Hymotion, an Ontario, Canada company with offices in the US, has
announced they're about two months away from offering conversions,
initially for large fleet orders.

In the past month, we've seen the launch of the national Plug-In
Partners Campaign and rapidly increasing support for PHEVs, further
fueled by President Bush's Advanced Energy Initiative. Now this
"independent commercialization" announcement, and any sales
information we see in the coming months, add one more influence on
car-makers to consider offering their own plug-in hybrids.

In addition to the information in the press release (below) and the
downloadable fact sheets, the company has also told CalCars:
* Though they showed only the Prius at the Toronto Auto Show, they
have a working Escape on the road now.
* They will soon announce more information on the batteries, being
made to their specifications in Asia,
* The price for Prius systems is $9,500 for orders of 100 units,
$6,500 for orders of 1,000.
* They have not released prices for Escape systems, but it will be
considerably higher.
* They are beginning with fleet orders to accumulate durability test
miles before selling to the consumer market at undisclosed prices.
* They have not provided information on warranty and other issues.
* They will announce installation locations in the coming months.
* They're also planning flex-fuel versions, but no information is yet
available.

We'd make the following further comments.
* Lithium polymer cells are flat lithium-ion cells with the
electrolyte embedded in polymer separators, which have some
performance advantages, but have until now been more expensive than li-ion.
* Their system can be thought of as an "add-on" rather than a
replacement. The new battery operates until it reaches a
mostly-depleted level, then the car reverts to hybrid operation using
the stock battery.
* It's a source of considerable satisfaction to us that we can leave
it to Hymotion <http://www.hymotion.com/products> and EDrive Systems
<http://www.edrivesystems.com/faq.html> (who until now were the only
ones publicly working on Prius conversions), to differentiate
themselves both publicly and to prospective customers, and to back up
their performance expectations.

You can read a report, including comments that attempt to compare the
two systems and reconcile conflicting information about net weight
changes and range, at:
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2006/02/hymotion_unveil.html
and also see comments at:
http://www.evworld.com/view.cfm?section=communique&newsid=11098


http://www.hymotion.com/index.htm

Hymotion unveils Plug-in Hybrid Technology at the Canadian
International Autoshow in Toronto

"We, as a green technology company, believe that Plug-in Hybrid is
the most favorable ecological solution for the future in the
automotive industry." President Ricardo Bazzarella said today.

Toronto, ON. February 21, 2006: This week at one of the premier
international auto shows in the world, Hymotion unveiled its Plug-in
Hybrid Technology.

This groundbreaking technology moves the Hybrid industry into the
next level. The PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle) will now be
even more fuel efficient and easier to use.

The Hymotion PHEV has an additional battery system that can be
recharged by plugging it into a regular household electrical outlet.
This extra battery system in turn, allow the hybrid car to travel
longer distance solely on battery power, while still allowing it to
operate as a normal hybrid car. Therefore, PHEV is a pure electric
and zero-emission car for your local travel.

What does this mean for the future? A production hybrid gets about
double the fuel economy of a conventional car; A Hymotion Plug-in
hybrid will get again about double the fuel economy of a hybrid.
While conventional Hybrid obtains its energy from gasoline, the
Hymotion PHEV acquires most its energy from the electric grid during
off peak hours.

According to the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), half the
cars in the U.S. are driven just 25 miles a day or less. "A plug-in
vehicle with even a 20-mile range could reduce petroleum
fuel consumption by about 60 percent," says Bob Graham, Manager of
EPRI's Electric Transmission program.

Zero Emissions, when the PHEV drives on battery power alone, it
produces zero emissions, making it very environmentally friendly.
Hymotion PHEV system can go longer on battery power alone, and
combusting gasoline inside the engine became optional.

Anthony Wei, Vice-President Business Development explains: "The
secret ingredient to the 100 plus miles per gallon performance is the
Lithium Ion Polymer technology in our PHEV battery. It's smaller,
lighter, and more powerful than the NiMH batteries currently use in
all Hybrid vehicle. This is the future."

Hymotion is a green technology company with headquarters and research
and development lab in Toronto, Canada. The company also has offices
in Boston, USA, and five subcontractor facilities across North America.

For media contact/press kit/photos: anthony@... Tel: 857-991-2439
You may also visit www.hymotion.com


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Felix Kramer fkramer@...
Founder California Cars Initiative
http://www.calcars.org
http://www.calcars.org/news-index.html
http://www.hybridcars.com/blogs/power
http://www.seattleeva.org/wiki/EAA-PHEV
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