Hybrid Vehicles
These days it’s cool to be green. And while the environment is always a concern, high gas prices probably have more to do with America’s new found green movement than anything. No longer do we want those gas guzzlers - we want the fuel sipping hybrid cars to be the ones lining our driveways.
Even a few short years ago consumers were leery of buying and driving a hybrid. Today that’s all changed. Manufacturers like Toyota, Saturn, and Honda can’t make enough of them.
What makes a hybrid a hybrid? Well, basically it’s a vehicle that uses more than one method for power. In the case of nearly all hybrids on the road today that means it has an electric motor supplementing its gasoline powered counterpart which is still the main means of propulsion.
One cool feature that you find on a lot of hybrids is that when you stop at a stoplight for more than a few seconds, the engine shuts off. Other hybrids will turn off unneeded cylinders when driving on the highway to save fuel.
Another fuel saving innovation is the fact that many hybrid vehicles are simply lighter. They tend to be more aerodynamic and use lighter materials in construction.
Hybrid sales have been picking up each year. While only 80,000 hybrids sold in 2004, that number more than doubled in 2005 to 200,000. These days manufacturers can’t make enough to keep up with demand.
There are several hybrids currently available in North America. They include the Honda Civic, Honda Accord, Honda Insight, Toyota Prius, and the Mercury Mariner. There are also Hybrid SUVs available - the Ford Escape, the Lexas 400H and the Toyota Highlander. Pretty much every manufacturer has at least one entry in this market.
Right now the top hybrid on the planet would be the Toyota Prius. There are currently over 1,000,000 Prius’ on the road right now.
Now that consumer support for the hybrids has arrived, auto manufacturers are increasing the pace at which they introduce hybrid models.
While none of us has a crystal ball to know exactly what we’ll be driving 50 years in the future, the hybrid is certainly going to be a prominent player in the quest to save gas for years to come.
