Archive for September, 2009
this is kind of a dumb question but you put gas in them right?
so what is a hybrid?
A hybrid has a gasoline engine. When you hit the brakes to approach a stop light, it slows down by charging the battery. When the light turns green and you accelerate, the battery helps the car accelerate. And since the engine gets help from the battery, it is smaller than the engines in normal cars and more efficient.
There is somewhat of an environmental impact from mining all the metals required for the first generation of hybrids, however the metals in these batteries can be recycled forever.
I am looking to get a camry hybrid and was wondering if regular vs premium would make a difference. Right now I have a acura tl and I have to use premium or it doesn’t get as many miles, looses power and makes a funny sound. With gas prices going so high I need a car that isn’t costing me over $3.50 a gallon for 21 miles.
Regular for camry hybrid.
Learn more about EVs
http://electric-vehicles-cars-bikes.blogspot.com/
TOM HANKS drives his AC Propulsion E-Box Electric Car
Duration : 0:1:4
Considered to be the closest thing yet to the ultimate eco-car, the TOYOTA FCHV was developed using Toyota’s original hybrid
technology derived from the Prius, the world’s first mass-produced hybrid vehicle as its core technology. Visit TheAutoChannel.com for more information about all alternative fuels and technologies.
Duration : 0:9:8
300 Miles Per Gallon! Aptera Motors Unveils Ultra Efficient All-Electric and Plug-In Hybrid Vehicles for Under $30K
Duration : 0:1:13
http://www.ForkenSwift.com – Overdue (but waaaay under budget) the car is now registered as an EV and is legally on the road.
Project ForkenSwift is an electric car conversion made using parts from a Suzuki Swift, Geo Metro, Baker electric forklift and a golf cart.
Duration : 0:7:24
Like hybrid cars that utilize battery and petrol, will a similar setup be possible for aircraft – possibly short-haul airliners?
on second thoughts – jet engines work due to heated compressd air being expelled at great force, so battery power would have no effect here? maybe just to help in the spinning of the fans ?
No
Hybrid engines on cars are radically different in concept to a turbine engine. Using electricity to spin a turbine would not do any good, as the thrust required to move the aircraft forward is still the result of the expansion of burned fuel. The power that results from a turbine engine is not generated simply by turning the axle, but by the movement of accelerated airflow.
Also, most hybrids get that extra electricity through the sue of normal physical forces. i.e. When you put on the brakes, the kinetic energy of your car is converted into electricity and stored in a battery. They are not typically much more efficient than a normal car under standard driving conditions like being on a highway. They only see dramatic increases over standard engines in stop-and-start driving conditions.
There is no analogous acceleration/deceleration cycle in an aircraft’s normal operations.
Also, batteries are extremely heavy and hauling them around would be prohibitve to an aircraft.
Both technologies are better than standard gasoline powered vehicles.
But while we’re on the subject, why hasen’t anyone developed a hybrid/ethanol vehicle? Wouldn’t that be better than them both?
I haven’t made any detailed studies, but I think ethanol may have a slight advantage.
Ethanol supposedly burns cleaner, while hybrids still burn gasoline.
Hybrids also use giant batteries which may contain toxic materials. If you look at the entire life of the vehicle including disposal, the batteries may knock the hybrids down a bit on the environmental scale.
I have been needing me a new car for a while. With the way everything is changing now, I figure a hybrid car would be a logical choice. A hefty tax credit, lower fuel cost, etc. is certainly appealing. Of course, hybrid cars are often more expensive, you have to buy powerful batteries, etc.
This brings me to my question: Are hybrid cars worth the extra cost? If they are, which ones are considered the most cost effective?
Don’t know where you have been hearing that you have to buy batteries, but all hybrid cars sold in the United States have an 8-year / 100,000-mile warranty that covers the hybrid battery. And in CA, CT, NY, NJ, MA, ME, RI and VT, the warranty is automatically extended to 10 years / 150,000 miles.
In Vancouver, Boston, New York City and Winnepeg, they have been using hybrid cars like the Prius and Ford Escape Hybrids as taxis for years. Many have racked up over 200,000 miles with ZERO battery issues.
Right now, the most cost-effective hybrid cars I would say are either the Nissan Altima Hybrid because it qualifies for a $2300 Federal Tax Credit refund, or either the Ford Fusion Hybrid (sedan) or Escape Hybrid (SUV), which qualifies for $1700. The Ford tax credits will be phased out this September though.
I think the hybrids using the Power Split Device system are well worth the money, because they cost LESS to maintain than regular cars. That’s because the PSD system is mechanically very simple, no gear-shifting wear-and-tear, no clutch, no hot-running torque converter, no CVT belts. The PSD transmission in the Toyota Prius for instance has all of 22 moving parts. That’s compared to over 100 moving parts in a regular automatic transmission with a hot-running hydraulic fluid-coupling torque converter. How the PSD transmission works: http://www.eahart.com/prius/psd
The PSD system also gives the car the ability to use electrical regenerative braking (converts a car’s forward momentum into storable electricity). This saves brake pad wear tremendously– The Prius needs no brake pad change until well after 100,000 miles. (Not a typo).
The PSD cars also have no timing belt, no alternator, no starter motor or solenoid to go bad and need replacement.
And because the gasoline engine isn’t running all the time the car is in operation, it experiences less heat stress and the coolant lasts a lot longer– The Prius does not need its radiator fluid changed until after 8 years. (Again, not a typo).
I own a PSD car, and I love the low-maintenance requirements. Call me crazy, but I hate taking my car in to be serviced, having to wait in the lounge for hours, then pay the mechanic. The less I have to do that, the better, which is why I’m never going back to a regular car.
This seems to be legit – it was even aired by Fox News of all people
Duration : 0:2:39