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Whatever happened to these? |
Posted on 12/02/2005 6:16:06 PM PST by Tank-FL
We at the Toyota Motor Corporation are writing to address certain misconceptions that have arisen about your Toyota Prius model, which we are proud to note is driven by many celebrities, including Prince Charles and HBO's Larry David. Our pioneering gasoline-electric hybrid, introduced in 1999, has become an object of adoration to the world's enlightened car buyers. Our competitors, including America's Big Three, are rushing out hybrid vehicles of their own..
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
All true. But at least so far as fuel economy is concerned, the energy recovery/storage of the hybrid is of course intended to ameliorate the energy loss otherwise associated with braking of a massive vehicle.Diesel locomotives are all hybrids.
They are if in fact they include large batteries - a fact of which I have not heretofore been aware ( gogeo could be right, I suppose . . .).
The only way you can tell an Accord Hybrid apart is by the dead silence at a stop and the badge on the back. Otherwise, it looks just like a regular Accord, inside and out (though you do sacrifice some trunk room).
I don't think they have particularly large batteries--certainly nothing large enough to provide a useful amount of locomotive force, but they nonethtless all use the diesel engine to produce electricity, and then use that electricity to drive the wheels.
Mechanically complex (but then, compared to a hybrid . . .)2. Power control using variable delayed intake closure instead of throttling (gives the Miller Cycle's advantages at lower power levels, while allowing more power when needed)
This sounds better than variable displacement.3. A five-cycle mode of operation when cruising (another freeper posted a white paper here some time ago; on an inline four, during low-power operation, the inner two cylinders would be used together as a double-sized "compounding" cylinder for the outer two).
I could understand wanting to expand the exhaust gas of cylinder #1 "isentropically" in cylinder #2, but isn't an exhaust turbine more practical? As long as we're discussing hybrid, why not consider an electric generator to absorb the energy from an exhaust turbine?And much as I dislike the smell of diesel fuel/exhaust, I have to admit that compared to a throttled gasoline engine the diesel cycle is reasonably efficient at partial load.
For the payoff you can hope for, using hybrid to tame the dual-fuel diesel cycle really seems to me to be worth a look. Its main fuel isn't fuel oil, so the smell would be less obnoxious. And since its main fuel is carburated, you get smooth, blue-flame combustion rather than normal diesel knock.
I read an article recently that said new diesels are 90 percent quieter than they were ten yeas ago, you no longer have the cold starting problems etc. I also read an article about a head to head comparison with a new VW diesel car and a hybrid and on a trip non-stop from Detroit to D.C., the diesel (not a hybrid diesel) got considerably better gas mileage than did the hybrid car.
It does cost more than a gasoline car, but not as much more as a hybrid. But what I like is that you get a very durable engine that will run forever. The Hybrids just have a lot of systems to maintain once the warranty expires.
In fact, I read that the diesel was originaly designed to run on veg. oil.
Peanut oil, IIRC.
To me it sounds like:
o Primus, a camp stove;
o Prima, a Latin bandleader;
o Priam, a legendary King;
o Priapus, the patron saint of Viagra users.
BINGO!
Motor Trend is, was, and always will be a bad joke.
I am a gadget guy. I bought a Prius a year ago (now have 35) on it, despite its enviro whacko association. It is a cool car. I am averaging around 49-50 mpg over the life of the car so far, and I enjoy driving it. My last car was a VW Passat, and the Prius is every bit as roomy inside. It is a 4 door hatchback, the back seats fold down (unlike the Civic Hybrid), and it has been very dependable. But I like the car because of some of its other features: keyless entry and start-- the car knows when the key is near, and lets you unlock the doors when you touch the handle. To start the car, you don't have to take the key out of your pocket, just push the start button. Climate control and stereo can be operated from the steering wheel or by a touch screen system.
The car uses regular oil, but a lower viscosity. Maintenance is almost non-existent. Brake wear is minimal. The brakes are regenerative, and the friction braking doesn' occur until you are down to about 7 mph. The rest of the braking force is used to charge the battery. You don't plug it in, and the switch off/on of the gas engine is barely noticeable.
My only complaint is that people think I am liberal because I drive one, but I am happy to disavow them of that. Everyone who has ridden in my car has been impressed. That said, this is not a car that you buy to save money overall. It does get good gas mileage, but I paid around $25K for it, and could have bought cheaper transportation.
Bottom line... for me at least... buy what you want.
It's like being behind a bus.
You don't sacrifice much. IIRC, it has run-flat tires and uses the space formerly occupied by the spare tire. I think the trunk's dimensions end up being the same except the trunk floor is about 2" higher.
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Whatever happened to these? |
If you're buying an SUV for, among other things, its towing capacity, that extra power is vital. From that, due to the laws of physics, there inevitably comes lower gas mileage. My '04 Navigator gets about 15 mpg on the road when it's not towing my 7,500 lb. boat and trailer rig. When I'm towing the rig, mileage drops to about 7.5 mpg. There's just no way a hybrid will work for me.
The $9,500 premium a purchasers pays for a Prius is just too much to be economically recoverable at a $580/yr. gas savings. Not accounting for the time value of money (more about that later), it would take 16.4 years to recover that $9,500 through fuel savings. However, if that money was invested at an 8% annual return, it would double in about 9 years, meaning the gas savings will never enable the vehicle's purchaser to recover the $9,500. Even worse, the batteries need to be replaced about every four or five years at a cost of about $4,000, which is just about the price of a rebuilt engine. One of these things is nothing but a head up the behind feel good device for proving to one's neighbors how environmentally good one is.
Is that calculated like some people calculate the price of gasoline...adjusted for inflation? In the future they'll still be $5K, but adjusted for inflation they really only cost $3K?
LOL Your right!! I owned one. Except for my Fiat 128. The only car you drive home on a sunny day, put it into your garage and then hear it rust away.
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