|
Hybrid Highs and Lows
Gas prices may be
falling but the green
car revolution is upon
us. Once considered no
more than as a concept
from which the real road
worthy prototype would
evolve, the gasoline-electric
hybrid vehicle is
leading the way into the
future. Sales of hybrids
surged by 25 percent
during the first four
months of the year,
grabbing 3 percent of
the car market and
signaling that consumers
were willing to abandon
the traditional gasoline-powered
vehicle.
Still, 3 percent of an
entire car market does
not a majority make, and
with falling gas prices,
hybrid sales did stall
in November. Clearly,
most consumers remain
leary, mainly due to the
fear of the unknown. In
order to ride the wave
of the future, it’s
important to understand
the new technology.
When it comes to
gasoline-electric
hybrids, what makes them
tick?
A New Day Dawns
By definition, a hybrid
combines a mixture of
elements to form
something new.
Technically, automotive
hybrids have been around
since 1905 when H. Piper
filed a patent for a
gasoline-engine-electric-motor
powertrain.
The first viable hybrid
for consumers, however,
came in 1997 when the
Toyota Prius was first
introduced in Japan. In
the United States, Honda
introduced the first
gasoline-electric hybrid,
the Insight, in 2000.
Discontinued in 2006, a
redesigned Insight
returns for 2009.
The Prius followed
shortly after the
Insight and with one
redesign in 2004, it
remains at the head of
the pack. With more than
one million units of its
revolutionary and soon
to be redesigned Prius
gasoline-electric hybrid
sold to date, Toyota is
a pioneer with this
technology, so much so
that other manufacturers
have either purchased
some of it from Toyota,
or partnered with the
company to develop their
own. What sets the Prius
apart is its ability to
operate purely on
electricity or gasoline,
or both.
|
 |
Currently, the
Toyota
Highlander,
Chevy Tahoe,
Ford Escape, GMC
Yukon, Cadillac
Escalade, Honda
Civic, and
Nissan Altima
hybrids operate
in a similar
fashion. Other
hybrids, like
the Chevy Malibu,
and Saturn Aura,
utilize a light
hybrid approach
that employs the
electric motor
more
specifically and
less often,
resulting in a
marginal
increase in fuel
economy. The
most affordable
hybrid version
of a midsize
sedan, the
Malibu Hybrid
delivers an
estimated 34 mpg
in highway
driving and 26
mpg in the city—an
improvement over
2008 models,
thanks to better
control of the
battery charging/discharging
system and new
low rolling-resistance
tires.
According to
Bill Kwong,
product
communications
specialist,
Toyota Motor
Sales, U.S.A.,
Inc., the Prius
began as a
directive from
Toyota chairman
Shoichiro Toyoda,
in 1992.
|
“He asked engineers to
build the car of the
future, one that was
compact but roomy on the
inside and that achieved
excellent fuel economy
and near zero emissions.
Some considered it pie
in the sky but he knew
there would be a demand
for such a vehicle,”
asserts Kwong.
Vital Parts
Contributing to the
Prius’s success has been
its seamless use of
technology. For fuel
cell and hydrogen-powered
vehicles, little
infrastructure exists,
e.g. pumping stations,
to make them more
feasible, and the costs
to produce these
vehicles are still so
high as to make them
unviable. Challenges
also remain with purely
electric-powered
vehicles, or plug-ins,
which cannot maintain a
charge for long
distances.
All of the above
alternative fuel
scenarios also require
consumers to radically
adjust their lifestyles
to adapt to these new
vehicles. Utilizing a
combination of
electricity and gasoline,
the gasoline-electric
hybrid does not.
The Prius employs a
motor-generator that
harnesses kinetic energy
from braking and wheel
rotation to continually
re-energize the battery.
A small, 1.5-liter
gasoline combustion
engine engages on the
road at increased speeds.
The biggest gas savings
happens during idling
when the engine shuts
off and the car is run
by the electric motor.
The Prius earns an EPA
estimated combined fuel
economy of 46 miles per
gallon. Unlike
conventional engines, it
gets better results in
the city rather than on
the highway because
stopping and starting
engages the electric
motor more often, saving
gas.
Initial worries about
the cost of replacing
the battery or other
components of the hybrid
have been put to rest
after more than ten
years of operation.
Increasing confidence
further is the Prius’s
ten-year/100,000-mile (eight
years in most states)
powertrain warranty.
“The reliability of this
technology has been very
impressive. I would
estimate that of the
660,000 models currently
on the road, we’ve
replaced the batteries
in about 30,” asserts
Kwong.
|
Kwong also disputes
claims that Toyota has
yet to see a profit from
Prius sales, because the
cost of building the
hybrid far exceeds the
asking price of the car.
“We’ve sold over a
million units and I
don’t know of any
business that would
accept that kind of
volume without making a
profit,” he says.
Despite the recent dip
in hybrid sales, so many
hybrids are planned for
the future, at least 15,
according to
www.fueleconomy.gov,
offering consumers even
more models from which
to choose, the market
should continue to grow.
Some of the advanced
technologies typically
used by hybrids include:
Regenerative Braking.
The electric motor
applies resistance to
the drivetrain causing
the wheels to slow down.
In return, the energy
from the wheels turns
the motor, which
functions as a generator,
converting energy
normally wasted during
coasting and braking
into electricity, which
is stored in a battery
until needed by the
electric motor. |
|
 |
|
GM Chevy
Malibu |
|
Electric Motor Drive/Assist.
The electric motor
provides additional
power to assist the
engine in accelerating,
passing, or hill
climbing. This allows a
smaller, more efficient
engine to be used. In
some vehicles, the motor
alone provides power for
low-speed driving
conditions where
internal combustion
engines are least
efficient.
Automatic Start/Shutoff.
Automatically shuts off
the engine when the
vehicle comes to a stop
and restarts it when the
accelerator is pressed.
This prevents wasted
energy from idling.
http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/hybridtech.shtml
Toyota will reveal the
new 2010 Prius at the
North American
International Auto Show
in January. For more
information about
hybrids and a list of
current and projected
hybrid models, go to
www.fueleconomy.gov.
By
Valerie Menard |
