HEV competition gets fiercer

January 30, 2002

Although Toyota and Honda have been leading HEV development, other automakers, including Fuji Heavy Industries, Suzuki and Daihatsu, revealed their entry into the HEV market this year. On the other hand, there are mounting negative voice about HEVs overseas.

Fuji Heavy plans to adopt series type HEV system Fuji Heavy Industries has recently announced that they will use their unique technology and horizontally opposed engines to develop a new series type HEVs. Series type HEVs use gasoline engines for power generation and driving under load with electric motors as supplements. Fuji Heavy Industries will be the first company to adopt series type system. On the other hand, Toyota and Honda have adopted parallel type systems which use both electric motors and gasoline engines for power sources at the same time. Daihatsu also revealed that they will introduce the first subcompact HEV next year and Hino is trying to expand HEV trucks with mild type system.

Toyota, who has already introduced three HEVs, plans to sell 300,000 HEVs annually by 2005. The figure is 10 times the current sales. In Toyota President Fujio Cho's analysis, HEVs are not interim vehicles for FCEVs, and therefore automakers will have to attach more importance on HEVs.

However, overseas makers are passive about HEVs. PSA has asserted that the HEV technology is far below the satisfactory level in terms of environmental friendliness. They also added that they can continue to achieve higher levels of cleanliness with diesel engines. Peugeot and Volkswagen have already introduced clean diesel vehicles with high fuel efficiency (100km traveling per 3liter fuel). GM and DaimlerChrysler are also reluctant to pursue HEV development and are focusing more on FCEVs. Ford plans to release the HEV Escape but