Yaris Spanks Hybrids in Environmentally Friendliness in Dust to Dust report

[flint_mica_manual]

Originally Posted by nsmitchell

How about all the extra electronics needed for the hybrid system. Can a mechanic fix all that stuff if it gets gremlins? Not really. Mostly, the car is disposable. The cost to fix it may cost more than the car is worth. All these things are taken into account. Believe me, I was sceptical too, until I READ THE REPORT. It explains about why the numbers seem out of whack. "right-wing shill"?? How come, if they were trying to boost GM sales or something, they would list the xB as the least impact? Doesn't that strike anyone as odd. And the highest impact vehicles are the most COMPLEX, not necessarily the most expensive, or gas guzzling, or sipping for that matter. Come on folks, it's not black and white. The Earth is round, not flat like most people believed before proven otherwise. Sometimes things aren't as simple as they seem at first glance.

Your logic is faulty. How on earth can you say that an electric car is more complex than a gasoline engine? A Prius is basically an electric car with a gasoline engine bolted on to recharge the batteries. Electric drive trains are infinitively simpler than the alternative. An electrical motor is a shaft with some wire and magnets. That's it. Compare that to a gasoline motor with cams, gears, transmissions, rods, pistons, bearing, all kinds of stuff. . .and if that wasn't all, you have to keep all that stuff in time or it self destructs. PLUS, all those parts are wearing on each other constantly for the life of the vehicle.

Electric motors have no such problems, and they have more power -- more efficiently put to the wheels.

Look at the Honda Incite. The first one came out about 10 years ago. Where are all the internet reports about people being ticked off because the batteries died? Or because the drive train failed?

Period. That report you cite makes claims that are not verified because they don't even disclose their methodology. And you want someone to "prove" it wrong.

That's right. Toyota became the world's largest automotive company by investing in wasteful technologies. If only they could get a business model as good as Hummer's!

It's not like hybrid technology is old either. Just because it's new and novel in the automotive world, doesn't mean it's an unproven technology. Have you ever seen a diesel train? Around here they are big black Norfolk Southern monsters that haul thousands of Toyota Tundras out of Princeton. Believe it or not, those trains are ELECTRIC. The diesel engines are just there to run the generators that power those huge electric engines that pull all the weight.

Tho, I dunno, maybe you could find a study of how much more complicated and wasteful they are compared to a coal fired steam engine. We got rid of those in favor of these "new fangled" disposable diesel electric hybrid trains. Freaking luddite.

[rant mode off]

Happy Friday!