[Tade0]

The Prius uses a planetary gear set to blend power of the engine with that of the two motor-generators.

Both the engine and motors are used at all speeds. Particularly during highway acceleration the entire assembly rotates in the same direction.

[dgfl]

This is a great related watch if you have some time to kill: https://youtu.be/KnUFH5GX_fI

[delecti]

That's such a fantastic video. I never totally grasped why hybrids were so much more efficient, because my naive assumptions about how they worked were so simplistic. The real-time graphs he showed were excellent for making his points.

[cogman10]

TC is filled with these sorts of videos. If you have time to burn then they are basically all this quality. His interests are also just wildly all over the place. From Christmas lights to dishwashers to coffee machines you just don't know what the next video will be.

[chabska]

One thing I really don't like about this video, is that he was specifically describing the advantages of that specific van and drivetrain, that being Toyota Sienna, and he's not wrong at that, but then he made grandiose general statement like "Hybrids are simple" and "minivans are great".

No, quite a few other hybrids are just an electrical motor tacked on to an existing ICE drivetrain, and they are actually more complicated than a regular ICE car, with horrible reliability and repair cost. And other non-hybrid minivans are either seriously underpowered, or require a seriously big engine that eats fuel.

The complaints that people have against hybrids and minivans are valid, if they're not talking about Toyota hybrids or this specific Toyota minivan.