".jdb." (brockmjd)
05/15/2015 at 18:29 • Filed to: None
2
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".jdb." (brockmjd)
05/15/2015 at 18:29 • Filed to: None | 2
| 16 |
The mileage on my 2014 Honda Odyssey hovers in the upper teens. To be fair-ish, it sees the absolute worst possible conditions for mileage: Lots of short trips, scant highway miles, heavy AC use, et cetera. And that’s not really much of a complaint - it’s a big, heavy vehicle with lots of room. I knew what I was getting into.
But I wondered: Why isn’t there a hybrid minivan? The driving habits of minivan drivers are well-suited to the technology — driving with lots of stops and starts and short trips. Minivan drivers have kids, and most folks with kids would be OK with saving money. And larger, heavier hybrids exist - I think there’s a Highlander hybrid and a Tahoe hybrid.
Why has nobody brought one of these to market yet?
For that matter, I’m kinda surprised that Toyota, Honda and Nissan haven’t launched a Lexus/Acura/Infiniti minivan. Are they afraid it would dilute the brand? Make it too plebeian?
AM
> .jdb.
05/15/2015 at 18:32 |
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The next gen Chrysler Town & Country is supposed to have a hybrid powertrain that achieves 70mpg or something like that.
LongbowMkII
> .jdb.
05/15/2015 at 18:36 |
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the mass of big vehicles make electric drive less efficient. you’ll need a larger, more powerful electric motor to get acceptable acceleration. Packaging is an issue too.
EL_ULY
> .jdb.
05/15/2015 at 18:37 |
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the championship winning tech has to trickle down in some way. Bring back the Previa hoon van!
HammerheadFistpunch
> .jdb.
05/15/2015 at 18:37 |
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I suspect the main reason is packaging. batteries take up a lot of the space that Minvans prize above almost all else. That having been said, you make a great point that the audience and use case are perfectly in line with the technology.
E92M3
> .jdb.
05/15/2015 at 18:38 |
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They are already working on it. One of the biggest reasons it hasn’t happened yet is the size of the batteries ruin the layout of the van. Either the floors, or cargo floor have to be taller, and the seats may not fold flat anymore. Then there’s the cost. In a world were minivans are mid 40’s with options will people line up to pay $50k for a hybrid one?
yamahog
> E92M3
05/15/2015 at 19:04 |
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Chrysler is working on a plug-in hybrid minivan, and last I heard preserving their trademark “Stow n Go” seating was a huge priority for marketing and a huge challenge for engineering. We’ll see how it works out.
KusabiSensei - Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs
> E92M3
05/15/2015 at 19:21 |
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It would have worked great on the 3rd Gen Chrysler vans (before Stow & Go was a thing).
I still remember having to lift the seats in and out of the van.
Alex B
> .jdb.
05/15/2015 at 19:40 |
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My family’s 2008 Odyssey hovers around 15-17. Pretty abysmal, but I guess that’s the price you pay to haul around 8 in relative comfort.
BaconSandwich is tasty.
> .jdb.
05/15/2015 at 20:02 |
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I’ve been wondering this same thing. They really are almost perfectly suited for being a hybrid. Lots of under-floor room for batteries. Even if a battery pack was 2” thick, there’d be tons of room.
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.jdb.
> E92M3
05/16/2015 at 16:28 |
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Probably, yeah. Especially when gas prices come back up. Also there are a lot of very ... status-conscious minivan drivers; I think that there are some who would love to see a hybrid badge underneath their stick-figure family.
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.jdb.
> HammerheadFistpunch
05/16/2015 at 16:29 |
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Thanks! And I get that batteries do take up *some* space, but it seems like they ought to be “hideable” in such a large vehicle. (Maybe they do the same thing they do with them in the SUVs?)
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HammerheadFistpunch
> .jdb.
05/16/2015 at 16:29 |
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There isn’t a lot of space that is easy to give up in a minivan. its all hard won.
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.jdb.
> BaconSandwich is tasty.
05/16/2015 at 16:30 |
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or heck - put some of them in the void of the spare. To change the spare, you unplug & remove a battery pack...
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E92M3
> .jdb.
05/16/2015 at 20:09 |
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It’s definitely the target audience for a hybrid.
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.jdb.
> HammerheadFistpunch
05/18/2015 at 09:36 |
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I dunno - I’ve got a 2014 Odyssey, and there’s definitely room in the back on the sides - behind the plastic that makes the sides flush around the wheels (if that makes sense)
mcseanerson
> .jdb.
05/20/2015 at 11:37 |
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A lot of people are talking about packaging but honestly, I will take any three row that can return decent mileage in the city. I’d be happy just to break out of the teens.