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Toyota’s next generation of Prius hybrid cars will be fitted with solar panels to power on-board electrical items such as the air-conditioning system.The third generation model of the car, which can be driven by its petrol engine or its electric motor, or both, will be launched next year.

According to Reuters’s report,”Toyota plans to install solar panels on the new Toyota Prius hybrid as a response to a “growing demand for green cars”.

The panels will be supplied by Kyocera and would be able to power part of the air-conditioning as a “symbolic gesture” as it’s “very difficult to power much more than that with solar energy.

The company has struggled to keep up with demand for the Prius in recent months as soaring petrol prices have put consumers off thirsty sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and pickup trucks.Toyota faces growing competition in the hybrid market. Rival car-maker Honda has announced that it will step up its hybrid push with a new, low-cost model early next year, followed by several other hybrid models.Other car makers have teamed up with battery makers to develop and produce lithium-ion batteries to store more energy in smaller packages to extend cruising distances.

Kentaro Endo, a director at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry in Japan who specializes in renewable energy, said the application of solar energy was severely limited in vehicles.

“Even if you laid solar panels out on the entire roof of a house, you only generate enough energy to run two hairdryers,” he said. “It’s an interesting idea, but it would be very difficult to power a whole car, even with technological advances.”

Tags: Prius hybrid cars, Toyota Prius hybrid car