Honda Cars : Honda Uses Toshiba Lithium-Ion Batteries in Test Version of Electric Car | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

In China first....
Honda Motor Company is using lithium-ion batteries made by Toshiba Corp. in a test version of its electric car, expanding upon a supply agreement for electric scooters.

Honda’s joint venture with Kyoto-based GS Yuasa Corp. will supply lithium-ion batteries for its hybrid cars, including a plug-in vehicle, while Toshiba’s packs may be more suitable for all-electric cars, which require more power, Tomohiko Kawanabe, head of Honda’s research and development division, told reporters today in Saitama prefecture, north of Tokyo.

Japan’s second-largest carmaker unveiled the test versions of its electric car and plug-in hybrid today, joining Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. in efforts to meet tighter government emissions rules. Honda has supply agreements with four battery makers, including Panasonic Corp. and its subsidiary Sanyo Electric Co., which make nickel-metal hydride packs for Honda’s current hybrid cars.

Honda’s electric car can go more than 160 kilometers (100 miles) on a single charge, farther than Nissan’s Leaf electric car, Tokyo-based Honda said today. The plug-in hybrid can run 25 kilometers on battery power before the gasoline engine kicks in, about the same as Toyota’s plug-in. The figures are based on Japanese highway testing methods.

Honda rose 1.6 percent to 3,285 yen as of 2:29 p.m. in Tokyo trading, extending its gain this year to 5.6 percent.

Nissan’s Leaf

The carmaker hasn’t decided whether it will use Toshiba’s batteries for mass production, Kawanabe said. Toshiba already makes lithium-ion batteries for Honda’s EV-neo electric scooter, which it started leasing to corporate customers this month.

The company is also seeking to sell batteries made by Blue Energy Co., the venture with GS Yuasa, to other carmakers to help lower costs, he said.

Nissan, Japan’s third-largest automaker, starts selling its lithium-ion battery-powered Leaf hatchback this month in Japan and the U.S. and will begin selling it in Europe next year. Chief Executive Officer Carlos Ghosn has estimated that electric cars may account for 10 percent of global auto sales by 2020.

Toyota plans to sell a short-distance pure electric car and a plug-in hybrid by 2012.

Honda Cars : Honda Unveils Electric Motorbike | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Only in Japan, and only for lease....
WAKO, Japan—Honda Motor Co. is rolling out a small, scooter-type electric motorbike, it said Tuesday, after having put an earlier model back in the shed more than a decade ago.

With the EV-neo electric motorcycle, Honda, which sells the Insight and other gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles, and the FCX Clarity hydrogen powered fuel-cell car, brings some of its latest green technology to motorbikes.

Honda said it will begin leasing the bike in Japan in December, but has no plans to sell it at the moment.

"It is becoming important for companies to meet society's needs for CO2 reduction," said Toshiyuki Inuma, a general manager at Honda's motorcycle unit, at a test-drive event in Wako City, north of Tokyo.

Honda, Japan's second biggest car maker and the world's biggest motorcycle maker by volume, first leased electric motorcycles 16 years ago, albeit in small numbers, rolling out only 200 bikes over three years.

But in a sign of potentially deep demand in some emerging markets for such advanced electric motorbikes, Yamaha Motor Co., the world's second largest motorcycle maker, also plans to roll out its latest electric motorbike this summer.

Yamaha hasn't said whether it will sell or lease the bike.

Honda plans to lease its EV-neo scooter to businesses, such as pizza restaurant operators and others that run delivery services in Japan. It doesn't plan to lease it overseas. The leasing price hasn't been disclosed and Honda hasn't decided how many bikes it will lease.

The EV-neo uses a lithium-ion battery with double the power density of the nickel-cadmium battery used in the earlier electric motorbike.

The charging time for the new model is half the eight hours of the previous bike. Honda says rapid charging equipment gives the new battery an 80% charge in 20 minutes, and the bike can travel more than 30 kilometers on a single charge.

However, the company isn't certain if it can commercialize its electric motorbike operations on a large scale, Mr. Inuma said. Honda is still sizing up the potential market for such bikes, as demand will depend on costs.

To succeed with this product line Mr. Inuma said: "We have to differentiate our technology from others. Then, we'll see whether we can offer the price that customers would want."

One of the main challenges has been making the battery smaller and reducing the total vehicle cost.

The EV-neo's electric motor shares key parts with the Insight hybrid, and that cuts costs, said Koichiro Honda, an assistant chief engineer.

The company said it will use battery technology by major Japanese electronic equipment maker Toshiba Corp. Toshiba's lithium-ion batteries give nearly twice the power as those used in Honda's earlier electric bikes, so it was chosen over GS Yuasa Corp., with which Honda has a joint battery venture, said Mr. Honda, the engineer.

"One of the reasons is the durability," he said.

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