WHOSE IDEA WAS IT TO DRIVE ACROSS AMERICA IN A HYBRID CITY CAR? UTTER MADNESS!

The team, accompanied by a Japanese TV crew, began their trek at Toyota's US base in Torrance, California, on 4 June and travelled across the southern tier of the U.S. until they reached New Orleans. From there they zigzagged through Kentucky and Washington, D.C.,

up to Toronto, Canada, and circled Lake Ontario before turning south to traverse New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Along the way, they visited environmental groups and observed ecology projects from coast to coast.

The effort, called Eco-Mission '99, was led by Paris-Dakar rally driver Kiichiro Yokota. The team consisted of eight people plus two support vehicles and included a navigator, translator, mechanic and the TV crew. Their hybrid car was the Toyota Prius that is powered by both an electric motor and a small petrol engine.

A sophisticated computer system allows the 5-seater Prius to run on either electricity, petrol, or a combination of both, depending on vehicle speed and load.

Because the petrol engine is not used when the car is stationary, and is assisted by the electric motor during acceleration, the Prius can achieve fuel economy of over 60 miles-per-gallon, while cutting pollution emissions by 90 per cent. Unlike conventional cars, Prius achieves its best fuel economy in stop-and-go city driving.

The 1.5-litre petrol engine recharges the battery pack, so the Prius never needs to be plugged in to an external supply unlike other electric vehicles. Over 27,000 have been sold in Japan since the hybrid was introduced in December 1997. Toyota dealers in the U.S. and Europe will sell Prius next year.

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