Rumors circulating about next summers new releases...

Possible news or rumors.... its been rumored that next summer the Rav-4 will be equipped with a V6 .... also the toyota FJ cruiser might be released for sale.. and the Echo is being replaced by the Toyota YARIS... but that will take approximately 1-2 years...

And this just in... Sky blue metallic is the ugliest color ever created for the Toyota Camry

Originally posted by Stillnmax
Possible news or rumors.... its been rumored that next summer the Rav-4 will be equipped with a V6 .... also the toyota FJ cruiser might be released for sale.. and the Echo is being replaced by the Toyota YARIS... but that will take approximately 1-2 years...

And this just in... Sky blue metallic is the ugliest color ever created for the Toyota Camry

So basically, More SUV craze, Echo won't be quite as lame, and we still have no sports car. Awesome! :thumbdown

uhh... The FJ Cruiser may come out, but as for the Rav-4 with a V6? I dont think so... then it would be in direct competition to the cross-over Kluger. That and it would no longer be a Rav-4, it would be an Rv-6 Land Cruiser Prado.

As for the Echo... It is a Yaris in Eurpoe... Just under a different name Unless you guys are getting the Hatchback, Finally.

So about the only one of those that is partially credible is the one about the FJ Cruiser.. Hovever, they did say 2006-07 for that one.

For those who have no idea what i am talking about, this is the lineup in Australia, as far as the Kluger and the Prado Rv-6 is concerned:

Kluger: http://kluger.toyota.com.au/Kluger/HomePage

Landcruiser Prado: http://prado.toyota.com.au/Prado04/HomePage/0,,,00.html

interesting

Hmmm... I haven't seen the release yet, so I'm not sure. It's possible. Either Will or I will confirm this if once we get the press release. But so far I'm doubting it.


And once again Talisman18, Toyota isn't getting any sports cars, Lexus is:rolleyes:

Originally posted by SmokingTiresV6
Hmmm... I haven't seen the release yet, so I'm not sure. It's possible. Either Will or I will confirm this if once we get the press release. But so far I'm doubting it.


And once again Talisman18, Toyota isn't getting any sports cars, Lexus is:rolleyes:

Yes I know. That's my problem. That Toyota doesn't have any sports cars. When Toyota comes up with something I actually care about (read: a real sports car or sedan that has a stick, a real engine, and is not fwd, then let me know.

And as of now, neither Lexus or Scion has anything that counts either unless maybe you want to throw in the IS300 but that car is slow.

You know it's bad when the closest thing a company will have to a sports car is a truck(the upcoming X-runner)

So when Toyota as a company(including lexus and Scion) finally decides to release something worthwhile, someone let me know. Until then, I have really lost faith in Toyota. :disappoin

All ye of little faith. Your prayers will be answered soon enough.

More models are coming...you just won't know about it until they arrive. :thumbsup: :rockon:

^
But I will. Maybe you missed the Offical Toyota News Provider part :p:


The X-Runner isn't all bad. It can outhandle a Nissan Z. And there is a Supercharger option coming out that will boost it to 300hp. Plus the sweet look :)

Originally posted by SmokingTiresV6
^
But I will. Maybe you missed the Offical Toyota News Provider part :p:


The X-Runner isn't all bad. It can outhandle a Nissan Z. And there is a Supercharger option coming out that will boost it to 300hp. Plus the sweet look :)

I never liked small size SUVS. Its Escalade or nothin. :smokin:

But yah, a lex sports car is going to cost fucking thousands just for the lex badge.
Toyota needs one which is pretty affordable and is still good.

Originally posted by CamNub
I never liked small size SUVS. Its Escalade or nothin. :smokin:

But yah, a lex sports car is going to cost fucking thousands just for the lex badge.
Toyota needs one which is pretty affordable and is still good.

Umm.... The X-Runner is a Pick-up man. Based off the Tacoma. Search it.


The Lexus Sports cars are going to be $80,000+. Hense the comparison to AMG.

Asking for an affordable sports car is like saying you want them to give you a styled up pile of crap. Since when has any decent sports car been cheap? Shit, Used Supra's still run $30,000. Decent sports cars don't come cheap.

If you want power, you want quality. Show your support. Start a petition to Toyota to bring out a new sports car. Get some 1000 people to sign it and say that they would buy the car if it were to come out and meet certain standards.


But what you guys don't understand, is Toyota moving away from performance. The Toyota name is moving towards the luxury that Lexus is now (if you haven't noticed the increase in luxury of their cars). Lexus is moving up. And Scion is taking over the low end. And from the way it seems, Scion is going to take over the performance aspect also. I'm guessing in the next few years we will for sure see Superchargers for the xB and xA (same engine, which will be nice having a S/C for the Prius:cool: ), and some sportier cars too.

What are you talking about? 350z, STI, EVO, RX-8, mazdaspeed Miata, new Mustang GT, GTO, S2K, etc. All of those are affordable Sports cars that perform extremely well.

Toyota can move towards whatever they want. I have already decided that I will be leaving the brand. :disappoin


I will still have my Camry though.:D

New Mustang GT :loove: 0-60 in 5.1 seconds :D

A GTO is hardly the affordable they are talking about. They want Celica price with Supra performance. Not gonna happen.


And Toyota doesn't need your business:p:

Hey, if they can give it to me in the 30k price range, I think that is very affordable.

Yeah, it is. I agree entirely. Shit, I think $32,000 for a Mustang Cobra is reasonable.

But my point is that these other people are a bunch of students that are willing to spend little money on a car. And their looking for a $18,000 car that will perform like a Z06. And it's just not going to happen anytime soon.

And if no one noticed, every performance car Toyota has produced ends up having horrible sales. Hence why the Supra was cancelled, why the Celica and MR-S are cancelled (And yes I know that the MR-S is a crappy car, but that's not the reason sales are low). They are going to bring one back because market research tells them it won't sell.

If you were them, would you risk your $10 billion sales?

Well they still gained ground on competitors even with the non-selling celica and MRS so it couldn't have been hurting them that much.

Quote......"And this just in... Sky blue metallic is the ugliest color ever created for the Toyota Camry"

YO!!! Stillnmax!!!! Read this!!!!!

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/t50933.html

asg14 ... I personally dont like the color... it does grow on you but its still ehh ... im also coming from the standpoint of inventory control, i have this color in my one camry and its sitting here collecting dust... not only that its a color that nobody seems to want in their inventory....

i did read that they are thinking about the yaris and we are supposed to get the turbocharged version as well.

It's funny how the only car some of you guys want is sports car, sports car and sports car. Have you seen the sales numbers for celicas or MR2s? Yeah, as much as we like sports cars most of us actually prefer SUVs and sedans when it comes down to buying one.

It's true about the RAV though.....next gen will have the V6 option for sure. Even the Hyundai Tucson based on the elantra platform has V6 option now.

We have those prados here in Belize. I love those things, I like 'em better than the lexus gx series. There are just minor exterior differences between the two, but the prado still grabs my attention more.

Your telling me that if they brought the Supra back they wouldn't sell? Come on the Supra is one of the most sought after cars today.

why would anyone pay $34k+ for a 225hp sportscar, of $48k for a 320hp Twin Turbo sportscar, when for that same $34k, they can get into a Mustang GT with blower, or a Stage 1 Roush Mustang, or at $48k, they could get a 350hp Corvette with better acceleration?

Originally posted by B Deuce
why would anyone pay $34k+ for a 225hp sportscar, of $48k for a 320hp Twin Turbo sportscar, when for that same $34k, they can get into a Mustang GT with blower, or a Stage 1 Roush Mustang, or at $48k, they could get a 350hp Corvette with better acceleration?

Because it has one of three mass produced engines in the world that can handle 981whp on stock internals when tuned properly (that's the highest I've seen it taken, correct me if you know of one higher, but @ Import Eurasia a couple years back there was a red 95 pushing 981whp on stock internals for over 30K and going, not bad). People are paying that price for them used. Don't believe me? My cousin is selling his 1998 TT 6-speed for $48,000 and already has a few people interested in just under 1 week. They will pay because of the car.

I agree that it wouldn't go over big again though, because Toyota would probably water it down to a moderate V6 simular to what Nissan has done with the Z. the Z is great, but the motor is no where near as stout as the VG. The same way Toyota's V6's are great, they are nowhere near as stout as the 1J, 2J, and 7M.

We are getting a 2-door Altezza/IS in the US, and that's RWD with a 6-speed and 2J, and it won't be that bad in price.

Originally posted by rolla-XRS
All ye of little faith. Your prayers will be answered soon enough.

More models are coming...you just won't know about it until they arrive. :thumbsup: :rockon:

From what I have been reading at the Supra forums, we might get a surprise in a few years :thumbup:

Personally, I would love to see a small V8. There is something comforatable about a V8 :D - however, whatever they build should be amazing, I just hope they offer something in the STi price range.

Originally posted by liquidsilver
It's funny how the only car some of you guys want is sports car, sports car and sports car. Have you seen the sales numbers for celicas or MR2s? Yeah, as much as we like sports cars most of us actually prefer SUVs and sedans when it comes down to buying one.


Hey, I would settle for a nice rwd sports sedan with a stick too. :thumbup:

Mark Tozer ran 1060 RWHP on stock internals in his Supra and i thought they discontinued use of the 2JZ... and are switching to a different platform

Originally posted by 1fastLE
Because it has one of three mass produced engines in the world that can handle 981whp on stock internals when tuned properly (that's the highest I've seen it taken, correct me if you know of one higher, but @ Import Eurasia a couple years back there was a red 95 pushing 981whp on stock internals for over 30K and going, not bad). People are paying that price for them used. Don't believe me? My cousin is selling his 1998 TT 6-speed for $48,000 and already has a few people interested in just under 1 week. They will pay because of the car.

I agree that it wouldn't go over big again though, because Toyota would probably water it down to a moderate V6 simular to what Nissan has done with the Z. the Z is great, but the motor is no where near as stout as the VG. The same way Toyota's V6's are great, they are nowhere near as stout as the 1J, 2J, and 7M.

We are getting a 2-door Altezza/IS in the US, and that's RWD with a 6-speed and 2J, and it won't be that bad in price.


there's no such thing as a 1J and 2J, it's 1JZ and 2JZ respectively.


and from what i've seen, i doubt there will be another supra-like car. i think they will make a new 100k+ supercar soon, using the V10 from F1 to compete with the ferrari 430

I could just as easily say there is no such thing as a 1jz. There is a 1jz-ge. It's just shortening it.


Anyways, I have said a million times, they aren't making a new Supra. Seeing as Sportivo Concepts is an official Toyota News provider, we would know. Check it out, we have all the info on upcoming stuff all on the main pages and news archives:
http://www.sportivoconcepts.com/index.php

The new performance cars will be $90k+ cars produced under the lexus name. 600hp hybrids and things along those lines. Toyota doesn't plan on releasing any more sports cars under the Toyota name anytime soon. However if you want to buy an AWD Lex, you'll be happy to see what the future brings :D

Originally posted by 02RSX90camry
there's no such thing as a 1J and 2J, it's 1JZ and 2JZ respectively.


and from what i've seen, i doubt there will be another supra-like car. i think they will make a new 100k+ supercar soon, using the V10 from F1 to compete with the ferrari 430

Everyone here knows what I mean when I say 1J or 2J, it's a JZ series engine. WOW, don't be ridiculously critical. No offense, but there more important things than bitching about shortening an engine code. :rolleyes:

Smokin': It is nice that your company is an 'official toyota news' provider,and I thank you, but a few of my graduated fraternity brothers work for Toyota and have made it very clear to me that Toyota rarely announces BIG releases much in advance. Example? The Lexus GS. Before debuting, there was absolutely no knowledge of the new GS, then two weeks before release, and nearly three years earlier than promised, Toyota says "The new GS is done and will debut at the auto show" . They have also said that Toyota is looking to produce another car for the GT racing circuit to replace the (OMG, did he say that?) Supra. Now it obviously won't be a 'Supra', but it will be a qualified GT chassis. They don't know what nameplate it will be under (Toyota or Lexus), but it will happen. Yes, I know you said that it would be under Lexus, but Rishi says that he believes otherwise.

And to all those of little faith, the IS300 is coming in a coupe/2-door and convertible model soon enough. It's RWD, has a manual tranny, and our beloved motor, if they don't replace it with the new 3.5 V-6 in the upcoming GS350, which Rishi said is highly likely.

Edit (uh-oh, run on sentence on a forum) :lol: 90RSX, don't take it to heart, but it's annoying to be critical on a forum. :thumbup:

Originally posted by 1fastLE
And to all those of little faith, the IS300 is coming in a coupe/2-door and convertible model soon enough. It's RWD, has a manual tranny, and our beloved motor, if they don't replace it with the new 3.5 V-6 in the upcoming GS350, which Rishi said is highly likely.

Yeah, we already reported the IS300 story ;) That was earlier this month...
http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/t50371.html

I'm sure you know about the 600hp hybrid Lexus in development right now too. 300hp gas and 300hp electric. AWD of course. But it's coming out through Lexus.


A GT car is one thing, a production car is another. And none of which will replace or be the Supra. The idea may be formulated after the Supra, but it won't be a Supra.

Trust me, we're up on everything.

So, will Toyota have SOME SORT (Supra or not) of affordable RWD coupe to compete with the 350Z and all that?

Fvck a supercar. What good is a supercar if there is not a cheaper alternative in the lineup ($30-40,000)?

Toyota the brand won't be coming out with any sports cars anytime soon. Toyota is moving towards a more Luxury status. And Lexus is moving towards an AMG status with a line of super high-end performance cars. So there won't be any new sports cars released in North American anytime soon.

However you can ship a number of cars that they don't manufacture here.

Did I mention Sportivo Concepts is a Importer? :D

:(

So if Nissan, Mazda, Honda, Mitsubishi, Subaru, etc. can make money off sports cars, why not Toyota?

Because Toyotas affordable ones are crap. The Celica was a 4cyl FWD pussy. It looked cool bad had no balls. Same with the MR-S.

And you have to look at who makes them. Toyota prides itself on the great mileage and the quality (they sure as hell don't die) of their cars. All the other companies pride themselves on performance (power and handling). And sometimes that costs a little more, but they do it.

But I want a RWD sports car from Toyota - and I want it NEW.

get an x-runner:D

Originally posted by SmokingTiresV6
Yeah, we already reported the IS300 story ;) That was earlier this month...
http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/t50371.html

I'm sure you know about the 600hp hybrid Lexus in development right now too. 300hp gas and 300hp electric. AWD of course. But it's coming out through Lexus.


A GT car is one thing, a production car is another. And none of which will replace or be the Supra. The idea may be formulated after the Supra, but it won't be a Supra.

Trust me, we're up on everything.

The IS thing was not directed to you, it was to everbody. The Lexus is not immediatly new news. The GT car WILL have a production version in limited quantities, it is required to. ;) I complimented you, and you questioned me, please don't doubt my intelligence, Rishi is a project engineer for Toyota. :)

Originally posted by trdcamry2003
get an x-runner:D

:slap:

I drove a rented Dodge Ram Hemi and fvcked with it for a while. Scared the shit out of me. A truck is a truck and I bet it will not match a car.

IDEA: what if the engine and tranny (RWD setup) might be able to be dropped in a car... Hmmm...

Yeah it's not a car but it's the best sports vehicle they have right now in the lineup. It drives like a sports car.;)

Will it be a drift machine?

I've gotten this thing sideways already. I don't see why you couldn't use it for drifting.

Originally posted by trdcamry2003
I've gotten this thing sideways already. I don't see why you couldn't use it for drifting.

So is it cool?

F*ck yeah, I love this truck. Speaking of driving like a sports car this truck handles better than my 88 supra(stock). And is alot faster.

Wow.

How much $$$?

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=54047&highlight=xrunner

the msrp is 23,805

Originally posted by 1fastLE
The IS thing was not directed to you, it was to everbody. The Lexus is not immediatly new news. The GT car WILL have a production version in limited quantities, it is required to. ;) I complimented you, and you questioned me, please don't doubt my intelligence, Rishi is a project engineer for Toyota. :)

Sorry, thought it was directed at me. And I didn't question your intelligence. Props on your connections though:thumbup: Always good to be on the inside.

And yeah, i forgot that GT cars have to be "production cars". So they're prolly sell a few 1000 maybe? Something along those lines. A limited Edition.


As for the X-Runner, that's not a car. And it's not enitrely the performance people are looking for (they all want big power, 300hp+). However if you do a search, you'll see I did report on that too like 5 months back :)

But it is the sickest thing Toyota has right now. And I would love to have one myself. Once they develope the supercharger for it, it will be sick. Pushing over 300hp on stock boost. And can we say factory warrentied? :D

Originally posted by SmokingTiresV6
I could just as easily say there is no such thing as a 1jz. There is a 1jz-ge. It's just shortening it.

....


no, it's not the same thing. that'd be like saying a 2az is a 2a. they're completely different families of engines! granted, there's no such thing as a j-series, but that's teh whole point.

There is a huge market for FWD coupes outside the US, and not everybody wants a V6, turbo 4s are fine. What these cars get sold on is handling and looks, plus even the 8.4s that base Celica had is not that bad when you factor in that most of the world drives cars below 2 L displacement and 11s + acceleration is common (high gas price and need to have a small car does that to you). It was not a bad car, though the styling was a little below of what I expected of Celicas. hope the new one sold outside US will be better. Bring back turbo and AWD, or nice PSA sourced turbo diesel like the new Aygo.

I can't wait till the 3.3L AWD SCCX comes out it is suppos3e to be 4 doors of mean power with factory air ride supension that lowers 1-1/2 inch at 65mphs....:smokin: :naughty: :D ;) :clap:

i'm suprized no one here mentioned that we have the prado in america, its called lexus GX. (i know cus i've driven the prado and as a valet a lexus GX) they are the SAME suv, its just the extra luxury stuff that was thrown in the lexus....

As far as v6 rav4, sweet, but i doubt it.

You all have it wrong.

In 5-8 years Toyota will have the best sports cars in the market ... and they will be hybrids.

In 3 years time some genius kid hacker is gonna crack the prius' computers and rewire it :eek: it has the potential to run 10 second 1/4's.

Mark my words, I see the future.

Electric cars will soon make all your sports car dreams come true.

Prius runs on an electric motor, so in technical terms you cannot reprogram the computer to make more power - unlike gasoline there is no intake, compression etc. Besides at higher speeds gasoline engine is more efficient, hence at higher speeds all hybrids run on gasoline. besides, imagine you're driving up Klauusenpass, you need all the power you can get so both engines are running, and your batteries run out... youre stuck driving up the mountain on effectively half the power. Hybrids make great commuter cars but as for sports cars it may be a while :)

Prius runs on an electric motor, so in technical terms you cannot reprogram the computer to make more power - unlike gasoline there is no intake, compression etc. Besides at higher speeds gasoline engine is more efficient, hence at higher speeds all hybrids run on gasoline. besides, imagine you're driving up Klauusenpass, you need all the power you can get so both engines are running, and your batteries run out... youre stuck driving up the mountain on effectively half the power. Hybrids make great commuter cars but as for sports cars it may be a while :)

Sigh.
Here I go correcting doubters again.

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2004/08/toyota_preps_sp.html
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/toyota-pm4.htm


As for the mods it is the pc that controls the voltage and current from the battery to the electric motor and it also handles the merging of the power in the transmisison of the motor and engine. Imagine if you will an extra battery pack wired in series to double the voltage, larger wires/controllers ... as well as engine mods.
It can be done, it will be done, just wait.

Prius runs on an electric motor, so in technical terms you cannot reprogram the computer to make more power - unlike gasoline there is no intake, compression etc. Besides at higher speeds gasoline engine is more efficient, hence at higher speeds all hybrids run on gasoline. besides, imagine you're driving up Klauusenpass, you need all the power you can get so both engines are running, and your batteries run out... youre stuck driving up the mountain on effectively half the power. Hybrids make great commuter cars but as for sports cars it may be a while :)


You do know that the prius uses a gas engine with the assist of an electric motor?

Yeah, Prius uses their gas engine 80% and the electric engine is for backup, just incase the engine runs out of gas. Once it goes again, the batteries charge up. Great money's worth. :thumbsup:

I'm thinking the reason why Toyota is bringing out the Vitz/Yaris after 6 years it was introduced in Japan, is because Honda has decided to ship their version of the Vitz. The Honda Fit. It's more of a competition now, but I'm pretty sure we already know who the victor will be. Toyota! :woot:

Other than sports cars, I want Toyota to bring in their Mark IIs and other great line-ups. For instance, the new MarkX and hoping that Lexus will market the Toyota Crown line-ups. Like, having the Crown Athlete come in as another midship car of Lexus as the GS. :clap:

oh boy.....:lol: :eek: :sosad:

The Prius runs on gas, it uses an electric motor to help/assist the engine when going up hills in stop and go traffic and so forth, it does not and i repeat does not on on just the electric motor and you can not just run the electric motor if you run out of gas.

also the braking systems on the Prius are what is called regenetive braking, which means everytime you brake your recharging the battery and electric energy.

poor poor misinformed ppl

That is all bass ackwards.

The prius uses the electric motor as it's primary means of motion.

The gas engine is used to assist the electric under hard acceleration and it routinely runs at slower speeds using just electric.

Here is one of the better explanations on the web of how it is done.

http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/roadtests/roadtest/43877/page004.html

http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/roadtests/roadtest/43877/page5photo.html

Sigh.
Here I go correcting doubters again.

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2004/08/toyota_preps_sp.html
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/toyota-pm4.htm


As for the mods it is the pc that controls the voltage and current from the battery to the electric motor and it also handles the merging of the power in the transmisison of the motor and engine. Imagine if you will an extra battery pack wired in series to double the voltage, larger wires/controllers ... as well as engine mods.
It can be done, it will be done, just wait.

First, see some of the posts before. The Prius, based on the Toyota promo material, uses initially electric, it switches on gas to load batteries when they run low (it also uses regenerative braking to do the same), would use at highway speeds since at those gas engine is more efficient, and would use both if additional power is required, i.e. accelerating. But if you are constantly accelerating (i.e my example of nice mountain road) then what ...?

As for the electric, you cannot rewire an electric motor for different voltage - you would most likely burn it. these things are designed for a specific set of operating conditions. Conceivably you could just put a turbocharger on the gas engine though - wouldn"t this be fun ? Still, you are starting out with what basically is a 65 or so HP on the gas engine. Even if you double that and wring some more from electric it is not an impressive amount of power, and Prius suspension is not very good. Now, if Prius coul be had with the 180 HP engine of the GTS Celica, it could get interesting.

i'm sorry, i'd trust sportivo, the guy who owns yota dealers the world over, and gets direct info from TMC on this topic before anyone else.


(insert .02 cents smilie here)

Look this up, info is Toyota direct :) - it does run on electric while at low speed which is th e reason for the high MPG you get. If you want to test the theory, drive one - it always starts with electric. New one is nice but not my cup of tea.

http://www.toyota.com/vehicles/2005/prius/key_features/hybrid_syn_drive.html

i'm sorry, i'd trust sportivo, the guy who owns yota dealers the world over, and gets direct info from TMC on this topic before anyone else.


(insert .02 cents smilie here)


I trust Toyota
http://www.toyota.com/vehicles/2005/prius/key_features/launch_faq.html

"Electric-only mode ("stealth mode")
Electric-only mode, or stealth mode, is a unique feature of full hybrid vehicles that allows the vehicle to drive at low speeds without the engine turning on. This saves gas and produces less noise."

As for the electric, you cannot rewire an electric motor for different voltage - you would most likely burn it. these things are designed for a specific set of operating conditions. Conceivably you could just put a turbocharger on the gas engine though - wouldn"t this be fun ? Still, you are starting out with what basically is a 65 or so HP on the gas engine. Even if you double that and wring some more from electric it is not an impr
essive amount of power, and Prius suspension is not very good. Now, if Prius coul be had with the 180 HP engine of the GTS Celica, it could get interesting.

Lets start with the engine, you would need to boost the top end of the motor RPM, or conceivably use a less efficient motor that doesn't use the atkinson cycle that runs at a higher RPM to increase the generator speed to maintain the battery pack.

You can easily run DC motors at higher voltages, the trick is for how long and at what consequence. Can the prius motor take near double the stock voltage for a short run with no damage? I'm fairly certain it can. I am far more familiar personally with 3phase industrial type motors than I am the DC type used in the prius. I am confident that the standards of construction and basic inherent limits in the automobile motors are higher than that in general purpose motors. I have seen a few mistagged motors go bezerk in hvac applications when the motor was truely 208V but tagged 600V, and live.

Also - using VFD's Variable frequency drives (3 phase AC motors) there are many applications now where motors are overdriven above the nameplate rpm using frequency changes.

A third option to the equation is that there is a possibility that one could get the motor rewound.

Automakers have already realized the extra bottom end torque advantages of electric hybrids and several, including honda http://www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=3&article_id=8779 are planning hybrid models, not just because of the fuel savings but for the extra acceleration.

Don't believe me if you wish, but there will be a day.

http://www.japancorp.net/Article.Asp?Art_ID=4991

Okay the Following info is taken directly from Toyotas website, shich I think you ppl would read before even reading some lame ass third-reporting who puts the cart before the horse website. and stop smoking all that crack ppl it kills.

Question Can Prius run on electricity when it runs out of gas?http://toyota.custhelp.com/rnt/rnw/img/trnsp.gif

Answer No. Though Prius can operate in electric-only mode when gasoline is in the tank, it is not designed to run without gasoline. Doing so could cause severe damage to the hybrid system, so drivers should be sure to keep gas in the tank at all times.

Question What is maximum speed of Prius?http://toyota.custhelp.com/rnt/rnw/img/trnsp.gif

Answer The Prius powertrain is capable of reaching a maximum speed of approximately 100 mph. We do not recommend you exceed the speed limit posted in your area. Even if the legal speed limit permits, do not drive over 85 mph unless you have high-speed capability tires.



This is taken from the Prius 101 I attended held by Toyota last year

Basic Operation of the Prius


STARTUP: Only the electric motor is used for start-up and low to mid-range speeds.

NORMAL: When cruising, the engineand motor both drive the wheels: engine power is split between the wheels and an electric generator, which in turn drives the motor. Power allocation is controlled to maximize efficiency. As necessary, the generator also recharges the battery from surplus engine power.

HARD ACCELERATION: The battery supplies additional energy to boost drive power, while the engine and motor provide smooth acceleration response.

DECELERATION/BRAKING: The high-output motor acts as a high-output generator, driven by the car’s wheels. This “regenerative braking system” recovers kinetic energy as electrical energy, which is stored in the high-performance battery.


http://sportivoconcepts.com/prius.1.jpg

Start-up > Normal Driving > Acceleration > Deceleration > Stopping > Start-up

I will still take a diesel or a gas engine over a hybrid at this point - note most planned hybrids at thsi point are SUVs (coincidentally we also see some diesels being introduced) which shows the main reason for its use is fuel efficiency. Yes you could build a sports car as a hybrid but you have to have higher battery capacity, hence higher weight, also you have two engines instead of one, again more weight, Weight kills acceleration. If we can get a car where the additional power achieved from the hybrid will exceed the weight penalty, the yes. Until the, please give us a new inline 6 and a nice car.

Actually Toyota concepts Volta was just that, it had motors on the wheels also to help boost performance