Sunday, April 15, 2007

Hybrid Cars contributed by James Woodruff

One of our main attractions at the Earth Day celebration is Toyota bringing a Prius, one of their hybrid cars, for display.

"What's a Hybrid Car?"
Hybrid cars run off of a rechargeaable battery and gasoline, rathern than just gasoline.

"How Hybrids Save Energy and Gasoline:"
-Hybrid engines are much smaller than those on conventional cars. A hybrid car engine is built small to accommodate the 99% of driving time when a car is not going up hills or accelerating quickly. When extra aacceleration power is needed, it rlies on the battery to provide additional force.

-Hybrid gasoline motors can shut off when the car is stopped and run off their electric motor and battery.

-Hybrid cars are lighter, which their tires create half the drag of conventional cars because they are stiffer and inflated to a higher pressure.

-Hybrid cars often recover braking energy. Electric hybrid motors take the kintetic energy lost in braking and use it to charge the battery.

-Hybrid cars are often more aerodynamic, reducing wind resistance.

"Why Do Hybrid Cars Help the Environment?"
A well designed hybrid can reduce smog pollution by 90% or more compared with the cleanest conventional vehicles on the road today. Hybrids burn less gasoline per mile, so they release much less pollution and fewer greenhouse gases. A typical hybrid might travel 50-60 miles per gallon of gasoline in the city, while a typical SUV might travel 15-20 miles per gallon, or use three times as much gas for the same distance!

"Why Hybrid and Not All-Electric?"
Most electric cars cannot go faster than 50-60 mph, and need to be recharged every 50-100 miles. Hybrids bridge the gap between electric and gasoline-powered cars by traveling further and driving faster.

"Hybrids on the Market"
The Honda Insight, Honda Civic Hybrid (2003), and the Toyota Prius are some of the main hybrid cars on the market today.

[Article reproduced by James Woodruff]

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