Although the technology is years away, General Motors (GM) became the first automaker to announce plans to build a plug-in hybrid vehicle.
Plug-in gas-electirc hybrids ensure that a car will go further on a gallon of gas and with the use of advanced batteries the range would increase as well. Currently such automakers as Toyota (TM) and Honda (HMC) have benefited from their early push into hybrids, while GM focused on promoting large sport-utility vehicles such as the Hummer.
For years politicians ignored the electric alternatives but now members of Congress, and even President Bush who mentioned the technology in his State of the Union address this year, are showing an interest. Bush even plans to find $14 million in the budget to study plug-ins.
According to this WashingtonPost.com article; Gas-electric hybrids have both internal combustion engines and electric motors. Depending on driving conditions, the cars switch between the two. Gas mileage can be more than 40 miles per gallon.
Plug-ins would have larger, more sophisticated batteries that could store significantly more energy. As envisioned, the vehicles could go 20 to 40 miles on electric power alone. To recharge, the cars would be plugged into garage outlets.
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