Baby, it's cold outside. Six degrees Fahrenheit here in Augusta, ME, as of our writing this. Fret not, though, reader--we haven't turned into overnight meteorologists. We do, however, have a somewhat odd story involving an ice storm, a man, and his Toyota Prius.
This story, which happened back in December, sheds some light not just on Bob Osemlak's ingenuity, but also on the efficiency of the Prius Plug-In Hybrid.
It went like this:
In the face of an oncoming ice storm, Mr. Osemlak decided to put his background as an Air Force mechanic to the test by rigging an outlet to his furnace in the event of a power outage. His plan? To use his Prius as a backup generator.
When the power eventually did go out, he alternated between using the car to power his furnace and his other appliances.
"When the furnace comes on, and the house gets up to temperature, I go to the thermostat and shut the furnace off," explained Mr. Osemlak. "Now I can plug something else in: the TV, the fridge or the floor lamp." 1
All in all, he used his Prius as a generator for nine hours, in which only one bar of the car's battery was used. That equates to about one gallon of gas. Not too shabby.
As cool as this story is, Bob Osemlak advises others against using his practices. He has a background in aviation and engineering, after all, and doesn't want anyone to get hurt.
Still, that doesn't mean you and your new Toyota model can't have plenty of fun out in the cold. If you're interested in discovering what else our lineup can do, drop by our location for a test drive!
SOURCE: 1 http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2014/01/05/Canadian-man-uses-electric-car-as-a-generator-during-outage/UPI-74981388943382
