Bye,
Bye Gas Guzzler - Hello Hybrid Car!
by SolveYourProblem.com
The
concept behind the creation of hybrid vehicles is to get
as much fuel efficiency out of a car made of lighter materials
with a smaller engine as possible. No one wants a gas guzzler
of a car eating up all of his or her hard earned cash and that’s
where the hybrid comes in. The hybrid vehicle answers the call
for helping save dollars at the gas pumps.
It is estimated that depending on their model, hybrid
cars can give drivers anywhere from 20, to 30 and in some
cases
even 60 miles per gallon more than the standard non-hybrid
vehicle. Hybrid vehicles have as good a performance, if not
better than traditional vehicles and the ride is smooth. Gas
guzzler it is not. Many drivers are uttering the words, “Hello
hybrid!” more and more these days.
Automakers chose to build a car that was considered
very complex to both improve gas mileage and also
to reduce emissions from
the tailpipe. In the United States carmakers are mandated by
law to meet what is known as “Corporate Average Fuel Economy” standards (or abbreviated to CAFÉ). The current standard
dictates that all new vehicles sold to consumers must have
an average mileage of 27.5mpg (or if you go by the metric system,
8.55 liters per 100 km). To put it another way, this means
that if a car company is able to sell one hybrid car with an
average mileage of 60 mpg (better than the average standard)
or 3.92 liters per 100 km, then this is good news for them
because they can then turn around and sell four, large and
expensively priced luxury cars that get a great deal less out
of the mileage (20 mpg or 11.76 liters per 100 km).
Let’s
take a closer look at how a hybrid most definitely does not
fall into the category of being a gas guzzler. In
order to get the best mileage possible, there are many tricks
of
the trade that automakers rely on. Three that we will focus
on include the reduced weight of the hybrid, the small, efficient
engine, and the advanced aerodynamics.
In
the making of most hybrid cars, a lightweight aluminum
body as well as structure is used to cut down tremendously
on the weight of the car. Together the lightweight body and
smaller, lighter engine allow for the excellent performance
that is expected of all cars, hybrids or not. For example,
the Honda Insight doesn’t even begin to tip the car scales
at less that 1,900 pounds (or 862 kg). This is only a fraction
of what traditional gas guzzler types of cars weigh. Other
materials often used to make hybrids include composite materials
such as carbon fiber and other lightweight metals such as magnesium.
A
small, efficient engine goes a long way in saving on mileage
in hybrids. Big engines expend more energy when they accelerate
and in particular when they accelerate up hills or inclines.
As well big engines are equipped with more cylinders and require
more work from the cylinders to allow them to do their job
properly. All these things contribute to the need to buy fuel
for your car more often. The hybrid vehicle’s smaller, more
fuel-efficient engine doesn’t have this problem. To use the
Honda Insight as an example once again, its engine weighs a
mere 124 pounds (or 56 kg) and contains a very small 1.0 liter
three-cylinder that makes it possible for the car to produce
approximately 67 horsepower at 5,700 rpm. Plus the VTEC system
and lean burn technology are incorporated into the car to make
fuel efficiency even more of a reality in this hybrid.
The
hybrid car is not a gas guzzler for a third reason - it
uses advanced aerodynamics to help reduce drag. When you are
driving along a busy freeway the majority of the work that
your engine needs to do involves the force needed to push the
vehicle down the highway (or through the air). This force is
given the name “aerodynamic drag.” This aerodynamic drag can
be reduced in two different ways- first by constructing smaller
frontal areas on hybrid cars and secondly, by limiting and/or
reducing disturbances around items that protrude from the car.
For example, airflow is smoothed tremendously by placing covers
over the wheel housings and drag is also reduced. On some hybrids
tiny cameras are placed where mirrors are generally positioned
on conventional cars.
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SolveYourProblem.com : 2007
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