With 200,000 or so Prius hybrids on the roads worldwide, I think there is an excellent market for upgrades. At some point, the original battery packs are going to need to be replaced. With all the lithium-ion technology that is coming to market, it is only a matter of time before a company markets a replacement/upgrade battery pack for the Prius. What do you think? Does it make sense? Would you spend $1,000 or so to upgrade your Prius to litium-ion batteries and plug-in capability?
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Swanny1172 @ May 30 2007, 11:33 AM) [snapback]452245[/snapback]</div> I would like to see the Li-ion technology develop further before even thinking of updating the batteries, much less plug-in. My Prius is only a year old. After Toyota puts Li-ion into a production vehicle AND the technology proves itself, then maybe I would think about it. Maybe.
Wasn't there a couple of threads today stating Toyota delaying Lithium Ion into their cars? On first look, that opens the door to the secondary market. However, it could be muted it the Li-Ions are deemed warranty voidable by Toyota.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Swanny1172 @ May 30 2007, 12:33 PM) [snapback]452245[/snapback]</div> For $1000 to upgrade my existing Prius, I wouldn't even blink. However, I'm not about to trade-in my Prius, as the loss would be a lot more than $1000. Dave M.
$1,000? yeah probably. Realistically though, I don't think it's $1,000 today but at least it'll give the people options when they buy a used Prius or those with current Priuses that don't want to upgrade to the new one (for whatever reasons)
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(aaf709 @ May 30 2007, 04:32 PM) [snapback]452335[/snapback]</div> 10 to $12000 is what I've read. Watch the developments at 99mpg
What I was asking is a purely hypothetical question. I understand that Li-Ion technology is prohibitively expensive today, but we are all going to see that cost curve come down quickly in the next few years. With 200,000 used Prius on the road, sooner or later they all are going to need a battery transplant. Since Toyota seems to be neglecting the replacement battery market, perhaps their is an opportunity for someone to develop a Li-Ion replacement battery for the Prius and other hybrids.
