Japan Disaster Survivors Draw on Hybrids’ Auxiliary Power

The auxiliary-power systems on their Toyota Estima and Alphard hybrid-electric minivans provided valuable help for many Japanese survivors of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

Some versions of the hybrids come standard with converters that switch direct current from the battery to 100V alternating current capable of running small household appliances such as rice cookers, water heaters, microwave ovens and hair dryers.

Toyota Estima’s auxiliary power system provided timely help.

“Pre-earthquake, the main appeal was to power appliances while camping or during road trips,” Toyota spokesman Paul Nolasco says. “The No.1 use immediately after the disaster seems to have been to charge cell phones, with TVs and radios next.”

“The engine turns on automatically to recharge the battery whenever necessary and can supply electricity continuously for about two days, using 11.9 gallons (45L) of gasoline.”

It isn’t known how many people utilized the Toyota hybrid EVs’ auxiliary-power systems during the March catastrophe.

The auto maker has sold about 60,900 Estimas in Japan since production started 10 years ago, as well as 20,400 Alphards made between 2003 and 2008 when manufacturing of that model ceased. Many were delivered to buyers in the hard-hit Tohoku coastal region of northwestern Japan.

The supplementary-power units soon will play a greater role in disaster response.

Toyota plans to offer auxiliary- electric systems on all hybrid minivan and station wagon models in stages, after they are introduced on the Prius sometime in 2012. About 40 Prius hybrids already provided to local governments in the Tohoku region will be retrofitted with the units.

Although specifications will differ by model, the basic configuration and performance will be the same. Toyota is working on a design that minimizes the interior space occupied by the units.

Other Japanese auto makers’ approach to the technology varies.

Mitsubishi currently offers as an option its AC Power Supply EZ Adapter, which allows batteries in the electric i-MiEV to supply 100V alternating current to power domestic appliances up to 100W. The auto maker is working to make a 1,500W adapter available by the end of next March.

Nissan is developing a system to supply households with electricity stored in the lithium-ion batteries installed in its Leaf EV, using a connector linked to the car’s quick-charging port. The auto maker says the Leaf battery can store up to 24 kWh of electricity, enough to power an average Japanese home for about two days.

Nissan is working with several partners interested in both development and sales and aims to “commercialize” the system during the fiscal year ending March 31.

No Honda hybrid is fitted with an auxiliary-power system, and spokesman Keitaro Yamamoto says the auto maker has “no plan to launch such a vehicle in the near future.”

But as part of Honda’s electric vehicle testing program, the FCX Clarity fuel-cell EV will be equipped with an electricity source roughly equivalent to the power requirements of two Japanese households.

“Since the FCX Clarity uses a chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen to produce power with zero carbon-dioxide emissions, the vehicle will be able to serve as a zero-emission mobile electric generator,” Yamamoto says. “But this is a test vehicle, and there are no plans yet to sell it.”

Demand for auxiliary-electric power in vehicles may well expand beyond Japan to markets in other countries situated on the 25,000-mile (40,250-km) -long Pacific Rim that are vulnerable to volcanoes and other natural disasters.