The Prius That Shook.. - VFAQ Prius Site

cars that would run without problems. Everyone was
witnessing an interesting generation gap in an unexpected
setting.
Muramatsu felt that controlling the battery was the
most difficult problem to solve. The batteries
continued to die. He knew engines thoroughly, and was
familiar with the motor through his experience with
RAV4EV. However, the hybrid vehicle's battery was entirely
new to him. Prius charges and releases electricity while in
motion. Even the engineers at Electric Vehicle Division did not
have the know-how to control the battery properly.
"What do we need to do to make the driving of Prius
closer to an ordinary car?"
When he asked himself that question, he immediately
thought of the battery problems.
Whenever he changed the driving conditions and test
drove the car, the battery would die. No matter how much
he hoped it would keep going, the battery drained after
only two to three trips around the test track. According
to calculations at the time, the car should have gone 20
times around the test course at full throttle. The battery
group worked furiously, but was unable to achieve half or
even a third of the expected performance level. No matter
how much the group tried, they simply could not get the
battery to last. Getting the battery ready was a gamble until
the very end.
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