Guide to hybrid cars
Whether you’re looking to aid the environment or to save yourself some cash at the petrol pumps, hybrid cars are rapidly becoming a popular solution for motorists worldwide. However, just what are hybrid cars, how do they work, why should you consider them and are they readily available? This guide to hybrid cars will steer you in the right direction.
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What is a hybrid car?
Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs) use an on-board rechargeable energy storage system (RESS) and a fuel powered source to gain propulsion. This means they are more economical and are usually better for the environment than traditional petroleum fuelled vehicles.
How do hybrid cars work?
Though hybrid cars might seem fairly new to the market, hybrids have existed in other forms for years. For example, a moped is a hybrid vehicle as it combines the pedal power of its rider with a petroleum engine. Indeed many trains combine diesel and electric power, so examples of hybrids are all around us.
Hybrid cars, in their modern mass-produced form, use internal combustion engines and electric batteries that combine to power electric motors. This is assisted by regenerative breaking, which captures kinetic energy to prolong the charge on the batteries. Hybrid cars also limit their own energy use when cruising by spinning an electric generator to recharge the battery or power the motor.
As a developing form of technology, new ideas to make hybrid cars even more efficient are emerging all the time. Indeed in 2007, many car manufacturers decided to use hybrid technology without electric motors – instead focusing on regenerative braking to recapture energy and store it for use on accessories such as air conditioning.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of hybrid cars?
The main reason hybrid cars were introduced was to assist the environment. With more than 700 million vehicles worldwide, supporters of hybrid cars hope that if more consumers buy these vehicles it will force car manufacturers to create greener cars and therefore positively impact the environment.
So why are hybrid cars better for the environment? As they are more fuel efficient they burn less gasoline, which reduces harmful emissions and global warming. The impact of toxic car batteries is also reduced with Toyota and Honda offering recycling schemes for their batteries, while research is also under way for the introduction of lithium ion batteries in hybrid cars, which are better for the environment than lead or nickel.
Of course, hybrid cars don’t just appeal to the environmentally conscious – they are also ideal for anyone looking to save money. Hybrid cars are the most fuel efficient vehicles available with statistics in America revealing that the hybrid Toyota Prius gets an average 60 miles to the gallon during city driving – that’s approximately 30 miles to the gallon more than a conventional car. With petrol prices soaring around the £1/litre mark, there are huge savings to be made in the long term by investing in a hybrid car.
So what are the disadvantages? Hybrid cars combine the best of electric cars with the best of conventional cars and the end result is a group of vehicles that, while not quite as fuel efficient or environmentally friendly as electric cars, are more reliable, as well as safe and comfortable. The only disadvantage to hybrid cars at this juncture is that the number of vehicle options available is limited – however, this is expanding all the time and will only increase in parallel with growing environmental concerns.
The car of the stars
Hybrid cars certainly have celebrity endorsement. Cameron Diaz was the first Hollywood celebrity to offer her public backing for the vehicles, and she is a proud owner of a Toyota Prius. Leonardo Di Caprio was also famously quoted as saying that his hybrid car is just like any conventional vehicle – except he only has to fill it up once every three weeks. Indeed the number of A-list celebrities who now own hybrid cars is extensive and includes household names such as Kurt Russell, Tom Hanks, Larry David, Jack Black, Woody Harrelson and Harrison Ford.
What hybrid cars are available?
The number of hybrid cars in the UK is growing rapidly though we still have some catching up to do with the USA, where the number of hybrid cars available is vast. Indeed the hybrid Toyota Camry was recently acclaimed as America’s top-selling passenger vehicle.
- Toyota Prius – The number one selling hybrid car worldwide is designed with form, function and quality in mind. Its hybrid synergy drive system combines powerful performance with outstanding fuel efficiency. It has received a five star Euro N CAP rating and won international engine of the year in 2005.
- Lexus GS 450h – With its 3.5-litre V6 direct-injection petrol engine and electric motor, you might be surprised to learn that powerfully performing Lexus GS 450h is a hybrid, especially with its extraordinary acceleration. However, the car manages to combine the output of a V8 engine (over 340Bhp) with the economy of a 2.0litre petrol engine.
- Lexus RX 400h - The Lexus RX 400h is billed as the first hybrid performance SUV. It combines a 3.3-litre V6 petrol engine with two electric motors and a clever E-Four system to drive the vehicle.
- Lexus LS 600h - The new LS 600h is the highest expression of current automobile technology. Its 5.0-litre V8 uses Lexus’s D-4S technology, with two fuel injectors per cylinder and VVTi-E intelligent valve timing on the intake to boost performance and reduce emissions, noise and vibration.
- Honda Civic Hybrid - The stylish Civic Hybrid is definitely green. But when it comes to fitting your lifestyle, this technological marvel is also true-blue. The 2008 Civic Hybrid - Reverse your thinking.
These are just two examples of the most popular hybrid cars in the UK. Read on to find out how you can get a hybrid car of your own, and save cash.
How do I get a hybrid car?
Leasing a hybrid car online is the simplest way to secure huge savings. Instead of searching from dealer to dealer, visit contracthireandleasing.com to go straight through to websites offering some of the cheapest deals available on hybrid cars.
Contracthireandleasing.com searches more than 75,000 car leasing options – so for the cheapest and the best hybrid car deal for you, click through to our deals now.
For the best selection of hybrid and green cars to lease and buy, visit TheGreenCarWebsite.co.uk
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