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I was wondering if any guys on here drive a hybrid car? What is your impression of Hybrid Cars??

I wasn't to keen on the mini fridge on wheels look on the Toyota so I went Honda.

Technically speaking if you want to be green then walk, bike or take mass transit to work. Of course we can't all follow that since half the country was built specifically around the automobile.

But as for hybrids my first car was an insight so I'm used to lackluster acceleration. Besides acceleration kills fuel economy. I enjoy trying to maximize FE as much as possible.

Like any car a hybrid is dependent on the driver. Over at Cleanmpg.com we have Ford Ranger owners who can get 48 mpg and Prius owners who can only manage 38. It all depends on how you drive really. Technology only get you so far.

Technique is everything

DWB, DWL, NICE-ON, P&G, Glide, FAS, if you don't know what those mean then your not driving at your potential

I have a 2008 prius. I like mine.

I have no trouble getting up hills. Of course, the milage is good. I like that there are no gears that shift. I like that I never have to use a key to get in or start the car. I was surprised at how much power it does have.

I'm hoping that my next car in about 3 years will either be a plug in hybrid or fuel cell powered car. I would love to have a car that gets over 100 mpg.

I've been driving a Prius (06 model) as part of a carsharing program. It's awesome and drives really well. It is a little unnerving at first how silent the car is, but the fuel consumption seems excellent. The styling perhaps is not to everyone's taste, but it's distinctive in a very contemporary way, I think (compare with the Scion :-P).

It's hardly going to change the world, but if you must buy a new car, it's worthwhile buying one that has as low a fuel consumption as possible.

I considered a Prius, but went with another Matrix. I'm not ready to give up a 5 speed.

I seriously looked at a Prius but couldn't justify the high cost and the 6 month wait when I was looking for a new car... The plus side is that now there are several alternates - although I don't think I would drive a Smartcar on the Freeway... scary!!!

No Prius here.... hybrid cars generally speaking are a bit of a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde scenario... Sure the Prius is going to give their owners great gas mileage by US standards, but if your real goal is "environmental friendliness", however one chooses to define that, one must look at the cars life cycle... from construction to trash heap, and under that scenario I'd make the argument we may have lots of cars that are similar to the Prius. From Clean Diesels, to other comparable, less tech intensive cars such as the Civic....

From someone who knows a little about life cycle analysis....the toughest issue is always defining the control volume... and there are many institutions trying to come up with more an more detailed ways of estimating this, but for now, there is no standard. GREET is likely the best, though the most complicated.

There was a study put out by CMW Market Research stating a Hummer was better than the Prius under the "lifecycle" analysis, though it's largely been debunked as a trumped up study by far more reputable sources....

Sorry for the diatribe.... This stuff is interesting to me....

I got an 07 Prius last summer & have been really happy with it. The Prius was really the only hybrid that got serious mileage that had some of the lux features i wanted like the bluetooth, voice activated nav and heated seats (hey - it gets COLD here in Jersey in the winter!!!!)

Been getting about 45-50 MPG realistically - it's crazy, it gets better mileage than my motorcyclce, and it has a TON of cargo room. My sheepdog fits very comfortably in it!

I bought a '07 Prius last June, and have had a great experience with it. My one worry was pick-up because here in NJ, as in any urban area, you need to get your speed up very quickly many times, or you become a road hazard.

But no regrets about acceleration. Mileage has consistently ran in the 45-55 mpg range. Very solid car, quiet.

However, admittedly, it does look like an ovary.

I've got a hybrid non-Prius. A Camry, in fact, on which I'm averaging about 41 miles per gallon. The fact that I don't drink makes me the logical designated driver, and I prefer being able to fit adults in my back seat comfortably. I've had the thing for a couple months shy of 2 years now, and I'm still under 13,500 miles on it, so I actually think my carbon footprint is more affected by how little I drive than what car it is I do drive--when it's feasible, I prefer walking places that are within a handful of miles of my house, probably in part because I learned to drive so much later than most people that I'm simply used to walking longer distances than many. I'm not positive that the current generation of hybrid vehicles is economically worth the higher cost, but part of why I got mine was the idea that adding to the demand for hybrid technology will attract more suppliers, and thus will make the next generation more efficient and less expensive.

I've got one- love it!
And I get to go in the HOV lane so it not only saves gas but a heck of a lot of time at rush hour :-)

I drive an 07 Wrangler JK 2-door that gets 16 mpg in all-city driving. I also drive approximately 5 miles a day between work, gym and back. So who's more environmentally friendly? Me or the guy who drives his Prius alone 60 miles to work and back?

I don't want to sound like I'm attacking Hybrids. In fact, I love the recent spur in technology development (although I wish the government hadn't riddled purchasing one with limited incentives before Detroit had the chance to reposture itself from the incentive-laden SUV production years back :-/). I am, however, against those who use a hybrid to promote some sort of smug attitude of being environmentally friendly. Good for you, but in reality you just kinda spent more money; something us gas-guzzling SUV drivers do anyway, right?

groundcombat saidI drive an 07 Wrangler JK 2-door that gets 16 mpg in all-city driving. I also drive approximately 5 miles a day between work, gym and back. So who's more environmentally friendly? Me or the guy who drives his Prius alone 60 miles to work and back?

I don't want to sound like I'm attacking Hybrids. In fact, I love the recent spur in technology development (although I wish the government hadn't riddled purchasing one with limited incentives before Detroit had the chance to reposture itself from the incentive-laden SUV production years back :-/). I am, however, against those who use a hybrid to promote some sort of smug attitude of being environmentally friendly. Good for you, but in reality you just kinda spent more money; something us gas-guzzling SUV drivers do anyway, right?

Not so much having traded in my gas guzzler for my YARIS which btw is one of the most enviro friendly non hybrids and paying just over 300 a month in payments its still leaving me more flush for spends then the $80 something dollars it would cost to fill my old gas pig.

I worked it out but if gas went to $1.50 a L its rumored to this summer in canada from the $1.20 it is now i'd still only be paying just over $60 to fill it and I never let it hit empty.

I love my Yaris LE!!

I drive a Lexus GS h and love it, I just took delivery of a LS h L in Boston which seemed very nice the one time I have driven it (though the numbers on the LS really don't compute if cost is your criteria). I am considering one for here in London.

My company fleet has used Prius's for (3 or 4 years?) and they have held up very well in NY and NE.

I firmly support alternative energy initiatives including hybrids, clean diesel, bio diesel, etc.

I don't mind paying a premium, and with the current cost of gas; the differential is more and more negligible.

I think the big winner in the auto company race will be the first company to market a full hybrid minivan.

I think the idea of a hybrid SUV with todays hugely over sized engines is ridiculous (the idea of an Escalade hybrid is an moronic - the fevered dream of some advertising exec from 5th Ave after a 3 day binge.).

groundcombat saidI drive an 07 Wrangler JK 2-door that gets 16 mpg in all-city driving. I also drive approximately 5 miles a day between work, gym and back. So who's more environmentally friendly? Me or the guy who drives his Prius alone 60 miles to work and back?

That's not even proper comparison lol

Why can't a small Fit or Yaris fill you driving needs? A jeep is horribly inefficient. And with a smaller 2 door or sedan you could have saved money. Heck a Scion tC is sexy and starts at less than your Wrangler and it still burns less gas.

And if its only 5 miles why are you not biking to and fro. Then you could really rub it in to hybrid owners!

ITJock said
I think the idea of a hybrid SUV with todays hugely over sized engines is ridiculous (the idea of an Escalade hybrid is an moronic - the fevered dream of some advertising exec from 5th Ave after a 3 day binge.).

Havn't seen you in awhile!

To be honest I don't think the Tahoe/Escalade is that bad. I mean some people do want an SUV that can seat 7-8 and toe a boat. Might as well offer them something to can do it with 50% better city fuel economy. If testers from MotorTrend can get 24 mpg around town in a 6000 lb SUV thats pretty damn good compared to the rest of the lineup.

swpdxguy saidI seriously looked at a Prius but couldn't justify the high cost and the 6 month wait when I was looking for a new car... The plus side is that now there are several alternates - although I don't think I would drive a Smartcar on the Freeway... scary!!!

Actually the smartcar is comparable to the Prius in safety tests. If it matters, the carbon footprint of the smart is far lower than a Prius. Of course, if your ordering a smartcar, the wait is about 1 year right now.

Yup, I'm a Prius driver. I like it... I just get distracted by the gauges and doo-dads that monitor the energy consumption of he vehicle while I am driving. Not cool, I know, but that's not the car's fault.

Trance23 said[quote][cite]
That's not even proper comparison lol

Why can't a small Fit or Yaris fill you driving needs? A jeep is horribly inefficient. And with a smaller 2 door or sedan you could have saved money. Heck a Scion tC is sexy and starts at less than your Wrangler and it still burns less gas.

And if its only 5 miles why are you not biking to and fro. Then you could really rub it in to hybrid owners!

And why is it not a proper comparison again? My carbon footprint is actually smaller than the Hybrid driver's in that scenario. The bottomline is that I use less energy than that person.

But comparison aside, I'm not claiming that I have no responsibility to be efficient where possible or "do my part" to reduce emissions and personal energy comsumption. My larger point was that having a Hybrid alone makes no definative statement about how environmentally-friendly a person is relative to another.

And I have needs outside of communting to work and gym. Good luck with that Fit driving over Loveland Pass in a blizzard.

groundcombat said
And why is it not a proper comparison again? My carbon footprint is actually smaller than the Hybrid driver's in that scenario. The bottomline is that I use less energy than that person.

But comparison aside, I'm not claiming that I have no responsibility to be efficient where possible or "do my part" to reduce emissions and personal energy comsumption. My larger point was that having a Hybrid alone makes no definative statement about how environmentally-friendly a person is relative to another.

And I have needs outside of communting to work and gym. Good luck with that Fit driving over Loveland Pass in a blizzard.

Your comparing two different drivers and routines. Apples and Oranges, or comparing Hillary to Hitler.

Nobody (at least here) has claimed anything. The hybrid difference is it offers a small impact than many comparable offerings. The civic hybrid technically has the least emission of all gas burning US cars, the discontinued Insight had the best Mileage.

I don't know what Loverland Pass is but my car is just fine going to Maine or Vermont for skiing. All I use are Blizzak snow tires. Are you driving a Jeep because you need the capabilities? Why not a Subaru or other small SUV with 4WD. Most of them can get better fuel economy than a Jeep since your SUV relies on a large inefficient engine.

As for capabilities I can get 45 mpg with winter tires in the snow up north, 48 with the Kayaks on top, and a normal 57 right now around town. I probably spent less on the civic too since in CT there was no taxes on hybrids plus the tax credit.

Driving a jeep 5 miles around town says alot too

Hybrid cars are especially handy in city driving since they switch to the electric motor when the brake is on. Being stuck in a traffic jam is something that us big city drivers are well accustomed to. Driving a hybrid really cuts back on the emissions in these situations.

My brother drives a Prius and a Highlander. He has never regretted either purchase. The Highlander gets about 31 mpg overall which is equivalent to an efficient sedan. That is far superior to other conventional SUVs.

Re Trance23:

Although the routines are different, overall fuel consumption and emissions are raw numbers. 20 gallons/week is more gas (and generally more accompanying emissions) than 5 gallons/week. Period. By the way, I made up those numbers so don't run 'em. The bottom line is there's two ways to reduce your fuel consumption: drive a more fuel efficient car or drive less. I'm just trying to show that MPG is not the end all, be all when we're talking about energy conservation. It's like buying energy efficient light bulbs then leaving the lights on while you're not home.

Again, I'm not saying there isn't more I could be doing. Hell yeah there is! I believe there's always more that everyone can do. I use my Jeep as my primary transportation since my motorcycle got stolen, but I also use it to go snowboarding (snow tires and 4WD/AWD don't mean anything without clearance), mountain biking, trail driving, and towing trailers. Besides, Subaru's probably get 2-3 MPG more than my Jeep.

" It's like buying energy efficient light bulbs then leaving the lights on while you're not home."

I don't quite understand this comparison.... I don't try to waste gasoline just because my car happens to get good mileage..... Gasoline is expensive... i still try to ride my bike on short trips instead of driving when it is possible.... I try to conserve gasoline to save money...


I dont have the option of commuting only 5 miles per day. It is more like 100 miles a day. That is just the reality of things with my current work situation...

I just bought a prius because it gets good mileage, has alot of gadgets such as navigation and ipod connection, and is fun to drive... so far I am happy with it.
I had a jeep awhile back and enjoyed the hell out of that also....

I am not judgmental of other people because of the size of their carbon ( foot print?)

I also like the new BMW 1 series cars.. they look like they are fun as hell to drive.

"I don't quite understand this comparison.... I don't try to waste gasoline just because my car happens to get good mileage....."


All I'm saying is that just because someone has a low-fuel consuption car, it doesn't always mean they're doing us any favors in the end. My original beef wasn't to anyone specifically here, but to other hybrid owners who pretend like they're saving the world and no one else cares. There, I'm moving on now.

groundcombat said"I don't quite understand this comparison.... I don't try to waste gasoline just because my car happens to get good mileage....."


All I'm saying is that just because someone has a low-fuel consuption car, it doesn't always mean they're doing us any favors in the end. My original beef wasn't to anyone specifically here, but to other hybrid owners who pretend like they're saving the world and no one else cares. There, I'm moving on now.

No worries, were not trying to hassle you here

It's just you should have clarified a bit more with your initial compare. A guy driving 60 miles to work and a 5 mile commute are two different things.

Also since you brought up the mileage of SUV's I thought I'd offer some numbers:

2007 Models:
Jeep Wrangler 4WD: 14/18 mpg
Subaru Forester AWD: 20/25 mpg
Honda CRV 4WD: 19/26 mpg
Honda Element 4WD: 19/24 mpg
Ford Escape 4WD: 18/23 mpg

Sorry I'm kinda s stickler for auto facts.

My car runs on pills, properly wet gin martinis, copious quantities of gasoline, and burnt rubber.


OK so I am kidding


Actually I have no car at all anymore (my driving license expired and I decided not to renew it).

I drove a friends Prius on a road trip in northern California a couple of years (the same trip where I took the video in my profile here). I was surprised at the 45 mpg it got - even in the mountains. The power was great going straight up hill too. Actually - because it drives so smoothly and is so quiet - many times I found myself going 90mph on the freeway without realizing it. I loved the car, always great gas mileage, and it had a great deal of power.

That said - there are some that say it's more eco friendly to buy a Hummer than a Prius. This is because the amount of inputs that go into the battery - parts from strip mines in asia, and that the amount of energy it takes to get all the parts for the battery and ship them to where the Prius is being manufactured, and then the lack of disposability of the battery at the end of it's life - outweigh the extra fuel cost or environmental impact of the the hummer vs. the Prius. Something to consider....

It's like the situation arising from corn ethanal. Yes you get more fuel efficiency in your car and you burn cleaner, but you have to rape the land and use enormous amounts of energy and other resources to create corn ethanal - so it's not worth it. Fortunately there are many other ways to produce ethanol - so hopefully our government will support those ways eventually.

It's all just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. I say bring it on. Lets get this over with.

dumdedum said
That said - there are some that say it's more eco friendly to buy a Hummer than a Prius. This is because the amount of inputs that go into the battery - parts from strip mines in asia, and that the amount of energy it takes to get all the parts for the battery and ship them to where the Prius is being manufactured, and then the lack of disposability of the battery at the end of it's life - outweigh the extra fuel cost or environmental impact of the the hummer vs. the Prius. Something to consider....

NOOOOOOOO.........

What your talking about is an article from CNW Marketing Research that was put out several years ago. Although it was totally debunked it still circulates its bias.

In the article they made the Hummer out to be more earth friendly. Here are some myths the article supported:

The Prius will cost more in long term care and upkeep

-Wrong. NYC taxi fleet has several over 300,000 mile hybrids that all still run on the original battery with few needed repairs. Any idea how long a Hummer lasts? GM quality?

Hybrids like the Prius/HCH do away with several parts such as alternators, timing belts, etc. Less parts and less wear on brakes as well.

The Battery is toxic and just ends up in dumps

Wrong, there is only one slightly toxic element in the battery which is why Toyota along with the other companies all pay to have the batteries taken back and properly disposed of and portions reused.

The Battery creation destroys the forests!

Yet another lie! Nickel used in the battery is the same nickel used in every other car and other products. Mining and production was destroying the forests with pollution long before the Prius came along.

The shipping of parts for the Prius outweighs the costs of the Hummer

Once again a lie. Most hybrids are still assembled overseas intact and then shipped. Prius/Civic. Also because of globalization so much work is done across the globe that every car pretty much imports most of its parts. The Hummer is no exception.

i have been considering selling my jeep for a more fuel efficient car. I don't think I am a Prius guy. I want an SUV, but not one that looks like a station wagon. Are there any Str8 acring hybrid suv's out there

DJBens77 saidi have been considering selling my jeep for a more fuel efficient car. I don't think I am a Prius guy. I want an SUV, but not one that looks like a station wagon. Are there any Str8 acring hybrid suv's out there

Yep, I have driven a Prius since November 2001 and I love it. When I get out of school next year and get a job, the first thing I'm going to buy is a new Prius. I wouldn't even consider driving anything else at this point. I average 50-55 MPG with city driving in the warmer months.

I agree with Trance23 that driving style affects your MPG. Driving a Prius has certainly affected my driving style because I can see my MPG at every moment, so I know what is a MPG killer (acceleration) and what is a MPG saver (coasting). I've never understood why drivers accelerate when approaching a red light, then slam on their brakes to stop. Just coast to a stop!

SUBARU

DJBens77 saidi have been considering selling my jeep for a more fuel efficient car. I don't think I am a Prius guy. I want an SUV, but not one that looks like a station wagon. Are there any Str8 acring hybrid suv's out there

What kind of pick-up does the Prius have. I was stuck behind one and that guy drove like, I would say a little old lady but little old ladies in Kentucky drive faster than Ohio teenagers. This guy drove like a typical Buckeye, slow as molasses on a cold day. Was it the guy or the car?

I had a tire bondfire in the back and my buds and I shot some endangered migratory birds which we cooked in the microwave.

They weren't too good, so we took the Kubota tractor into town and got some mcdonalds.