybrids were only being installed by non-profit organizations and universities and often only into fleets of vehicles to help reduce costs. However, the plug-in conversion market has opened up to the private sector and now many individuals in the general public who want to use plugin kits for hybrids to change their standard hybrid vehicle, into an improved car model, with a plugin option are able to find conversion plugin kits for hybrids. The plugin kits for hybrids are still part of a specialty market for hybrid vehicles though, and your local mechanic probably doesn’t have the equipment on hand to convert your hybrid so that you have a variety of fuel choices. Part of the reason for this is the expense of the hybrid conversion kits as well as the technology for creating battery weights that do not simply add to the fuel load because of their size and design.

Who Makes Plugin Kits For Hybrids?

CalCars DIY Plugin Kits For Hybrids: http://www.calcars.org/priusplus.html
One California company, called CalCars (short for California Cars Initiative), is headquarted in Pal Alto. CalCars sells a do-it-yourself conversion package for just under five thousand dollars for converting Toyota Priuses to plug-ins. These plugin kits for hybrids are reported to allow the Toyota Prius to drive 32 kilometers while using only electrons as fuel between battery charges. This equates to fuel efficiency of roughly 100 miles per gallon, with zero gasoline emissions into the environment.

The downside to using the CalCars plugin kits for hybrids is that the conversion kit installation will most likely void your new hybrid car warranty, and drivers are typically limited to speeds of roughly 55 miles per hour. This is a speed that is lower than the minimum of many highways. Additionally, when the battery charge is depleted, a function of the do it yourself plugin kids for hybrids is to automatically turn on the PHEVs engine causing it to operate just like a regular hybrid Prius. The battery design is also based on lead-acid batteries. While this is fine in California, if you live in colder climates the lead-acid batteries often don’t perform well. At best, in warm conditions you can expect approximately 400 charges (or a two year battery life) from the CalCars plugin kits for hybrids. This type of do it yourself conversion kit would be best for someone travelling within city limits without a lot of highway mileage in their daily commute.

Plugin Kits For Hybrids Top Brand

Edrive Systems Plugin Kits For Hybrids: http://www.edrivesystems.com/
Edrive Systems is available for sale as a custom installation only. The Edrive Systems plugin kits for hybrids replace the original Toyota Prius nickel-metal-hydride battery. The battery in the Prius is replaced with a larger, lithium-ion battery, a computer that will control the battery, and a battery monitoring system. The battery monitoring system and controls were developed by EnergyCS and help let your hybrid vehicle know when the plugin kits for hybrids mechanism is depleted and you are about to switch over to a gas powered hybrid. This method of hybrid vehicle control allows for the Toyota Prius to travel at times on electron energy alone.

The Edrive Systems plugin kits for hybrids is especially good during slower speeds and typically gives the hybrid vehicle owner a longer time of running on just battery power than the CalCars plugin kits for hybrids, which is why it is listed as a top brand. In some models, a button is installed on the dash that you can click for battery only operation of the hybrid vehicle. The battery only mode is considered a boosted range in terms of fuel efficiency and typically allows approximately 40 miles of boosted fuel economy. When travelling at speeds over 55 miles per hour, the Edrive Systems hybrid conversion vehicle will typically be consuming about one fourth of its power from gasoline, while the other three fourths is made up through the battery of the plugins for hybrids conversion kit.
With speeds lower than 55 miles per hour, the Toyota Prius, using the Edrive conversion, can achieve fuel economy of 200 miles per gallon, but that is only is you remain at the lower speeds. The downside to this plugin kit for hybrids is that it costs a little more than double the CalCars model, at twelve thousand dollars. However, for double the fuel economy, it may well be worth the investment to city dwellers who typically drive at lower speeds.

To find more plugin kits for hybrids online and for additional information on environmentally friendly solutions to PHEV’s and converting hybrid cars, you may want to check out http://www.hybridcars.com/.