The Toyota Prius has been the standard bearer for the hybrid vehicle market since the turn of the century. Toyota is not resting on its reputation for reliability and fuel efficiency among loyal customers in the 2009 and 2010 model years. The next generation of Prius sedans will feature solar panels from Kyocera that will offset energy used by internal systems.
Toyota announced that the panel-clad Prius might be added to showrooms as soon as spring 2009 to help relieve energy costs for consumers. These panels will generate enough energy to power air conditioning units that use between two and five kilowatts. The Japanese motor company is pioneering the use of solar panels among major automakers though smaller companies like Th!nk have built prototypes using the technology.
Consumers interested in the next generation of this popular hybrid will be heartened to hear Toyota’s production goals for 2009. The company states that it will manufacture 450,000 hybrids in 2009 which is a 60 percent increase over Prius production two years ago. Toyota is expanding current facilities, building a new battery factory and readjusting its production methods to ensure that these goals will be met.
The addition of solar panels to the Prius may be more important for its long-term consequences than savings realized by consumers in upcoming years. Toyota is showing a willingness to change the Prius formula to include tools like solar panels that might help consumers save money on fuel. The slight energy boost given by natural light may not seem like much to consumers accustomed to powerful vehicles but it shows forward thinking by a company that could have coasted on the popularity of the Prius.
Car companies around the world have approached changed conservatively in recent years due to the uncertainty of the global economy. Toyota’s solar panels may not pack much of a punch but they are building blocks toward more creative (and cleaner) car design. These solar panels will give way to plug-in electric drive trains, improved regenerative braking and other innovations that need to be exposed to public testing before they become more advanced. Floundering companies like General Motors and Ford should be working on alternative fueling sources that break the gas-only tradition dominant in the first century of the automobile.
