Marque has reason to pirouette

It is officially safe to be seen with a Toyota Prius after all. Overseas concerns about the halo hybrid's braking and floor mats seemed so distant on Sunday when Secretary for the Environment Edward Yau Tang-wah went for a spin in the Toyota Prius Plug-in at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. But then the Japanese marque has every reason to pirouette for government officials in Wan Chai because green motoring is gathering pace in Hong Kong.

The city has embraced three generations of hybrid Toyota Prius and is among the early adopters of electric cars. The Hong Kong Police and local power companies have added about 30 Mitsubishi iMiEV four-seater cars to their fleets, and Mitsubishi dealers Universal Cars are selling the 64-horsepower runabout for HK$395,000. Volkswagen last weekend presented its hybrid L1 and plug-in Milano taxi at AsiaWorld-Expo in Chek Lap Kok, while Chery presented its basic 16kW Riich M1-EV subcompact for 149,800 yuan (HK$173,553) in Shenzhen, where BMW could test its Mini E.

But Toyota is back and the Hong Kong government is assessing the Prius Plug-in Hybrid for three months from January, having already bought about 300 earlier versions with nickel-metal hydride batteries for official use.

The Prius Plug-in Hybrid's powertrain is similar in format to the Hybrid Synergy Drive used in the latest, third-generation Prius, but it is now fitted with lithium-ion batteries which have a plug-in charging system, are 'more compact', have 'a higher volumetric energy density' and do not compromise vehicle weight and packaging, Toyota says.

Significantly, the Prius Plug-in's lithium battery can be fully recharged with new technology in approximately 100 minutes from a 220-volt power supply, the marque says. This means the Prius Plug-in Hybrid can run longer and at higher speeds in EV mode than the '3G' Prius Hybrid. On longer trips, or when the battery fades, the system automatically shifts to petrol power, Toyota says, adding the model's CO{-2} emissions are 'down to around 41g/km'.

The Prius Plug-in Hybrid can reach 100km/h on electric power, says dealer Crown Motors. When the 1797cc, 99-horsepower petrol and 82hp electric motor work in tandem, 'total fuel consumption reaches up to 1.7 litres per 100km [161mpg], saving consumers a great deal of energy and money', it says.

A Hybrid System Indicator monitors the battery's charge and an engine starting point display has been added to emphasise the increase in electric driving range. An Electro Multi-Vision screen on the dashboard also highlights the plug-in hybrid's contribution to reducing CO{-2} emissions, 'showing a computer graphic image of a single tree that gradually increases to a forest as the battery charging process takes place', Toyota says. About 600 Prius Plug-in Hybrid cars are being released around the world for a lease campaign, with more than 150 of these in Europe, Toyota says. Hong Kong's inclusion in the car's evaluations shows our city is very much on the green motoring map.