Posted on 02/13/2006 10:36:24 AM PST by voletti
With more of the gas-electric cars on the road, it's time to dispel some of the misinformation surrounding these alternative vehicles
Five years ago hybrid cars were an unknown commodity. Today vehicles powered by a combination of gasoline and electricity are all the rage. Like any new technology, until you get your hands on it -- in this case, on the steering wheel -- it's hard to get your mind around it.
If you are having a tough time separating hybrid truth from reality, you're not alone. The warp-speed adoption of hybrids into popular culture -- and into hundreds of thousands of American driveways -- has produced more than a little confusion and misinformation. Most industry analysts predict the continued growth of gas-electric vehicles, with estimates ranging from 600,000 to 1,000,000 hybrid sales in the U.S. by 2010, so this is a good time to debunk the 10 most prevalent myths about hybrid cars.
1. You need to plug in a hybrid car. As soon as the word "electricity" is spoken, you think of plugs, cords, and wall sockets. But today's hybrid cars don't need to be plugged in. Auto engineers have developed an ingenious system known as regenerative braking. (Actually, they borrowed the concept from locomotive technology.) Energy usually lost when a vehicle is slowing down or stopping is reclaimed and routed to the hybrid's rechargeable batteries. The process is automatic, so no special requirements are placed on the driver.
Car companies explain that drivers don't have to plug in their vehicles, but a growing number of them wish they had a plug-in hybrid. The ability to connect a hybrid into the electric grid overnight to charge a larger set of batteries means that most of your city driving could be done without burning a single drop of gasoline.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessweek.com ...
If it makes you feel any better, because of the way the law was written, Toyota will soon be able to offer smaller and smaller credits, and within a year or two it will be $0.
The deduction wasn't shabby, but the credit would be nice.... I'm sure you'll have broken even in no time if you're putting on 43K miles in just over a year. :)
If it makes you feel any better, because of the way the law was written, Toyota will soon be able to offer smaller and smaller credits, and within a year or two it will be $0.
The deduction wasn't shabby, but the credit would be nice.... I'm sure you'll have broken even in no time if you're putting on 43K miles in just over a year. :)
If it makes you feel any better, because of the way the law was written, Toyota will soon be able to offer smaller and smaller credits, and within a year or two it will be $0.
The deduction wasn't shabby, but the credit would be nice.... I'm sure you'll have broken even in no time if you're putting on 43K miles in just over a year. :)
If it makes you feel any better, because of the way the law was written, Toyota will soon be able to offer smaller and smaller credits, and within a year or two it will be $0.
The deduction wasn't shabby, but the credit would be nice.... I'm sure you'll have broken even in no time if you're putting on 43K miles in just over a year. :)
Myth # 12. Driving a hybrid will save the worlds oil.
woah... trigger finger jammed... sorry everybody.... :)
true, but from some of the estimates I've read, oil for autos only makes up roughly (IIRC) 30% of the oil we consume. our entire way of life is dependent on oil; it's used in many, many different ways crucial to our way of life. so, yes, using less gasoline will help, but only marginally, and only for so long...
LOL
Thank you.
I drove my Prius from Nashville to Memphis today and got 55.0.
Tue, Mar. 07, 2006
Prius, Civic hybrid owners save money, Consumer Reports now says
By Matt Nauman
Mercury News
Consumer Reports now says it made an error when calculating the cost of owning a hybrid: Owners of the Toyota Prius and Honda Civic hybrids do save money, the magazine said today.
Last week, the organization released a statement ahead of its well-read April auto issue, which hit newsstands today, that said owners of the six most popular hybrid vehicles would pay more than buyers of comparable gasoline-only vehicles over their lifetime of ownership.
Late today, however, Consumer Reports issued a statement acknowledging ``a calculation error.''
``We deeply regret the error,'' said Rik Paul, the magazine's automotive editor, said in the statement.
The new calculations show that owners of the Toyota Prius will save $400 and owners of the Honda Civic will save $300 when compared with gasoline-only counterparts. Owners of four other hybrids -- the Honda Accord, Ford Escape, Toyota Highlander and Lexus RX 400h -- will still end up spending $1,900 to $5,500 more during five years of ownership and 75,000 miles, Consumer Reports said.
The initial report surprised Northern California hybrid owners.
``I find that hard to believe,'' Timothy Tsai of San Jose wrote in an e-mail to the Mercury News.
Readers such as John Grebenkemper, who has a doctorate from Stanford University, told Consumer Reports it had made a math error in calculating depreciation.
That's funny-- yesterday I drove my Prius on a 244 mile trip, mostly highways and interstate-- I got 57.1 mpg average-- with my bags and two passengers in the car with me.
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