american thinker

    Toyota has conducted a study that demonstrates the significant reduction in tailpipe CO₂ emissions that can be achieved if more customers use their vehicles' Eco or EV driving modes. The latter mode applies to plug-in hybrids like the RAV4 Prime, which have large enough batteries to sustain brief periods of driving on only electric power.

    While such driving modes are usually associated with sluggish throttle response, customers inclined to ignore these more efficient driving modes could be encouraged to use them more often if they knew the benefits.

    That's what Toyota aims to achieve with this study, which involved Toyota employees and family members covering over 400,000 miles in Eco or EV mode. Some Lexus vehicles were also used as part of the test, and by comparing data from these cars running in their most efficient modes with vehicles that weren't, Toyota was able to come up with some telling insights.

    Collectively, the emission reductions achieved by the study's participants represented $18,304 in fuel cost savings when matched against the national average. 5,091 gallons of gasoline were saved, and Toyota said the reductions in CO₂ were the equivalent of 748 trees sequestering carbon for 10 years. Compared to the baseline, 45,235,623 g of CO₂ greenhouse gases were saved.

    Using Eco mode in a non-hybrid model sees the most significant benefits, with a reduction in tailpipe CO₂ of 26%. In a hybrid model, the reduction is 4% since the vehicle already operates more efficiently in general driving.

    Remapped throttle inputs in Eco mode and more efficient operation of the HVAC system are the main changes that bring about these reduced emissions.

    When you turn the eco mode on, the system regulates air conditioning, heated seats, and other instruments that use power in your vehicle. This alleviates pressure from the engine. And when your engine isn't working as hard to drive and power all of those instruments, it contributes to better fuel efficiency.

    In comparison to other driving modes, the eco mode makes driving more economical. That means that you're saving money on fuel costs. But you're also contributing to fewer emissions and, ultimately, reducing your ecological footprint.

    Toyota Motor Corp.'s leader criticized what he described as excessive hype over electric vehicles, saying advocates failed to consider the carbon emitted by generating electricity and the costs of an EV transition.

    Toyota President Akio Toyoda said Japan would run out of electricity in the summer if all cars were running on electric power. The infrastructure needed to support a fleet consisting entirely of EVs would cost Japan between ¥14 trillion and ¥37 trillion, the equivalent of $135 billion to $358 billion, he said.

    "When politicians are out there saying, 'Let's get rid of all cars using gasoline,' do they understand this?" Mr. Toyoda said Thursday at a year-end news conference in his capacity as chairman of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association. (snip)

    In a country such as Japan that gets most of its electricity from burning coal and natural gas, EVs don't help the environment, Mr. Toyoda said. "The more EVs we build, the worse carbon dioxide gets," he said.

    He said he feared government regulations would make cars a "flower on a high summit" — out of reach for the average person.