The hybrids currently on the market can be divided into two types from a technical point of view, one is a gasoline-electric hybrid, and the other is a plug-in hybrid. Although the plug-in hybrid has Ultra-low comprehensive fuel consumption, but due to the high price and convenience of daily use, the plug-in hybrid market has always been in a relatively unpopular state.
How much does a plug-in hybrid model cost? Let’s put it this way, take the Toyota Corolla as an example. The official starting price of the Corolla Dual Engine is 135,800 yuan, while the official starting price of the Corolla Dual Engine E+ is as high as 207,800 yuan. Although plug-in hybrid models are more fuel-efficient, the extra price difference of 72,000 yuan can last for several years for ordinary office workers. Besides, you can buy a Camry with more than 200,000 yuan, so what else should you buy? Corolla.
So, in terms of economy and practicality, gasoline-electric hybrids have more advantages than plug-in hybrid models, except of course if you are in a city with limited license plates. A few years ago, there was a saying in the field of gasoline-electric hybrids that "there are two hybrids in the world, one is Toyota and the other is others." However, with the strong rise of Honda hybrids, such The saying may become "There are two types of hybrids in the world, one is Toyota and the other is Honda."
Toyota struck first to gain the upper hand
Toyota’s position in the hybrid field is understandable. After all, in 1997, when all the major car companies were still focusing on developing traditional cars, Toyota had already The first hybrid model, the Prius, was launched. As of this year, Toyota's global cumulative sales of hybrid models have exceeded 15 million units, with substantial growth every year.
With Toyota's advantage of entering the gasoline-electric hybrid market first, Toyota's THS hybrid system has accumulated a good reputation at home and abroad. It is precisely because of Toyota's blockade of hybrid technology that this power system consisting of an engine, E-CVT, PCU and battery, under the core control of planetary gears, achieves different cooperation between the motor and the engine under different road conditions.
The core of Toyota's THS hybrid system is the planetary gear, which adjusts the engine condition through feedback on the battery, power, vehicle condition and throttle, and cooperates with the motor and battery to ensure the best working condition of the engine at all times, so Toyota A patent blockade has been set up in this regard. For other car companies, they can only find another way to develop hybrid vehicles.
Honda found another way
Only those who are good at challenging can achieve results. Toyota has a technical blockade on planetary gears, right? Then I found another way and didn't use it, so Honda i-MMD was born. In 2013, Honda officially debuted with its latest hybrid system i-MMD. The first model equipped with the first-generation i-MMD hybrid system is the ninth-generation Accord that we are very familiar with.
Unlike Toyota's THS, which achieves power splitting through a planetary gear set, Honda's i-MMD hybrid system chooses to use two motors as the core to serve as the transmission function, which can be responsible for both speed regulation and output. Power; under this structural layout, i-MMD has three different operating modes, which makes the use experience closer to pure electric models, and its acceleration capabilities are also better than those of its competitors at the same level.
What really makes Honda famous in the hybrid market is the third-generation i-MMD hybrid system. Compared with the previous two generations, the third-generation i-MMD hybrid system improves engine thermal efficiency. It has increased from 38.9% to 40.6%, allowing for better fuel economy; the size of the PCU has also been reduced by 32%, and a magnet motor that does not contain heavy rare earths is also used. Honda's optimized third-generation i-MMD hybrid system also has the ability to compete with Toyota's THS.
Only "Liangtian" is keen on gasoline-electric hybrids
At present, Toyota and Honda are the only two companies focusing on developing gasoline-electric hybrid models on the market. More car companies In order to reduce fuel consumption, only a 48V light hybrid or even a 24V light hybrid has been added. On the one hand, because hybrid technology has been thoroughly understood by Toyota and Honda, it is difficult for other car companies to find new ways. On the other hand, because THS and i-MMD are too powerful, other car companies can only survive in the cracks even if they vigorously develop gasoline-electric hybrids.
At present, both Toyota and Honda have installed their own hybrid systems on their major models, including A-class sedans Corolla and Lingpai, B-class sedans Camry and Accord, and SUV? RAV4 Rongfang , Haoying, etc. Honda also relies on the third-generation i-MMD hybrid system to compete with Toyota THS on various models.
However, in fact, in terms of market sales, although Honda’s hybrid models have grown significantly in the past three years, compared with Toyota’s global cumulative sales of 15 million hybrid vehicles, there is still a lot big gap. But looking only at the sales volume in the past three years, the gap is not large. Honda's i-MMD has become Toyota's THS's only opponent.
Written at the end:
In terms of reliability, both Toyota's THS and Honda's i-MMD are excellent enough, with ultra-low failure rates, and are in the same class. The fuel consumption of competing models is evenly matched between the two. Perhaps the difference between Honda i-MMD and Toyota's THS is just the accumulation of time!
This article comes from the author of Autohome Chejiahao and does not represent the views and positions of Autohome.