Hybrid Cars

Holly, premier girlfriend of the legendary Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, test drove a Toyota Prius on her E! show The Girls Next Door. She wanted to do something for the environment and then decorate it in her signature charm. But just how much of a contribution is Holly making to save the world? Despite the hype, hybrid cars are not actually all they’re cracked up to be.

As Holly drives to the end of the lot and breaks to look in both directions, she looks to the salesman, convinced that she has stalled. He briefly explains that the car has switched into _____________ mode and is conserving the battery. The effect is similar to a stall. The car makes no noise. This is fantastic, you might say. My music will be so much louder! Even when running, the car is virtually silent, so less noise pollution too! Across the country, here in Baltimore, the National Federation of the Blind conducted an experiment. They placed several blind people in a parking lot and told them to signal when various hybrid models drove by them. Keep in mind that most people who are lacking one sense have finely tuned the other four in an effort to compensate. After the hybrids had circled the lot two or three times, participants began to wonder when the tests would begin. When walking through parking lots and crossing the street, blind people rely heavily on the ability to hear nearby cars. They cannot hear the hybrids. The Federation says it does not want the gas guzzlers but simply wishes the friendly hybrids could make a little bit of noise.

Just how fuel efficient are hybrid cars? There are many different comparisons to make. Clearly the Toyota Prius gets better gas mileage than a Dodge Durango. However, if you look at the Lexus 400H, Lexus’ new hybrid SUV, a driver can get better gas mileage with a smaller SUV and certainly with most sedans. Getting only 21 miles per gallon, the electric motor is geared towards acceleration over fuel efficiency. Never fear, there is that $2000 tax break.

Ideally, hybrid cars are meant to run in city conditions where its electric motor carefully regulates its fuel consumption. Automobile Magazine drive a Prius cross country and found that its fuel efficiency took a nose dive on the highway. Computers regulate the hybrid’s engine and motor. They can run simultaneously, during acceleration,