During this time, oil prices have risen really alarmingly. Fill up one tank of fuel, enough for you to buy a bicycle; add two tanks of oil, and the money for a small electric donkey will be spent directly... In order to save some money, you said to buy pure electric vehicles, major brands of electric vehicles due to the rise in the price of battery raw materials, the retail price of vehicles has also shown a large upward trend.
Obviously, starting from the economic purchase of cars and economic cars, buying a hybrid car is a more reasonable choice at present. In the ranks of hybrid vehicles, first-line independent brands are not bad, but Toyota, Honda, and Nissan, which played hybrids earlier, are more attractive to consumers.
Today, we will study and study, the Japanese "two fields and one production" hybrid system, in the end who is better to use?
Toyota THS Hybrid: From fuel saving to comfort can be held
Since the mid-to-late 1990s, Toyota has developed the first generation of THS hybrid systems. Today, Toyota THS hybrid technology has become the world's highest market share, the oldest and the best reputation of the automotive hybrid system. Many users' first impression of THS hybrid is fuel saving.
The THS hybrid system is applied to the A-class sedan Leiling, and its 100-kilometer comprehensive fuel consumption can be controlled at about 4L; even if the Highlander dual engine weighing 2 tons, its 100-kilometer comprehensive fuel consumption can be maintained within 6L. So, how does Toyota THS technology achieve fuel savings?
From a structural point of view, the Toyota THS hybrid system consists of an engine, a battery, an electric motor, and a planetary gear set.
In simple terms, the planetary gear set can integrate the power output of the engine and the motor, and finally pass it on to the wheel. The secret of this system's fuel saving is to avoid the high energy consumption range of the engine.
For example, when the vehicle starts or reverses, the wheels are driven by a motor; when the vehicle accelerates sharply, the engine and the motor contribute at the same time, avoiding the high load range of the engine. When the vehicle is traveling at cruising speed, due to the low engine load, the engine drives the planetary gear set, which in turn transmits the power to the wheels.
In addition, the Toyota THS hybrid system can also replenish power in real time. Because the start and rapid acceleration are instantaneous forces, the motor output time is not long, so the battery capacity of ordinary THS hybrid models will not be too large, and the battery charging speed is also very fast. The recovery of kinetic energy from the braking of the vehicle, or the use of surplus power during the cruising phase, is sufficient to supplement the car's battery.
In this way, the THS hybrid system with the planetary gear set as the core effectively avoids the high load range of the fuel engine and realizes the effect of reducing fuel consumption.
In fact, in addition to the widespread use of THS hybrid system in economy cars or SUVs to reduce fuel consumption, Toyota also uses THS hybrid system on high-end models such as Alpha and Lexus LS. However, in these models, fuel saving is only an additional advantage, the most important thing is that the THS hybrid system can improve the driving smoothness of the vehicle.
Through the structural anatomy diagram, we can see that the engine output shaft, the motor output shaft and the planetary gear set are all hard connections.
Among them, the engine corresponds to the planetary frame; the MG1 motor responsible for managing the engine corresponds to the sun wheel; the MG2 motor responsible for driving it corresponds to the ring gear, and transmits the power to the wheel through the ring of gear.
During the "oil-to-electricity conversion" process, the conversion is not carried out through the clutch. It is also this structural advantage that makes the engine and motor switch without fuel consumption, and at most only the vibration when the engine starts. On the first-class model, the vibration during engine start-up can also be isolated by hydraulic suspension, passive sound insulation, fast start, etc., thereby greatly improving the smooth performance of the vehicle.
With the advantages of low fuel consumption and high smoothness, the THS hybrid system almost meets the needs of most users. However, THS systems are difficult to meet the needs of high-performance users.
For example, in the process of normal driving, our demand for power is actually not too high. For example, under the working conditions of vehicle starting, accelerating overtaking, etc., it is enough to provide sufficient power through the motor; but when it is necessary to continue to be high, the battery voltage will soon drop, and the engine needs to use high speed to make up for the power of the vehicle. Therefore, ordinary THS models are no problem to meet daily household use, but it is more difficult to use them on the track or other high-intensity working conditions.
Of course, Toyota also has a solution. In lexus LS, LC and other models that require strong power, in addition to the THS hybrid system, it is also equipped with an additional set of AT-type automatic transmissions, which are used to realize the real engine direct drive transmission and transmission drive vehicles. Of course, in this way, the cost of the vehicle is very high, so not all THS hybrid models need to be equipped with such an AT-type transmission.
Honda i-MMD: Make it both powerful and fuel efficient
Electricity for high-load conditions and oil for low-load conditions seem to have become the consensus of the development of hybrid models. In fact, the same is true of i-MMD hybrid technology from Honda. However, Honda's i-MMD structure is very different from Toyota's THS structure.
Starting with the structure, the Honda i-MMD hybrid system is actually not complicated. To put it bluntly, the i-MMD hybrid system is similar to range extended hybrid, except that the engine can directly drive the wheels, and the vehicle does not need external charging, and achieves a low fuel consumption, high performance performance.
Taking the Honda Accord Sharp Hybrid model equipped with i-MMD as an example, the vehicle's comprehensive fuel consumption per 100 kilometers is only 4.2 liters, and the zero hundred acceleration time is about 7.2 seconds. In medium-sized sedans, both fuel consumption and power performance are maintained within a relatively excellent range. So, how does i-MMD work?
As we mentioned earlier, the i-MMD is similar to an enhanced range extender hybrid system, and its main goal is to avoid the high load range of the fuel engine and electric motor. Next, we will analyze the i-MMD from different operating conditions.
First, the initial stage:
At this point, the engine will judge whether it is working according to the power of the driving battery. In the case of high power, the engine does not start at all, and the vehicle is driven by the motor; in the case of high power, the engine simply does not start idle, and directly drives the motor by driving the battery.
Second, the low-to-medium speed range:
In the city, the speed of the vehicle is not high, but for pure fuel vehicles, such conditions are very uncomfortable, the engine load is high, and the fuel consumption is high.
The Honda i-MMD hybrid system, at a speed of less than 70Kph, is completely driven by an electric motor, and although the engine will work, it will only generate electricity for the battery.
During this phase, there are many benefits to using the engine as a generator. For example, the engine can be kept running in the high-efficiency speed range, avoiding high load conditions, and the motor's torque output is large and the response time is fast, which also brings the driving texture that is close to that of electric vehicles.
Third, high speed & rapid acceleration range:
After exceeding 70 Kph, the engine is connected to the wheels by a set of clutches to drive the vehicle directly. At this time, the engine is steady-state direct drive, ensuring that it is running in an efficient range and reducing power consumption and fuel consumption. Of course, at this stage, the engine is only steady-state output, and if you seek strong power, the motor starts at the same time, providing a strong dynamic acceleration performance.
On the whole, Honda's i-MMD hybrid system is not only the existence of low fuel consumption, but also serves the driving enthusiasts well and brings strong power performance. Of course, due to the existence of a set of clutches in this system, when the clutch is connected or disconnected, it is inevitable that there will be certain wear and tear and setbacks. However, in the actual car environment, the impact of wear and tear is minimal, and as long as it is properly maintained, the system also has excellent stability and driving texture.
Nissan e-POWER fusion power: more ultimate fuel savings
Compared with Toyota's THS hybrid system and Honda's i-MMD hybrid system, Nissan's e-POWER fusion power technology appeared not too early. This year, a new car equipped with e-POWER technology will be officially launched. Although it came relatively late, e-POWER fusion power technology is still very interesting.
The biggest feature of Nissan e-POWER technology is the ultimate fuel saving. Taking Nissan Xuanyi equipped with e-POWER as an example, the fuel consumption of this car can be controlled within 3L/100km under comprehensive working conditions, and the cost of the car is almost equivalent to that of an electric vehicle. Moreover, this car does not have the problem of mileage anxiety.
The Nissan e-POWER is actually somewhat similar to the extender hybrid, except that the battery is smaller and can be "only refueled, not charged".
From the structural point of view, the e-POWER fusion power system is composed of a fuel engine, an inverter, a generator, a small capacity battery (about 2kWh), and a drive motor.
At work, the engine does not drive the wheels, but is only responsible for converting chemical energy into electrical energy to power the battery.
Moreover, the working mode of this system is not to charge first and then use electricity, but to achieve "charging while using electricity" through the flash charge and flash release technology of Nissan battery.
So, how to maintain a very low fuel consumption in such a working mode?
The reason is simple, due to the characteristics of the motor, the lower the speed, the lower the power consumption, and conversely, the greater the speed, the higher the power consumption. Under urban conditions, due to the relatively small power consumption, the engine can run at a low speed in a lower speed area, providing enough power for the motor, and also avoiding the high load range of the engine and reducing fuel consumption.
Under high-speed or rapid acceleration conditions, the power consumption of the motor rises, and the speed of the vehicle's fuel engine also increases. But even so, the fuel consumption of the vehicle will not be too high. Or take the Xuanyi equipped with e-POWER as an example, even if this car is cruising at a speed of 120Kph, its fuel consumption per 100 kilometers is only about 4.5L, which is quite fuel-efficient.
In fact, the ultimate fuel saving of e-POWER lies not only in the efficiency of this system, but also in the efficiency of the engine. For example, the e-POWER engine, the maximum thermal efficiency can reach 50%! A simple conversion, 1L of No. 92 gasoline, can convert about 4kWh of electrical energy. Based on the "high energy consumption" of 15kWh/100km, this 4kWh of electrical energy is enough for the vehicle to travel 26 kilometers; and on the Xuanyi fuel model, under ideal working conditions, 1L gasoline can make the vehicle travel about 18 kilometers.
How fuel-efficient e-POWER is, you can see it at a glance!
In addition, it should be said that due to the characteristics of the motor, the higher the speed, the higher the energy consumption. Even if e-POWER still has a good fuel consumption performance in high-speed conditions, it is more suitable for use in urban travel. For ride-hailing drivers or taxi drivers, e-POWER is obviously a more ideal "fuel-saving weapon".
epilogue
In fact, after looking at the hybrid technology of the three major Japanese brands, it is difficult for us to distinguish between the strong and the weak. Whether it's Toyota THS, Honda i-MMD or Nissan e-POWER, their starting point is fuel economy. However, they have their own characteristics. Toyota THS is fuel-efficient and comfortable, Honda i-MMD is fuel-efficient and performance-efficient, while Nissan e-POWER is the ultimate fuel economy. For us ordinary consumers, we can also freely choose in the three hybrid modes according to our actual needs, at least we will not step on the thunder.