Toyota Sai Hybrid

Toyota 's new Compact Luxury Hybrid is inspired by the Japanese word sai—which means "talent" when written as "" and "coloration" when written as "". These words may appear as an item together to great artist like Michelangelo & Leonardo Da Vinci but it is an unlikely pair to describe cars. To be honest with you I find the Sai to be another conventional Toyota which fails to excite the eyes. There is not enough distinction to set the Sai apart from the crowd and risk being eclipsed by the Lexus HS250 H. In fact both the Lexus and Toyota share the same 2.4 liter Atkinson cycle combustion engine that produce 110kW (150PS) at 6,000rpm with maximum torque of 187N-m (19.1kgf-m) coming in at 4,400rpm. The engine is paired with a 105kW (143PS) electric motor to give a combined performance figure of 140kW(190ps). Nickle-metal Hydride batteries are used to store energy in the Sai.

For all the technology Toyota put into the Sai, the car returns a fuel efficiency of 23.0km/l which Toyota claims to be on par with 660cc minivehicles. The 10-15 test cycle of Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT); under MLIT's JC08 test cycle, vehicle rates the Sai's fuel efficiency at 19.8km/l.

Fuel efficiency is only one of the many aspects of a green car hence, steps are taken by Toyota to ensure that the impact on the environment is minimized in the process of building the Sai besides using 'green' materials such as plant-based Ecological Plastic. Price of the Sai starts at 3,489,000 yen with sales commencing in the land of the rising sun come December 7 2009










Source : Toyota