Almost everybody these days knows about the Toyota Prius which really put hybrid cars into the mainstream, but there are lots of other options of hybrid cars around now that can help you get started on your way to lowering your effect on the environment. Some of them are even starting to look as good as supercars! Hybrid cars even have a whole episode of South Park devoted to making fun of them so you know they've started to get people's attention!
The first petrol electric hybrid came about in 1916. This would shock a lot of people who thought that Toyota came up with the first one with the Prius. But I have to say that I assumed that too! It soon started to lose popularity though along with the electric car as the internal combustion engine (ICE) won the popularity race with the emergence of cheap oil after the World War. The hybrid car only really came back when people started realising the harm burning so much fossil fuel does to the environment and started trying to find an alternative.
We constantly get told that hybrid cars are going to save our planet and everyone who drives one is doing so much good, but are they really that great? Lots of people argue that the new small diesel cars out there are just as, if not more efficient than most hybrid cars. To be honest a lot of it actually depends on the hybrid though. I mean, if you have a big SUV that barely gets 20 miles to the gallon, you're not going to get much better mpg than a small car with a modern diesel engine if you make that SUV a hybrid. They would, however, get a much better mpg than a similar type of car which isn't a hybrid, so a lot really depends on how you look at things.
Plug-in hybrid cars are a great step in the right direction to all-electric vehicles. A plug in hybrid is basically a hybrid that can be charged from the socket as well as having the motor charged by the engine. One car company that's making a name for itself with plug-in hybrids are Fisker who have a great looking plug-in hybrid sports car which should be out soon. Toyota is also making a plug-in version of the Prius which is supposed to be out in early 2010.
If you're wondering who actually makes hybrids at the moment there are surprisingly quite a few big names out there who are wakening up to the reality that environmentally friendly cars are what people want right now. Toyota have the Prius, Lexus make three different types of hybrids at the moment including an SUV, Honda also have the Insight hybrid and even Ford has a hybrid called the Fusion and there are countless more. Some of the smaller companies who are getting in on the action are Aptera (who also make an electric version of their hybrid) and Fisker.
We know they're supposed to be great for the environment and that they've got an engine and use electricity somehow but I want to know more about what goes on inside don't you?
Well here are some of the basics of how they work:
Most hybrids like the Prius are parallel hybrids and work so that when you are going below a certain speed like when you're taking off or stopped in traffic you only use the electric motor to power the car but when you go above that speed or when the battery runs down the ICE kicks in and you start burning petrol again. The ICE then recharges the motor when you're using it for the next time you need the electric motor. All this saves a lot of petrol as all that time you're using the motor adds up over time.
There is also another type of hybrid like the Chevy Volt, a series hybrid, which is due to be out in 2010. This type uses the electric motor exclusively up to any speed and only uses the petrol engine when the battery runs out. This means that you could spend some days not even burning any petrol at all.
Hybrid cars are also becoming increasingly available as rental cars. This means someone who would want to ease their way into the idea of buying a hybrid could just rent one pretty easily and get a feel for them and see the difference themselves. They're available more and more in some of the bigger hire car companies and there are even specialist companies around devoted to just hiring hybrids now. I don't know if I'm properly decided on hybrid cars yet although I can see they do have many advantages. A plug-in hybrid especially could be a good step on the way for me and my family to an all-electric car.
The first petrol electric hybrid came about in 1916. This would shock a lot of people who thought that Toyota came up with the first one with the Prius. But I have to say that I assumed that too! It soon started to lose popularity though along with the electric car as the internal combustion engine (ICE) won the popularity race with the emergence of cheap oil after the World War. The hybrid car only really came back when people started realising the harm burning so much fossil fuel does to the environment and started trying to find an alternative.
We constantly get told that hybrid cars are going to save our planet and everyone who drives one is doing so much good, but are they really that great? Lots of people argue that the new small diesel cars out there are just as, if not more efficient than most hybrid cars. To be honest a lot of it actually depends on the hybrid though. I mean, if you have a big SUV that barely gets 20 miles to the gallon, you're not going to get much better mpg than a small car with a modern diesel engine if you make that SUV a hybrid. They would, however, get a much better mpg than a similar type of car which isn't a hybrid, so a lot really depends on how you look at things.
Plug-in hybrid cars are a great step in the right direction to all-electric vehicles. A plug in hybrid is basically a hybrid that can be charged from the socket as well as having the motor charged by the engine. One car company that's making a name for itself with plug-in hybrids are Fisker who have a great looking plug-in hybrid sports car which should be out soon. Toyota is also making a plug-in version of the Prius which is supposed to be out in early 2010.
If you're wondering who actually makes hybrids at the moment there are surprisingly quite a few big names out there who are wakening up to the reality that environmentally friendly cars are what people want right now. Toyota have the Prius, Lexus make three different types of hybrids at the moment including an SUV, Honda also have the Insight hybrid and even Ford has a hybrid called the Fusion and there are countless more. Some of the smaller companies who are getting in on the action are Aptera (who also make an electric version of their hybrid) and Fisker.
We know they're supposed to be great for the environment and that they've got an engine and use electricity somehow but I want to know more about what goes on inside don't you?
Well here are some of the basics of how they work:
Most hybrids like the Prius are parallel hybrids and work so that when you are going below a certain speed like when you're taking off or stopped in traffic you only use the electric motor to power the car but when you go above that speed or when the battery runs down the ICE kicks in and you start burning petrol again. The ICE then recharges the motor when you're using it for the next time you need the electric motor. All this saves a lot of petrol as all that time you're using the motor adds up over time.
There is also another type of hybrid like the Chevy Volt, a series hybrid, which is due to be out in 2010. This type uses the electric motor exclusively up to any speed and only uses the petrol engine when the battery runs out. This means that you could spend some days not even burning any petrol at all.
Hybrid cars are also becoming increasingly available as rental cars. This means someone who would want to ease their way into the idea of buying a hybrid could just rent one pretty easily and get a feel for them and see the difference themselves. They're available more and more in some of the bigger hire car companies and there are even specialist companies around devoted to just hiring hybrids now. I don't know if I'm properly decided on hybrid cars yet although I can see they do have many advantages. A plug-in hybrid especially could be a good step on the way for me and my family to an all-electric car.
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