The Hybrid Vehicle Resource
In a day and age where gas is rarely below $3.00 a gallon, finding other options becomes more important. Hybrid cars are thought to provide better fuel economy and help us reduce our dependence on oil. Nearly all carmakers have or plan to have at least one hybrid car on the road by 2007. Each hybrid vehicle can fit into a number of categories such as full hybrid and mild hybrid.
The interest in trying to market hybrid cars did not really take off until the past decade or so. The interest has been growing as the gas prices never seem to drop back down as they were before the last price increase. If fuel prices continue to rise as they the carmakers will find lower sales and this is bad for all of us. In the next 5 to 10 years we should see far more research and new technology for cleaner cars that cost less to drive.
There are many different technologies that are used in hybrid cars of different types. Specifically a true hybrid car is a vehicle that uses two or more sources of power. Other cars such as plug in and fuel cell cars may not fit this description and are often call hybrid vehicles anyway. The true hybrid or dual power source vehicles have a number of fuel saving devices but may require we drive our cars differently.
One method used to conserve fuel in a hybrid is to use a smaller motor and use power from the battery for extra power when accelerating or climbing hills. Hybrid cars are usually build lighter and are more aerodynamic with stiffer tires that reduce drag. Some hybrid cars employ technology that recovers energy from the brakes to charge the battery.
Most hybrid cars do not need to be plugged in to any outlets. Some hybrids have this as an option. There are many other mistaken notions about hybrid cars. A few myths are that batteries need to be replaced often but they last up 100,000 miles, another myth is that they are expensive when they are available for about $20k.
You are not likely to just buy a hybrid to save money on gas. Hybrid cars are an emerging technology in the automotive industry and supporting this new direction is good for all of us. As each generation of hybrid car comes out there will be improvements that make their appeal higher and as a result we have a cleaner environment and lower cost to drive.
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