Is the Mileage Really Misrepresented for Hybrids? One Take on this Issue

November 2006

Hybrid cars are supposed to save you money. You buy one of these little energy efficient cars in hopes of saving big bucks at the gas pump. Sometimes, you can save money when you pump your gas. However, hybrid cars have other expenses that you need to consider before you can truly save money. While you may very well save on gas, you might just find that you are spending your savings on other things for your car.

In addition to hybrid cars costing more for repairs and batteries, many hybrid car owners find that after driving these cars, they are not saving at all. For example, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates all cars on the road for their estimated gas mileage. A Honda Civic Hybrid car has an EPA mileage rating of 47 miles to the gallon. A Toyota Prius carries a similar rating of 60 miles per gallon. That seems like such a good deal. At those ratings, who wouldn’t want to spend their money on a fuel-efficient hybrid car? Many consumers believe these ratings to be true and line up to buy a hybrid.

However, owners of these cars paint another picture when it comes to the gas mileage on a hybrid car. A recent study showed that driving a Honda Civic Hybrid in “real world driving” (such as both highway and in city driving), these cars only average 26 miles to the gallon. The Toyota Prius gets an average of 35 miles per gallon. That is a huge difference in the EPA ratings and actual miles per gallon. However, with highway testing, these hybrid cars got much closer to the EPA ratings. You must keep these numbers and your driving habits in mind when you consider buying a hybrid car.

Why is there such a difference between the numbers that the EPA gives and the results of actual real life driving situations? The EPA gives ratings based on lab simulations and highway type driving. Real life is not like that. Who drives only on the highway? Most drivers typically spend their driving time in stop and go traffic in the city. In addition, the EPA tests show the results from vehicle emissions and use the data from that to find the estimated miles per gallon for the hybrid. It does not measure the actual gas that is used when these hybrids are on the road and in various driving situations.

So, are these hybrid cars a good deal? It depends on who you ask. If you are the type of person that is solely interested in saving at the gas pump, you are likely to be disappointed. While these cars to get better gas mileage than most other types of cars on the market, you can dispel the notion that you will get 100 miles to the gallon. It just does not happen. Perhaps in the future, but not now.

However, if you are interested in saving a little on gas and helping protect the environment by cutting down on the amount of emissions, then yes, these cars are a good deal. They are very environmentally friendly and consumers can certainly feel good about their choice when they want to do what they can for the future of the environment.

Will these cars save you a bundle in the long run? Maybe. You will probably pay more for your hybrid car up front because these cars are not cheap. Depending on the make and year model of your hybrid car, you can actually plan to spend a bit more than the average car. You are paying for the technology and the supply and demand for the hybrid. They are hot commodities and it is not uncommon to find a long waiting list for a hybrid, no matter what brand of car you are getting.

With a hybrid, you can outfit it with all kinds of extras to make your car more efficient. This might cost you up front, and may save you a bit on gas in the long run. You can also rest assured that currently hybrid cars have an excellent resell value. The gas mileage on these cars is not necessarily misrepresented. You just have to do your research and figure out why you want one of these cars in the first place.

One Hundred Miles to the Gallon – A Realistic Goal for Hybrids?

November 2006

When hybrid cars first hit the mainstream market, people were rejoicing over the fact that they got twice as many miles to the gallon. After all, with the gas prices rising, that was welcome relief at the gas pumps. Then, the public got a little greedy. Why can’t there be a hybrid car that gets one hundred miles to the gallon? Unbeknownst to the every day person on the street, that lofty sounding goal was already the talk of many technological studies at major car manufacturers.

Toyota, in fact, leads this drive to achieve the one hundred miles to the gallon in a hybrid vehicle. Their immediate solution is to offer bigger batteries for their electric-gasoline hybrid vehicles, which could then be recharged through any electrical outlet. This adaptation has met with great success as Toyota achieved their goal just this past August 2006! While a little over one hundred miles to the gallon was achieved, it was done so in tightly controlled settings with just the right road conditions.

While Toyota has achieved the one hundred mile to the gallon status, it will be several years before people can buy that technology in their own local car lots. For the most part, hybrid car enthusiasts have been the only ones meeting with some success in their own backyards. These backyard “tinkerers” figured out for themselves that plugging in their vehicle was a sure fire way to boost battery power to avoid using the gasoline engine often. To do that however, these hybrid amateurs installed more batteries in their cars. They are the ones who brought the plug-in hybrid electric vehicles into fruition. Also known as PHEVs, these modified hybrids have to be plugged into an electrical outlet for a recharge.

Toyota achieved their hundred miles to the gallon status using the same principle, but it will be years before the general public can buy something similar. And the reason is that it takes some effort to transform a hybrid vehicle into a plug-in model. And with that effort is a hefty price tag as amateur hybrid enthusiasts are finding out. It will be a few years to fully develop the concept and achieve it in a relatively economical fashion. As more and more people are buying hybrids and enjoying the quiet ride and gas savings, the demand for the plug-in variety will only increase.

The conversion from a “regular” hybrid to the plug-in variety sounds simple in theory, doesn’t it? However, the technology going into it is not so easy. Take a look at the current gas-electric hybrid today. There is no way that it can be plugged into anything. The braking recharges the battery and other kinetic energy the hybrid produces.

When you consider a plug-in variety, the foundation of the hybrid is essentially the same with one exception – it gets extra batteries, which essentially serve as another “fuel” source. These are in the form of an extra pack, which of course is modified to handle the hybrid technology. These extra batteries allow the hybrid to perform primarily by battery alone. Of course, the plug-in hybrid’s extra “fuel” source typically only works for short distances, not for long road trips. But for the average driver in America, the commute to work every day may justify this.

What happens when the charge on that extra battery pack gets low? Unlike other items that run on batteries, the hybrid does not slow down. Instead, it will switch over to gasoline to conserve and slowly recharge the electric portion of the hybrid vehicle. The great thing about it is that the driver does not know when it switches from electric to gas.

While the plug-in hybrid models are still years away, there are several companies working on bringing conversion kits to the market. You could be the first hybrid owner on your block to convert to plug-in status. The only problem is that the cost could be more than owners bargained for. There are no clear estimates on what this conversion kit might cost except that it could be anywhere from a few thousand dollars to over ten thousand dollars. Hybrid hobby enthusiasts don’t care though. They are converting their hybrids on their own simply for the challenge to say that they did. However, for the every day hybrid owner, these lithium-ion battery conversion packs will soon be a reality. If you want to achieve that one hundred miles per gallon, start saving your money.