Are hybrids really good for the environment??

[Specnomore]

This guy doesnt think so.

By Chris Demorro


The Toyota Prius has become the flagship car for those in our society so environmentally conscious that they are willing to spend a premium to show the world how much they care. Unfortunately for them, their ultimate ‘green car’ is the source of some of the worst pollution in North America; it takes more combined energy per Prius to produce than a Hummer.

Before we delve into the seedy underworld of hybrids, you must first understand how a hybrid works. For this, we will use the most popular hybrid on the market, the Toyota Prius.

The Prius is powered by not one, but two engines: a standard 76 horsepower, 1.5-liter gas engine found in most cars today and a battery- powered engine that deals out 67 horsepower and a whooping 295ft/lbs of torque, below 2000 revolutions per minute. Essentially, the Toyota Synergy Drive system, as it is so called, propels the car from a dead stop to up to 30mph. This is where the largest percent of gas is consumed. As any physics major can tell you, it takes more energy to get an object moving than to keep it moving. The battery is recharged through the braking system, as well as when the gasoline engine takes over anywhere north of 30mph. It seems like a great energy efficient and environmentally sound car, right?

You would be right if you went by the old government EPA estimates, which netted the Prius an incredible 60 miles per gallon in the city and 51 miles per gallon on the highway. Unfortunately for Toyota, the government realized how unrealistic their EPA tests were, which consisted of highway speeds limited to 55mph and acceleration of only 3.3 mph per second. The new tests which affect all 2008 models give a much more realistic rating with highway speeds of 80mph and acceleration of 8mph per second. This has dropped the Prius’s EPA down by 25 percent to an average of 45mpg. This now puts the Toyota within spitting distance of cars like the Chevy Aveo, which costs less then half what the Prius costs.

However, if that was the only issue with the Prius, I wouldn’t be writing this article. It gets much worse.

Building a Toyota Prius causes more environmental damage than a Hummer that is on the road for three times longer than a Prius. As already noted, the Prius is partly driven by a battery which contains nickel. The nickel is mined and smelted at a plant in Sudbury, Ontario. This plant has caused so much environmental damage to the surrounding environment that NASA has used the ‘dead zone’ around the plant to test moon rovers. The area around the plant is devoid of any life for miles.

The plant is the source of all the nickel found in a Prius’ battery and Toyota purchases 1,000 tons annually. Dubbed the Superstack, the plague-factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist’s nightmare.

“The acid rain around Sudbury was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside,” said Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin during an interview with Mail, a British-based newspaper.

All of this would be bad enough in and of itself; however, the journey to make a hybrid doesn’t end there. The nickel produced by this disastrous plant is shipped via massive container ship to the largest nickel refinery in Europe. From there, the nickel hops over to China to produce ‘nickel foam.’ From there, it goes to Japan. Finally, the completed batteries are shipped to the United States, finalizing the around-the-world trip required to produce a single Prius battery. Are these not sounding less and less like environmentally sound cars and more like a farce?

Wait, I haven’t even got to the best part yet.

When you pool together all the combined energy it takes to drive and build a Toyota Prius, the flagship car of energy fanatics, it takes almost 50 percent more energy than a Hummer - the Prius’s arch nemesis.

Through a study by CNW Marketing called “Dust to Dust,” the total combined energy is taken from all the electrical, fuel, transportation, materials (metal, plastic, etc) and hundreds of other factors over the expected lifetime of a vehicle. The Prius costs an average of $3.25 per mile driven over a lifetime of 100,000 miles - the expected lifespan of the Hybrid.

The Hummer, on the other hand, costs a more fiscal $1.95 per mile to put on the road over an expected lifetime of 300,000 miles. That means the Hummer will last three times longer than a Prius and use less combined energy doing it.

So, if you are really an environmentalist - ditch the Prius. Instead, buy one of the most economical cars available - a Toyota Scion xB. The Scion only costs a paltry $0.48 per mile to put on the road. If you are still obsessed over gas mileage - buy a Chevy Aveo and fix that lead foot.

One last fun fact for you: it takes five years to offset the premium price of a Prius. Meaning, you have to wait 60 months to save any money over a non-hybrid car because of lower gas expenses.

[Intercooled T]

pretty interesting article. +1

[9 Ball]

Hybrids get way too much press. You’re cutting C02 but you eventually must dispose of the batteries - those things aren’t exactly environmentally friendly.

Hydrogen is really the way to go.

[Dave]

hes right, car against car yeah its clean. but in the big picture there is NO alternative to the internal combustion gas engine and the diesel.

[ScubaSteve]

Good article. My friend just had to get rid of his prius because apparently they're no good after 100k mi

[Intercooled T]

Originally Posted by ScubaSteve

Good article. My friend just had to get rid of his prius because apparently they're no good after 100k mi

what was the reasoning?

[ScubaSteve]

The warranty on the battery is up after 100k and if you have to replace it yourself its suppose to be something like $7k. Thats just what I was told

[9 Ball]

Other options…
http://automobiles.honda.com/models/...lName=Civic+GX


BMW is also prepping the 7 series to use Hydrogen and an internal combustion engine.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14798876/

[Buster]

That was an awesome article. I think that nothing really will replace the ICE as far as things working right. I always knew there would be something wrong with these cars, And to think. All this bad press as Toyota talks more and more about the next Supra and how its going to be a hybrid also.

[Dave]

Originally Posted by Buster

That was an awesome article. I think that nothing really will replace the ICE as far as things working right. I always knew there would be something wrong with these cars, And to think. All this bad press as Toyota talks more and more about the next Supra and how its going to be a hybrid also.

Seriously, how do they expect to sell a car thats clearly aimed at people who like to tweak things that is in itself untweakable or at least difficult? it looks great but they need to offer hybrid as an OPTION. nothing more, and while im bitching, hey toyota how about a proper manual tranny eh?

[Buster]

woot woot!

[9 Ball]

I agree.

Toyota would certainly shake things up by introducing new technologies, but it seems a bit unpractical. Unless it can go 200,000 miles without a hitch, keep insurance costs low, maintenance, as well as the MSRP, it will be a tough sell. I very much like the looks of the car, like the idea of moving forward into the future, and give kudos to Toyota for stepping out there, however, I’m not sure that’s the way to go.

I would certainly like to see vehicles that cut C02 but with the hybrids (battery powered vehicles) we’re trading one evil for another. The waste from batteries would definitely come back to haunt us… perhaps more so than C02.

Maybe the answer is to have several different types of vehicles on the road at once. If you had a percentage of Bio Fuel vehicles, Fuel Cell, and Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engines, the systems to deliver these fuels would not be overburdened.

I don’t know. Perhaps sports cars and large trucks could be targeted to use Bio-Ethanol and passenger vehicles use fuel cells.

Coincidentally, the Rotary engine takes very well when converted to hydrogen. Mazda has an RX-8 as a test model.

[Dave]

Originally Posted by 9 Ball

I agree.

Toyota would certainly shake things up by introducing new technologies, but it seems a bit unpractical. Unless it can go 200,000 miles without a hitch, keep insurance costs low, maintenance, as well as the MSRP, it will be a tough sell. I very much the looks of the car, like the idea of moving forward into the future, and give kudos to Toyota for stepping out there, however, I’m not sure that’s the way to go.

I would certainly like to see vehicles that cut C02 but with the hybrids (battery powered vehicles) we’re trading one evil for another. The waste from batteries would definitely come back to haunt us… perhaps more so than C02.

Maybe the answer is to have several different types of vehicles on the road at once. If you had a percentage of Bio Fuel vehicles, Fuel Cell, and Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engines, the systems to deliver these fuels would not be overburdened.

I don’t know. Perhaps sports cars and large trucks could be targeted to use Bio-Ethanol and passenger vehicles use fuel cells.

Coincidentally, the Rotary engine takes very well when converted to hydrogen. Mazda has an RX-8 as a test model.

I understand wanting to keep the earth clean and ushering in new technology etc, however a low market performance car is the wrong way to do it. there are many more people out there who dont love driving like we do. build these cars for them. wipe out that low grade cat piss they call regular and leave more oil to make premium for us and the other folks from our wonderful minority. of course by that time they will have decided that global cooling is going to kill us again and it'll be wholesale dinosaur burnings

[Honest_Bob]

Very intresting article, I ran across it a while ago.