Toyota's Leaked 1:6:90 Rule Reveals Why It's Not Wasting Lithium on EVs
02/24/24
Toyota recently revealed it 1:6:90 rule, and this guideline for lithium allocation makes sense.
But to "mine" it we dig holes in salt flats, fill them with water, let the water evaporate, pile up the slightly more concentrated lithium slush, and often do it all over again. It is slow, bad for the local environment, and not an easy task for often underpaid workers.
The CEO of Mercedes warns EVs may double in price. The CEO of Stellantis worries there isn't enough lithium on Earth to swap our massive automotive fleet for EVs–at any price point.
Enter Toyota: A leaked document reveals the automaker told its dealership network that the lithium and other rare materials required to build an EV could also be enough for six plug-in hybrids. Or, it could make 90 hybrids. What's more, swapping 90 internal combustion cars for hybrids is much better for the environment than building one full EV. Much, much better. Toyota: "The overall carbon reduction of those 90 hybrids over their lifetimes is 37 times as much as as single battery EV."
These numbers line up with my previous reporting. The Tesla Model S Long Range uses enough lithium to make more than 11 PHEVs. The Rivian R1T uses up enough lithium for 20 PHEVs. And the Hummer EV hogs enough lithium for 24 PHEVs. To get these numbers, I'm using the battery in the last generation Prius Prime PHEV. It got 25-miles of all electric range out of 1.5 kg of lithium. That's enough range that the average American driver would only fire up the gasoline engine on long road trips.
Toyota’s Leaked 1:6:90 Rule Reveals Why It's Not Wasting Lithium on EVs
02/24/24
Toyota recently revealed it 1:6:90 rule, and this guideline for lithium allocation makes sense.
But to "mine" it we dig holes in salt flats, fill them with water, let the water evaporate, pile up the slightly more concentrated lithium slush, and often do it all over again. It is slow, bad for the local environment, and not an easy task for often underpaid workers.
The CEO of Mercedes warns EVs may double in price. The CEO of Stellantis worries there isn't enough lithium on Earth to swap our massive automotive fleet for EVs–at any price point.
Enter Toyota: A leaked document reveals the automaker told its dealership network that the lithium and other rare materials required to build an EV could also be enough for six plug-in hybrids. Or, it could make 90 hybrids. What's more, swapping 90 internal combustion cars for hybrids is much better for the environment than building one full EV. Much, much better. Toyota: "The overall carbon reduction of those 90 hybrids over their lifetimes is 37 times as much as as single battery EV."
These numbers line up with my previous reporting. The Tesla Model S Long Range uses enough lithium to make more than 11 PHEVs. The Rivian R1T uses up enough lithium for 20 PHEVs. And the Hummer EV hogs enough lithium for 24 PHEVs. To get these numbers, I'm using the battery in the last generation Prius Prime PHEV. It got 25-miles of all electric range out of 1.5 kg of lithium. That's enough range that the average American driver would only fire up the gasoline engine on long road trips.
Toyota’s Leaked 1:6:90 Rule Reveals Why It's Not Wasting Lithium on EVs