Alternative Vehicle Week

[susandennis]

I stopped at the grocery story this morning and pulled up next to a different looking little car. I gave it a better look and it turned out to be a hybrid! Electric and gas. Cute looking little thing. First Segway and now hybrid. I'm thinking flying saucer next?

Comments

[kyrielle]

I love those cars. I really want a Prius for my next car, though it may not happen. They get incredible mileage, though, in addition to being environmentally friendly. (The mileage is so incredible, it might pay for the price difference if you keep the car 5-10 years...but, it also has its advantages in having to sit at the gas station less often, so....)

[susandennis]

They are cute and one would be perfect for the way I drive - average of 1 trip of 5 miles once a week. But, I got nowhere to plug it in (the condo garage has limited electrical outlets and none big enough).

[kyrielle]

Hybrid vehicles (at least the ones I am familiar with) do not need to be plugged in, to the best of my understanding. They run a nice beefy battery that is recharged from the engine when running at speeds that use the engine, and is also recharged during braking.

[susandennis]

I absolutely did NOT know that! Wow. I've been using that 'nowhere to plug in' excuse forever! I may have to investigate this more closely... hmmm Thanks!

[kyrielle]

They have a lovely response to stop-and-go traffic, too. You've stopped? Turn the engine off. When you go, it kicks up from the battery and brings the engine in when appropriate (so if you're just edging forward, the engine's not running and eating your gas).

I'm not sure you'd see that much benefit from it, with the amount of driving that you do, but they seem very cool and I've been told they're quite quiet. (The Prius is nice and spacious for a car its size, too.)

[waning-estrogen.livejournal.com]

more likely a rocket backpack.

[kyra.livejournal.com]

A friend of mine (http://www.livejournal.com/~haddmatter) rigged up an old diesel car to be hybrid diesel-vegetable oil. He gets the oil free from restaurants who would otherwise have to pay to have it taken away. A cool and cost-effective car.

[susandennis]

That is seriously cool.

[tinman.livejournal.com]

Yeah, those engines are cool. They provide fantastic mileage without the "where do I plug in" mess and the typical under-powered-ness (yes, I made that word up) of electrics.

If they can make these hybrids big enough and powerful enough, I think they'd go great in SUVs, perhaps enough so that the anti-SUV crowd would back off a bit. :)