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Car Tech: Hybrids are they really good for the enviroment?
Hybrid Battery comment
by sleeka1 - 12/7/07 10:37 PM In reply to: Hybrids are they really good for the enviroment? by mfodishWhy does the community have this huge misinformed hangup about Hybrid batteries?
Their chemical composition is nickel metal-hydride (nimh)...the exact same battery type as in your mobile phone; camera; toys; some torches and many, many other day-to-day consumer items!
How many millions of those are sold/discarded around the world every day? Why just pick on hybrids because you don't understand or don't want to understand the technology?
In Toyota's case, the battery pack is warranted for 5 years, and designed to last for a period between 8-10 years. When it does eventually need replacing, Toyota buys them back for recycling....how many manufacturers of the other aforementioned consumer goods do that?
Hybrids are not the only technology leading us to a greener world, but at least they are a viable pathway. Nothing is totally green, but we have to start using new technology to get to the future...not just sit back and criticise those who do adapt and are prepared to invest in the future.
Regarding ethanol....cars in Brazil run on 90% ethanol, saving 90% of petrol usage. They refine it from sugar cane, and other plants fairly cheaply, and the plant waste material is used to fire the boilers to produce steam which in turn powers the refining machinery. That is another way to reduce our dependence on oil and reduce emissions.
As has been said, there is no single way to reduce our current environment predicament. But unless we start adopting new ideas and technology, and stop putting our collective heads in the sand, the sooner our future generations might see some improvement.
some corrections and more info
by cwerdna - 12/8/07 12:17 AM In reply to: Hybrid Battery comment by sleeka1NiMH batteries are readily available in the store and are used in some consumer devices. However, many cameras and cell phones have moved to lithium ion. Generally, only very low end cameras and cell phones use NiMH now.
As for the battery pack warranty, Toyota warrants it for 8 years/80K miles for most of the US. It's 10 years/150K miles for California and CARB states. The buyback is a $200 bounty Toyota pays on them.
http://john1701a.com/prius/owners/jesse4.htm is at 333K miles.
At http://avt.inl.gov/hev.shtml, they took 2 previous gen Priuses to over 160K miles and 2 current gens to over 120K miles w/o any battery probs.
http://www.autobloggreen.com/2007/04/03/ford-escape-hybrid-taxis-top-175-000-miles/ mentions that 18 Ford Escape Hybrids have topped 175K miles in 2 years.
Keep in mind the unintended consquences...
by Andy77e - 12/21/07 8:52 AM In reply to: Hybrid Battery comment by sleeka1Yes Brazil does have a high ethanol mandate. However, if you research it a little, you'll find huge problems. First, Brazil use to (past tense) have 100% ethanol fill stations. However, the people hated Ethanol cars... they didn't run all the time, very poor mileage, and high cost.
Today, Brazil only has a 15%-25% ethanol mix. But it doesn't end there.
Environmentalist in Brazil complain that land throughout the nation is now being converted to grow one crop, sugarcanes. Clear cutting. Soil degradation. And lack of food crops since sugarcanes for ethanol is more profitable than growing food.
Finely when Brazil first started on the Ethanol path, they heavily subsidized the market. Estimates are that the Brazilian government spent 8 Billion to subsidize the market to make Ethanol affordable. That's taxing the poor to pay the rich to sell the poor an expensive product. Ready to do the same here? Ted Turner wants your money. In fact, he's getting your tax money as we speak. He'll get more though.
However, when the subsidies ended, the real cost of Ethanol made it unprofitable and farmers stopped growing it. Brazil nearly went through their own private energy crisis. The government had to step in with emergency action to keep the fuel coming.
So if you are ready for ethanol future... are you ready to pay more taxes? Ready for the upper class to get that tax money? Ready to pay more for food? Are you ready to pay more for fuel? If not... give up on Ethanol.
Why cars in the US are so rubbish at fuel economy.
by Ivan Thomson - 3/14/08 10:14 AM In reply to: Hybrids are they really good for the enviroment? by mfodishI'm sure there are a bazillion reasons for why US cars get such rubbish MPG (miles driven per gallon of fuel consumed). However, it is hard to understand sometimes when my wifes car in the UK is getting around 70MPG (US Gallons). Additionally, many cars in the US require enormous engines to produce about the same horsepower as many cars I've seen in the UK. Why do you need 5+ liter (litre) of displacement to generate 300 horsepower when a 1.0 l can do it. That is just flat out inefficiency. They say there is no weirdness going on with the cars in America, but I wonder sometimes since the cars here have way larger engines that perform more often than not equally or less than much smaller more efficient engines. I mean heck most of the cars here barely drive well over 120MPH. Look, for 5.0 liters of displacement I expect to have 1000+ horsepower and 200+ MPH speed. Otherwise what is the point of wasting all that fuel.
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