Hybrids

Tell me what you think of Hybrids. To me I hate those stupid cars and I will never buy one. I'm just not an electric car person and I hate them.. :disappoin :grinno: :lol: :nono: :screwy: :evillol: :eek: :sunglasse

I can't really say I dislike hybrids, I would never buy one, but I could completely understand why somebody would...Most people (not around here) think a car is just something to get them from A to B...

A hybrid is absolutely perfect for a regular driver. Its quick enough for a safe merge, is incredible on fuel economy, its small, practical, attactive, fwd, competitively priced, and im sure the insurance is low... For the average person what else do you need in a car? and with the way gas is priced, a hybrid makes so much economical sense to city dwellers

The day they make the Diesel hybrid, man that thing could go years on a tank of diesel gas

I'd actually love one for a daily beater. Being that I pay over $50 to fill up my tank now and have to fill it up all too frequently...I can see a huge appeal in only spending $30 in gas a month. Granted I'm not fond of the looks of most of them that are on the market, but power isn't really what I would want out of a car like that...just good gas mileage, and that is what they offer.

Well you know they make hybrid civics/accords...i'd definitely buy one since i'm in the same boat as Igovert ($200 a month on gas). Plus i'm a Toyota tech in training and know a lot about the Prius. I wouldn't own one as my only car, but definitely for a daily driver. I think it's good technology and that's where the future is gonna be if they can give it enough power...especially the way gas prices are heading.

I'm not a fan of hybrids, and think they're over-rated. They usually don't get the high mileage that the EPA numbers would lead you to believe, and a good part of the advantage they do have is from other efficient options like new weight-saving engineering, small wheels and skinny tires, engine shutting off at stop lights- all things you can do to a non-hybrid. I also think if people just learn to drive a little more efficiently, they can make up some of the losses in city driving without needing the complexity of a hybrid. Not to mention some emergency response personnel are afraid to touch them, should you be involved in an accident. I also think the eventual cost of battery replacement will make them a "throw-away" car.

However, I do think the technology will mature, and I'm excited to see people buying them.

I just choose diesel over gas-electric. More simple, safer fuel, fuel is easier to refine, decent performance, and countless great diesel engines are already available.

Here is a link to an article I found interesting which discusses the true cost of owning a hybrid vehicle vs. a gas powered one, and it looks at long term results and debates whether or not you save much money by going with the hybrid. http://www.edmunds.com/advice/specialreports/articles/103708/article.html

Originally posted by Skyline;
"Tell me what you think of Hybrids. To me I hate those stupid cars and I will never buy one. I'm just not an electric car person and I hate them."

When gasoline cars started coming on the scene in the early 1900's many people ridiculed and resented them, not unlike some people today with hybrids. Cheap oil is on it's way out. I say bring on the future.

Cheap oil is on it's way out. I say bring on the future.

Hydrogen, corn oil, and synthetic oil are way better than a hybrid and can replace todays natural oil.

What can you do with a motor? You can't supercharge, turbocharge, change the heads, change the throttle body, change the intake manifold, mess with the ignition, or anything else you do with an engine.

To the normal world who uses cars to go from A to B hybrids are great. For most of us on these forums we'd be out of a hobby and possible a job.

the main point of those cars isn't higher mpg, it's lower emissions and energy use in general....

and that's where the problem is, their emission levels still aren't really low enough to make them a true green alternative.

To the normal world who uses cars to go from A to B hybrids are great. For most of us on these forums we'd be out of a hobby and possible a job.
That's exactly the point. Our muscle cars will always need oil but does a 2010 soccer mom mini van? The sooner we start switching to new technology the better. The reality of supply and demand will continue to increase the cost of oil putting us out of a hobby even sooner if we don't. We will always have oil in our lifetimes, it's just a matter of how much we will pay for it.

If somebody had the money and stuff we could replace oil. If you boil corn you'll get an alcohol you can use in cars. They tried this back in the '70s during the gas crunch but didn't follow through with it.

The thing is the oil companies won't invest in it because they're making money charging us out the butt for gas. If somebody with enough money and a way to transport it had a way to make and distribute it, oil would go way down.

All I have to say is... damn you OPEC.

You guys have to understand some things about Hybrid cars. Though they are very cost-effective after you buy them, you could get a car of similar size and performance that runs on gasoline at a fraction of the cost (e.g. if we look at the Prius and the Corolla). It would be very hard to save money at all in the long term by buying a Prius over a Corolla (In order to save money on buying a Prius over a Corolla on fuel costs, you have to use it for an average 10 years to make up for the extra $AU20,000 it costs) This is why I d prefer normal gasoline cars until Hybrid ones become cheap enough to be "worth-it".

It's true hybrids may not be a big savings at this time. But the supply of oil is limited and the demand for it is still going up like crazy. Sooner or later something will become more cost effective than oil. It seems like it would be better to start planning for this eventuality now, than to be left behind with outdated technology.
As for hot rodding, I have no doubt it will survive no matter what comes. Just look at the past. Back in the 70's everyone thought that pollution equipment marked the end of hot rodding, but just look at what we do with clean burning "smog" motors now.

Those cars just spewed smoke, the horsepower wars came at a cost to the environment I guess...

and word is fuel cell technology, or Hydrogen is the wave of the future...but im quite skeptical

most likely hybrid fuel cells.

also, you can't really compare a prius to a corolla because the prius offers so much more standard features than the corolla. for example, a corolla does not have a standard 7 inch touch screen that houses audio and AUTOMATIC climate control. the 2000 dollar tax deduction also helps justify the price difference so the Prius is a much better buy

Sorry about me being Banned. I do see what you mean about the gas prices abnd if they make them look better I'll buy one......

Consider a hybrid 4x4 truck, Wacked!

Not really. Check this out; each axle will have its own motor. No more driveshaft. Instantaneous torque and no stalling. Weight centered over each axle.

Perfect rock crawler.

With the price of oil continuing to rise, hybrids are going to become much more popular. SUV sales will go way down because people can't afford to fill them up every other day. There is nothing wrong with hybrids. Only thing I dislike is that they don't make any good looking ones. The Honda Civic hybrid is the most normal looking of them all. We need more like that.

With the price of oil continuing to rise, hybrids are going to become much more popular. SUV sales will go way down because people can't afford to fill them up every other day. There is nothing wrong with hybrids. Only thing I dislike is that they don't make any good looking ones. The Honda Civic hybrid is the most normal looking of them all. We need more like that.

How bout the hybrid Accord? That looks better than the Civic, and it's actually faster than the rest of the Accord line-up. I think what would set it off for the hybrids is if they made a sports car w/ some decent power that could get 40 mpg. Ever notice how the mpg is always better in city driving rather than highway for hybrids?? unlike straight gas powered's where highway is better. I think it's b/c the motor shuts itself off when it isnt needed (like when going downhill, sitting at a light).

Going back to hydrogen fuel cells as an alternative fuel source, I recently read an article in Popular Science about the "myths" of hydrogen, and it showed me many bad things and unrealistic things about the hydrogen fuel cells, such as the pressure needed to keep it useable, having to run the car almost every day to keep it from evaporating, etc. It's interesting, how the government proclaimed it as an "end-all" fuel source, when there are still many problems. As for hybrids, I think they're an excellent idea, and Toyota's definitely leading the way... I mean heck, even Ford's making hybrid SUV's, which will appeal to many people... Sooner or later, hybrids will catch on, in my opinion, but by that time gasoline will be nearly drained.

i doubt the accord hybrid is going to fly because of several reasons:

1) price: even with gas savings, compared to a normal accord you won't save enough money to pay off the hybrid increase in 9 years. plus, starting price is already near 30k and there's very little room for negotiating a price on these, so its a logical choice that more people will see discounted accords at 17k and choose that over the accord hybrid. (i'm using my own calculations and not basing this off of articles).

2) lost functionality: because of the hybrid battery in the back, the back seats don't fold down. this is only typical in honda's hybrids, e.g. civic and accord hybrid. toyota's and ford's don't have that problem.

i think its neat that they can shut down half of the cylinders but then it makes a really loud helicopter sound and although people inside the car won't hear it, i think its probably awkward for other cars on the highway

Well of course in the first year of production its not gonna be the least expensive or most popular thing. Give it time, I bet $50 it catches on!

The thing is the oil companies won't invest in it because they're making money charging us out the butt for gas. If somebody with enough money and a way to transport it had a way to make and distribute it, oil would go way down.

Exactly and it's just to bad those oil companies fund the campaigns of politicians (Dems and Reps alike) and that world economies are built on it, and that human life becomes valueless because of it.

As far as hybrids go they are what they are, an economy car and I've never been a fan of economy cars. That's why I hate tricked out Civics, Focuses, and the like they are economy cars.

The automotive world has gone to Hell thanks to guzzlers like SUV's and luxury cars. Pretty soon, hybrids will be the only choice of vehicle if we want to continue using gasoline and oil. If not, then Earth's fuel suppy will be depleted in just a few short years, and even hybrids won't be used. Instead, alternative fuels like solar power and hydrogen cells will be dominant on our roads. It looks like that may soon become reality.

i think solar power would be really neat but i also think that large scale use of solar power would be very expensive. hydrogen? probably not in the near future. hybrids? probably always because hybrid denotes a use of two different energy sources and doesnt need to be gasoline at all, in fact you will probably see hydrogen hybrids instead of just pure hydrogen vehicles. reason being, hybrids are able to recapture some of the energy expended to propell the car.