Hybrid cars

[Guest EricMM]

I'm just curious now. I'll post again soon with my thoughts on the issue, but first I just wanted to get opinion.

 

This basically has to do with new cars. Obviously if one is buying a used or classic car this won't be an issue.

[Guest Tyler McClelland]

This is the car I'm getting by the end of the year.

 

You're STUPID if you don't want one. Seriously, their gas milage is GAUDY.

[Guest Vern Gagne]

Like Kent Brockman said:

 

If this warm weather is the result of global warming...I'll continue to drive my 1979 Olds.

[Guest Bosstones Fan]

A buddy of mine at work has a Toyota Prius. He says these hybrid cars are ok, except for a few things:

 

- His has little power. He and his wife had to repack for a trip home to Oklahoma because the car couldn't carry their rooftop luggage.

 

- The gas mileage isn't really what they advertise. Toyota states that his car is supposed to get 46/53, but he says the best he's ever done is 41 (which is still better than most any non-hybrid car, I know).

 

- They're an absolute bitch to work on. He says changing the oil by one's self (every 6,000 miles) is impossible. That right there is a big turn-off for me.

[Guest Tyler McClelland]

- His has little power. He and his wife had to repack for a trip home to Oklahoma because the car couldn't carry their rooftop luggage.

 

That surprises me, it sounds more like a straight electric car.

[Guest Bosstones Fan]

- His has little power. He and his wife had to repack for a trip home to Oklahoma because the car couldn't carry their rooftop luggage.

 

That surprises me, it sounds more like a straight electric car.

It's a hybrid, but I think he might have a bit smaller engine than you would normally expect. Plus, I think his wife had packed an obscene amount of clothes for their 5-day trip.

[Guest EricMM]

Well I mean the prius was and is one of the prototypes, if you will. The technology was pretty new when they made that car, hell, it still is new.

 

But hybrid technology is independant of actual efficency. The Prius was designed to get the best efficency possibly with the then current technology.

 

They're making hybrid Pickups, SUVs, and Sedans right now for this year and next year. The hybrid engine is getting noticed and thus getting money, and with money comes inevitable improvements. This year's prius is probably a weak car, what is it a V3? But in two years it will/should be comperable to an average car.

 

And while it may cost anywhere from 3,000 - 6,000 more depending on the car, unless the price goes down, in the LONG TERM you'll definitely save money.

 

Also who didn't know what a hybrid car was?

[Guest Dangerous A]

My fiancee's parents own the Honda Hybrid and they love it. I've driven it and it was different to say the least. The first thing that gets me is the car turns off when you come to a stop. You sit there in total silence and the car doesn't move a bit. It's just you and the radio. I am used to hearing the fan turn on in my car and feeling it. This does not have that at all. The ride is super smooth. There isn't much power out of the car but I'm not a speed demon either. The mileage is advertised at 47 miles in the city, but my future in laws say it's closer to 40-41 miles to the gallon.

 

I'd consider buying if I wasn't being put out of work in the next week or so.

[Guest EricMM]

People say the oddest thing about the hybrid engine is when you turn it on. It's not like turning on a car, it's more like turning on a flashlight. It's silent. The combustion engine only kicks in when you leave first gear or something like that.

 

So when you're idling, the combustion engine shuts off and the electric engine runs the radio and stuff.

 

Hmm, I wonder what happens in a back up, and the battery ran out of juice? I guess the combustion engine would run constantly until the battery got restored.

[Guest Tyler McClelland]

Hmm, I wonder what happens in a back up, and the battery ran out of juice? I guess the combustion engine would run constantly until the battery got restored.

 

I think the battery has more power than that And yeah, the combustion would just go on probably.

[Guest BDC]

I'd go with one, but when I got my car, I got a small one that gets pretty good mileage anyway. My major problems with them so far? First off, I live in a rather mountainous area, so I don't want to have to turn off the radio and AC to get up a hill. Second, be damned if they aren't some of the fugliest cars I've ever seen.

 

I'll buy one when I get another car, mebbe even a truck or SUV. But right now, I'm happy.

[Guest NoCalMike]

I'd get one, if I could afford one.

[Guest DrTom]

Bah. I'll save a few thousand and get a car that doesn't have less horsepower than a pair of oxen.

[Guest MarvinisaLunatic]

I think in the long run, you would save money by getting a hybrid in gas (especially if gas prices go up some more). 41 MPG is a bout 2 times as much as my car gets, so I would expect to have to buy gas half as offen. I usually get gas once a week, so it might cut it to 2 times a month.

[Guest MrRant]

What about your power bill??

[Guest Tyler McClelland]

For the Civic Hybrid...

 

85 @ 5700 / 93 @ 5700

 

For a regular Civic...

 

115 @ 6100

 

credit: hondacars.com

 

It's relatively the same.

[Guest El Satanico]

Right now I'd lean towards no, because the technology is still new and the car companies don't fully understand the potential. In 3 or 4 years they will understand the technology better and they will be making better cars.

 

They also need to work on the styling.

[Guest Tyler McClelland]

THE CIVIC LOOKS FINE!!!

[Guest Tyler McClelland]

THE CIVIC LOOKS FINE!!!

 

I'm so adamant about it that I posted that twice~!

[Guest EricMM]

Remember I did say 2 years, Tom and Satanico.

 

I know it's still early, but they'll make strong cars w/ hybrid engines.

[Guest NoCalMike]

I can give a shit about horsepower really. I am so NOT into cars at all. Basically I look at them as machines that get me from one place to another. I know basic maintenence instructions so I follow them so my machine on wheels doesn't break down. Other than that, I can give a shit about cars or "car culture"

[Guest Tyler McClelland]

I think the issue was more that they didn't have pickup, etc. The Civic Hybrid does, though.

[Guest CED Ordonez]

When my current Civic goes to shit, then I'll talk hybrid Civics. My car's fuel efficient as is and I'm broke as broke people come at the moment.

Edited August 5, 2003 by CED Ordonez

[Guest El Satanico]

Yeah I know you are talking about in two years and they will come along way in that time. They will probably be good cars with most of the bugs ironed out in two years.

 

Once the price drops closer to regular cars Hybrids will take off amoungst the general population.

[Guest DrTom]

For the Civic Hybrid...

 

85 @ 5700 / 93 @ 5700

 

For a regular Civic...

 

115 @ 6100

 

credit: hondacars.com

 

It's relatively the same.

Divide 85 by 115. If you get a number that closely approaches 1.0, then I'll believe that "it's relatively the same." Until then, I'll estimate the Hybrid's power at 80% of the regular Civic's pedestrian power levels. BTW, both of those horsepower numbers come high in the RPM curve. People don't rev their engines that high during normal driving, which means the Hybrid's hp is even more dismal. How can you say this car has pickup? At 4000 rpm, it probably has 65 hp. It might as well be a three-cylinder. You and a passenger couldn't make it up a hill with the A/C on at that level.

 

No, I'll pass, and I think anyone who has passengers in their cars from time to time, and might need to get up a hill with the air on, should pass, also.

 

I also have to wonder how much this technology is going to improve in the next few years, since the oil lobbies are going to be fighting against its funding an implementation every step of the way.

 

I'll take my 255-hp Maxima anyday.

[Guest Tyler McClelland]

I said it's virtually the same because the regular Civic's HP rating was taken at a higher RPM reading. If they were both taken at 6100, it would more like 100 HP for the Hybrid versus 115 HP for the regular Civic. That's all of a ~13% difference in horsepower, and it certainly won't prevent you from going up a hill.

[Guest Agent of Oblivion]

I'll stick with my beaters that live as long as cockroaches. I pay a third as much for my pieces of shit as people do for halfway decent used cars, yet I never have as much trouble with them..hmm.

 

Those horsepower ratings are fucking pathetic. I'd rather have a big gas guzzler with some balls. How I miss my rusty cadillac.

[Guest NoCalMike]

It is a crime that hybrid cars are not more readily available right now. Technology is there, advanced enough and ready to be used.

[Guest CanadianChris]

I'd never fit in that thing. If they start making Preludes, I'd get one.

[Guest Hogan Made Wrestling]

I wouldn't get too excited over hybrids. They are just a sort of stop-gap until fuel cell engines become commercially viable.