Toyota announces details on 90-car Scion iQ EV car-sharing fleet - Motorgen - Automotive Events, Meets, Cruises and Forums

RSS Reader · 10-17-2012, 10:19 AM

A few short weeks ago we learned that Toyota is shrinking its overall plan for the Scion iQ EV down to an "extremely limited release." During its Future Mobility Seminar in Denver, CO this week, Toyota announced the small details for its diminutive electric vehicle (EV) program.

The teeny 2013 Scion iQ EV will deploy in slight fashion in car-sharing programs on campuses and in urban environments later this year, but only "approximately" 90 of them. Yes, the entire fleet of Toyota's petite iQ EV could fit in one big warehouse. And you can't buy or lease them, you can just rent them for the short term.

The iQ EV itself has decent numbers for a city EV, including a 13.5-foot turning radius thanks to its diminutive 78-inch wheel base. It seats four (well, if two people are itty-bitty) and has a top speed of 78 miles per hour. It uses a 47-kW (63 horsepower) electric motor and a 12-kWh battery to achieve a range of up to 50 miles per charge. That charge takes around three hours using a Level 2, 240V charger and there's an interesting additional feature: a timer that matches "charge completion time with the time the vehicle will actually be driven, to help reduce battery degradation." The iQ EV also has three driving modes - D, B and S - that each emphasize a different aspect of the car. D minimizes power usage in city driving. S gives better acceleration (from zero to 60 in 13.4 seconds). B improves the efficiency of the regenerative brakes.

As for looks, two exterior colors are available, Silver and Super Red, with the top half, rear hatch, battery cooling inlets and front headlamps all accented in black. The charging port is up front, with a charge door where lesser cars have an upper grille. There's even a leather-wrapped seat, so when you hop into one of these rare, shared EVs for a few minutes, you can feel like you're borrowing someone's upscale EV.Continue reading Toyota announces details on 90-car Scion iQ EV car-sharing fleet
Toyota announces details on 90-car Scion iQ EV car-sharing fleet originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Wed, 17 Oct 2012 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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