Entries from August 2008 ↓
August 27th, 2008 — Hybrid Cars
If you are thinking about a hybrid car, you may be hearing quite a bit of “talk.” Some people think the hybrid car is the best thing on the market. Some people say it’ll just pass. Other people say they think they can save a lot of money, but you’re not sure it’s really worth it. What’s the truth, and how do you separate myth from fact with all of the stuff that is being thrown at you? Below, you can read and understand the common hybrid car myths.
Hybrid cars
are the same as electric cars
This is not true because hybrid cars are fuel-powered for the most part. They have what are called battery assists. The assist is powered by a nickel-metal hydride battery pack that is rechargeable.
You are guaranteed to save money with a hybrid car
If you are doing city driving, you may save gas and you may not. The same goes for highway driving. There are just many different factors. It has been said that if everyone bought hybrid cars, the gas consumption would decrease by only 10%. That’s not a very big difference.
A hybrid cars battery can run out
A hybrid car’s battery should not run out while you are driving it. The engine in a hybrid car does not idle when stopped (at a red light for instance.) What does it do instead? It recharges its battery. So there’s no need to worry about a hybrid car stopping you.
The hybrid cars rechargeable battery only lasts for 2 years
A hybrid car certainly would not be worth purchasing if this was the case. A hybrid car’s rechargeable batteries usually come with an eight-year warranty.
If I run out of gas, I can keep driving on the hybrid car battery
Keep in mind, a hybrid car’s battery is an assist. That means that hybrid car’s still run on fuel. After you run out of gas, the battery may keep the car running for just a little while. However, the car will stop very soon.
Hybrid cars will soon put conventional car sellers out of business
This probably won’t happen anytime soon. The reason for the delay has to do with the how much a hybrid cars. Many people simply can’t afford one. Also, people just aren’t too sure whether they will really save money on hybrid cars. Therefore, they are slow to join the rush of people who want a hybrid car.
Hybrid cars will only save you about 88 dollars a year
I did hear something on the news about this once, but it may not be true. If there’s something you really want though, and there’s a lot of smoke surrounding it, you simply have to start digging and do some of your own research. There are many different models of hybrid cars, and many different manufacturers make them. This means that there may be many more variables involved than the ones discussed here. A hybrid car may help you, and it may not, but the final decision is up to you.
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August 26th, 2008 — Hybrid Cars
by Rex Stevenson
“I conceive that the land belongs to a vast family of which many are dead, few are living, and countless numbers are still unborn,” as said by a Chieftan from Nigeria. It is easy to see that we are ruining our children’s most important inheritance the earth. What good is money if they don’t have a clean place to live. Every one of us needs to think of ways in which to be more environmentally friendly, and with the way gas prices keep going up, a good way to do that is by getting one of the new hybrid vehicles.
People who live green believe that the new hybrid vehicles are a great investment. Even makers realize that today’s consumers are requiring more of these types of these cars. This is pretty surprising seeing as how this type of car was not quite so popular just a few years ago.
Hybrids use a combination of gas and electricity. They don’t damage the environment as much and they are great on gas. These cars have both an electric motor and an internal combustion engine. They share both gas energy and electric. There are two types of hybrids on the market the full hybrid and the mild hybrid.
Those hybrids that are mild use more gas than electricity. The electric motor in these vehicles is only used as a support system for the engine. These are not as efficient on gas as the cars that are full hybrids. They are also not as environmentally friendly.
The Full Hybrid can use the electric motor independently from the gas engine. The full hybrid can function completely on electricity thereby eliminating harmful emissions, at least while you are driving about town.
Current hybrids on the market are:
In the SUV model: * The Lexus RX 400h is an AWD vehicle that can get about 27 miles to the gallon in the city and 25 on the highway. * Ford Escape Hybrid comes in 2 and 4 wheel drive and gets a great 36 miles to the gallon in the city and 31 on the highway. * The great Mercury Mariner comes in 4WD and can get up to 32 miles per gallon in the city and 29 on the highway. * The Saturn Vue is a 2 wd with 27 mpg in the city and 32 on the highway. * Toyota Highlander comes in 2 and 4 wd. and get about 33 miles per gallon in the city and 28 on the open road.
Trucks * Chevy Silverado Classic 15 – This truck comes in both 2 and 4wd and gets 18 miles to the gallon and 21 on the highway. * GMC Sierra Classic 15 – Both in 2wd and 4 wd. This little truck gets 21 and 18 miles to the gallon.
Trucks * GMC Sierra Classic 15 hybrid comes in 2WD and 4WD. The 2WD gets 18 mpg in the city and 21 mpg in the highway. * Chevy Silverado Classic 15 Hybrid comes in both 2WD and 4WD. The 2WD gets 18 mpg in the city and 21 mpg on the highway. The 4WD gets 17 mpg and 19 mpg on the highway.
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August 26th, 2008 — Gas Alternatives, Gas Costs, Hybrid Cars
by Tim Marquez
For all of history, cars have been driven by gasoline. The result? We are all using gasoline like crazy.
One hundred and fifty years ago, the internal combustion engine was introduced. Since then human society has been using gasoline like crazy. The efficiency of that engine, and the convenience of gasoline utilisation actually helped much of world progress in the 20th century.
Gasoline, however, is not unlimited. Since it can only be produced by extreme geological forces occurring over hundreds of millions of years, the high rate of human consumption means that it will be all over within 200 years. And we have used up the first 150 years.
The time to look for alternatives is here. For those people in their twenties or thirties, gasoline will be history within their lifetimes. But you say, what’s the hurry?
Well, before gasoline really is depleted physically, economic forces will be felt first. As gasoline gets less and less, the amount of effort and capital needed to get whatever remaining will increase. The gasoline that is left will be in smaller pockets because the large pockets would have been sucked up dry. The cost of recovering the increasing smaller pockets is of course higher as it gets more difficult to detect and mined.
In fact, chances are the economic effects is already here. The high gasoline prices within the last year or so can be argued to be due to more speculations or economic manipulations. However, if the gasoline reserves is unlimited, it would make sense to just keep producing to meet demands, wouldn’t it? No, they can’t that because the more they produce now, the faster it will deplete.
That is why we should start working towards using alternatives now. The sooner we do so the better it will be. Because gasoline actually is harmful to the very environment we live in.
In fact alternative fuels have been around for quite some time. It just doesn’t get noticed as long as gasoline prices is low which causes the inertia to change high. Well, not so now.
Two easy alternatives are available right now. Hydrogen fuel cells as well as biodiesel are both affordable to society at large with just a small initial capital and time commitment. Besides being reneweable hence the chance of changing supply to meet demand at will, it is also safe to use to the user as well as to nature.
Do you want to wait anymore?
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