[lilyphenix]

Let's hear your thoughts on hybrid cars!

Do you like them? Would you buy them? Which one do you like the most?

Pros? Cons?

[kelvin6]

There are a few things that bother me about Toyota's Hybrid cars. One, while they maybe environmentally friendly emissions wise, they aren't very environmentally friendly assembly and manufacturing wise. The new car smell is actually quite toxic, because the plastics used in manufacturing have that smell, which is known to cause cancers, reproductive harm, etc. So if you buy it, do youself a favor and air out the new car smell quick.

Second concern, the battery. The battery is awfully expensive and you will have to replace it at some point, it will not last forever. To justify economy, the cost saved from gas must be more than the battery's cost. Hopefully you can justify that, otherwise all the money you saved from gas, goes right back to buying a new battery.

The last thing that does bother me is the erie quietness of it. You know the old say about crossing the street, look, listen, then cross. Well you can look, but you won't be able to listen if you can't hear it, so there is a slight chance that with a silent car like the hybrid on electric power, you might have quite a few close calls.

This is my own bias, but Toyota brand cars just don't suit me, I seem to lean towards european.

[lilyphenix]

This is my own bias, but Toyota brand cars just don't suit me, I seem to lean towards european.

I was worried about too many options for the poll, I am afraid I took your vote off by mistake, sorry...

Very interesting, thank you. I didn't know the problem about the smell and the batteries.

edited: The quietness bothers me a little bit too. As you pointed out, most of us, blind or not it does not really make a difference, react to the surrounding noise when we cross the street. In that case a silent car is dangerous...

I am curious though, do most European brands have hybrid type as well?

[kelvin6]

Actually, Europeans use diesel fuel in their engines that are for fuel economy purposes. Diesel burning is better than gas, environmentally and you can achieve higher MPG (depending on what car) than some hybrids! Problem in here in america is that some areas or states have diesel fuel more expensive than premium gas, when normally (in the older days) its cheaper than gas.

BTW, Volvo's are the most environmentally-friendly manufactured cars, though at a higher cost than lets say Toyota.

[aznfishyfart]

im still abit unsure about hybirds myself
do they really save what u spent on them?
batteries need to be replaced every 5-7 years i think.... (u might want to check on that)
and those batteries would run u about $5k
if u really wanna save some money get a smaller i-4 engine car and ull be happy with that

[panda]

hybrids... why go with a hybrid when propane (or any other alternative fuel) is much more feasible with combustion engines today?

research showed that hybrids cost too much than a standard vehicle of the same class, which will cancel out any advantages with rising gas costs. so what's the point other than paying more for a vehicle if you want to save gas money? anyone might add, there are some who want to decrease pollution...

i think propane fuel is the better choice in both categories. propane has an octane rating of 110 with similar combustion energy to conventional gasoline. also, CO, NOx and CO2 emissions drop close to 40~50% for LPG fueled vehicles. i think this might be a good... actually, very good source of alternative fuel compared to conventional gasoline.

hell, i'll switch to propane if it was widely available. 15 psi off of propane.. nice. i feel like the ricer version of hank hill.

[MUGETSU]

I'm not a car expert...

but I think hybrids and electric cars and such are a real possibility in today's world.

however, oil companies will NEVER allow such things to happen which will take away from their profits.

my local news channel NBC is running a story about hybrids and electrical cars...here's a link to watch the videos.

http://www.wnbc.com/news/11126830/detail.html?dl_trayclick

[lilyphenix]

hybrids... why go with a hybrid when propane (or any other alternative fuel) is much more feasible with combustion engines today?

I remember back when the first propane cars came out in Europe, the media kind of (dunno if they succeeded) kill the market by showing all these cars that exploded for some reasons... It was a little bit too much. They emphasized the dangers more than the benefits but I would think that these cars are safer now.

Even if the car industry could make hybrids of better quality and at a more affordable price, I wonder if they would really go for it and promote it. I mean, my guess is that they would be lobbied by the Oil companies afraid of losing more money...
I also wonder if that would be financially interesting for them.... (I wonder, I wonder but I admit that I am more concerned about saving money and preserving the environment all in once).

however, oil companies will NEVER allow such things to happen which will take away from their profits.

my local news channel NBC is running a story about hybrids and electrical cars...here's a link to watch the videos.

http://www.wnbc.com/news/11126830/detail.html?dl_trayclick

I second that! Thanks for the link.

[panda]

I remember back when the first propane cars came out in Europe, the media kind of (dunno if they succeeded) kill the market by showing all these cars that exploded for some reasons... It was a little bit too much. They emphasized the dangers more than the benefits but I would think that these cars are safer now.

Even if the car industry could make hybrids of better quality and at a more affordable price, I wonder if they would really go for it and promote it. I mean, my guess is that they would be lobbied by the Oil companies afraid of losing more money...
I also wonder if that would be financially interesting for them.... (I wonder, I wonder but I admit that I am more concerned about saving money and preserving the environment all in once).
I second that! Thanks for the link.

i can see that. same thing happened with hydrogen fueled cars.

however, technology has come a long way at this point. i too believe hybrids or even electric cars will be the wave of the future but it's truly a matter of time before electric-mobiles will be drastically available. propane is the feasible choice in today's environment conscience heads.

have you seen the tesla coupe concept?

http://www.teslamotors.com/index.php?js_enabled=1

pure electric, great mpg, great mileage... better than my car at least. but the price is too high for the average joe. if tesla or any manufacturer can produce a vehicle with the price of the norm, i bet everybody would purchase one.

[lilyphenix]

have you seen the tesla coupe concept?

http://www.teslamotors.com/index.php?js_enabled=1

pure electric, great mpg, great mileage... better than my car at least. but the price is too high for the average joe. if tesla or any manufacturer can produce a vehicle with the price of the norm, i bet everybody would purchase one.

Thanks Panda, I like the sport and fancy design! Now I wish I could test drive it to have a feel of how it runs...

[sushiwhore]

i hear toyaota will make a hybrid car that will be as fast as a corvette but cheaper o_O

[Chioster]

Just get the new Koenigsegg CCXR . 1018hp Bio-fuel monster. It will also cost 500k.

[lilyphenix]

I am watching a documentary on electric and hybrid cars on the discovery channel... It's pretty amazing.

Chioster, they did talk about the Bio-fuel and diesel bio-fuel.

They talked about the Tesla as well and how driving 15,000 miles a year would only cost $300!

[Chioster]

The Tesla is an amazing piece of work. Wouldnt mind owning one in the future.

[panda]

yeah but the car's estimated msrp is around 80-85,000 usd.

YIKES!

[azn akira]

Problem in here in america is that some areas or states have diesel fuel more expensive than premium gas,

actually thats not the problem. the problem is the high sulfer content in american diesel fuels, that is the reason we dont get the european deisel cars in the states. however they made a law saying that the US has to switch to lower sulfer content diesel, so we will be seeing those european deisels in the near future.

[OsiX]

Toyota FT-HS http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Featu...rticleId=118933

[taoh]

Problem in here in america is that some areas or states have diesel fuel more expensive than premium gas, when normally (in the older days) its cheaper than gas.

A lot of people fail to realize that the price you pay for each mile on diesel is still less than what you would pay to drive on gasoline.

Just a lot of simple minded folks who only look at price per volume.

[lilyphenix]

A lot of people fail to realize that the price you pay for each mile on diesel is still less than what you would pay to drive on gasoline.

Just a lot of simple minded folks who only look at price per volume.

I drove diesels for years until I moved in the US... I was surprised to see that it isn't that popular here yet.
85,000 for the Tesla is bit too much for me

[some-azn-guy]

petrol for me.
i don't believe in hybrid technology..and neither do the governments around the world.

petrol creates pollution, but petrol production boosts the economy.
gov't don't care about it, they just greedy institutions that want MONEY. the only reason why they're cutting back on the greenhouse gases is to appease to the tree-hugging environmentalists.

the way i see it..
it's inevitable, humans are here to consume resources and destroy the planet in their pursuit of greed.

gov't and cutting down greenhouse gases....is like devout christians who play lottery.

hypocricy.