Business converts hybrids to plug-ins

Some of the greatest leaps in alternative energy research are being made in a small garage in Raleigh.

Since opening in June the Advanced Vehicle Research Center has converted 24 hybrids into plug-ins with two more on the floor this week. The center is one of eight nationwide certified to install the battery packs.

The conversion process allows a modified car to run off only electrical power for up to 35 miles. When the battery charge drains the vehicle switches back to a standard hybrid mode boosted to 100 miles per gallon said Dick Dell" executive director of the research center.

""Energy and dependency on oil are the most serious threats our country is facing"" Dell said.

The conversion is performed on the Toyota Prius, which has sold more than 1 million models worldwide, making it the most popular hybrid on the market.

The process utilizes a large lithium-ion battery, retrofitted into the trunk of the Prius.

The primary customers of conversions have been energy firms and utility companies such as Progress Energy, based in Raleigh.

Progress Energy converted its Prius line to do consumer research before battery-powered cars are mass-produced. But battery charging is not yet cost-effective.

We realized we had to be committed to these new types of technology" Progress Energy spokesman Scott Sutton said. If the utilities don't get on board there will be a lot of obstacles for consumers" even if the new technology is available.""

At $10"400 the conversion isn't cheap and has been mostly used by corporate customers" but Dell is optimistic that the technology will reach the average consumer soon.

""This same process would have cost $25"000 two years ago and it will continue to come down from what it is now" he said.

The plug-in hybrid technology is still new. The first mass-produced plug-in hybrid, the Chevrolet Volt, will not be released until 2010.

There are more than 250 million vehicles in operation in the United States today, and about a million are hybrids. Of those, about 100 are plug-in hybrids, Dell said.

Hybrids on the road today in many cases just have the word hybrid attached to them" he said. In many cases you might see an increase in some cars from 24 miles per gallon to 26 miles per gallon. Yes that is an improvement" but it's not enough.""

Dell said the United States trails behind Europe in the development of fuel-efficient cars. Europe has 38 vehicles on the market that reach 50 miles per gallon"" while the United States has only one.

""Basically" what it comes down to is that consumers don't want to pay for research Dell said. At this point" the economy is going to become the driving force behind changing the industry.""

Dell also said focusing on a single energy alternative will not solve the problem"" but that technology soon will be available to convert nonhybrid vehicles to hybrids.

""There is no single visible energy solution right now"" Dell said. Time will show what technology will grow and what technology will survive.""



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