Hybrid Cars
Hybrid cars are the transportation of the future. Humans have been driving around since the 1880’s. They started off as simple, one-cylinder machines, to today, where they are twelve cylinder animals. From fuel-efficient coupes, to gas guzzling SUVs, or even the ultra expensive supercars, all use gasoline. The use of this gasoline makes or breaks the selling point of the car. We base the cars off of their utility; the gas-guzzlers may be the ones with the most torque and pulling power, but the gas savers protect the environment and maybe save a few pennies in the pocket.
Overall, the controversy is whether hybrid cars are really that much better than their all gas counterparts. Hybrid cars may save the environment from fuel emissions, but they do not save the driver nay substantial amount of money overall. The basics of a hybrid car are pretty easy, but the complexity comes with comparing them to all gasoline cars. The main aspect of a hybrid car is the engine. In normal gasoline cars there is only one engine, but in hybrid cars there is one gasoline engine and one electric engine. The two engines work in harmony; if the electric engine runs out of power the gasoline engine charges it.
This process saves money on gas. Typically, a hybrid car get around 48-60 miles per gallon. This is a lot of mileage compared to most gasoline cars, which average about 18-26 miles per gallon. In addition to getting more gas mileage, hybrid cars cut down on fuel emissions. This can be illustrated by this graph: Another important aspect of a hybrid car is actually when it is coming to a stop. In a plain old car all of the energy and momentum that had been gained through accelerating is lost when braking. This makes city travel rather inefficient. Hybrids fix this; they capture breaking energy and use it to charge the battery.
This not only saves fuel but also has less wear and tear on the break pads. In the same ballpark as the breaking, the engine saves fuel by turning off and on often. When a hybrid vehicle comes to a complete stop the engine turns off and saves energy. It then restarts and turns back on once the accelerator is pressed. By doing this, energy is not wasted through idling. Utilizing the electric engine, it creates a boost for the combustion engine paired with it. This allows a smaller, less clunky, and more efficient engine to be used. Overall, the differences of the hybrid car make for a new technological driving experience.
The value of a hybrid car is based off of its practicality. Does it really do what it says it does? Does it save me any money on gas? Does it function to cut down on emissions? Is it worth the extra money? Well here’s some information: a Honda Civic gets around 36 miles per gallon, a typical hybrid costs around $19,000-$25,000, a typical gas vehicle costs around $14,000-$17,000. The price difference comes from the complexity in the process of building the car. Also, not only affecting the price, the production of the car creates plenty of emissions and a whole bunch of energy. This puts “zero emission vehicles” to sleep.
Creating another question, “Are all of these statistics true? ” The production of hybrid cars has almost solely come from foreign countries, such as japan and China. Only recently have American companies been trying to dip their hand into the hybrid pool. Overall, the American creation of hybrids has only been poor attempts just to put their name out there in the market. Doing this is focusing on adding to their all gas cars because they also promote fuel efficiency. The drawbacks are clear and make the pros not quite outweigh the cons in the end. The wheel-to-well aspect put the nail in the coffin for hybrid cars.
Focusing on the entire production, the process cancels its strives for efficiency by its complexity. Also, the argument for “zero emissions” is also false due to the process to create the car itself. Finally, the fuel usage may be a bit better then typical gas vehicles; it does not cancel out the immense price jump to the hybrid. This makes the price of the car not worth it, and much more favorable to buy it gas counterpart. Overall, the verdict is that a hybrid car does not really do that much for the driver except for its major selling points, “It’s a green, new technology! ”
