Hybrid Cars: Battery & Gas Combo.

Hybrid car are a new form of cars that run off a battery and it runs out of charge then it switches over to a small gas engine to power the car. Most people think this is the car of the future and the types of cars everyone should have. Although hybrid cars are better for the environment hybrid cars should not replace traditional cars because they are hard to maintain, cost a lot, and are impractical for most people’s uses.

Hybrid vehicles

Hybrid vehicles are newer so many of the older more experienced mechanics are only knowledgeable with the traditional systems that engines use to run. This can cause problems when trying to find a shop to fix it when they break. Hybrid cars also have a much more complex engine when compared to popular engine configurations such as I4 engines and V6 engines. The batteries on hybrid cars are only designed with a warranty up to around 100,00o miles because that is when the battery replacement gets expensive to repair.

On a normal gas car such as the honda civic, toyota camry they are made to go easily past 200,000 miles without any major problems as long as you keep up with the maintenances which is cheap because of their well designed small but powerful engines.

Hybrid cars are not only hard to maintain but they are also expensive to expensive to buy and maintain. Hybrid cars such as the 2019 Toyota Prius start at $23,770 where as a 2019 Honda Civic starts at ,450.

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While this might just be a difference of 4-5 thousand dollars you do not save enough gas to justify the extra money you pay and “many buyers find this trade-off to be unacceptable” (Diether). While on paper the Toyota Prius gets better gas mileage, most people buy hybrid cars expecting better gas mileage on trips and daily driving that is not the case. In 2017 T3 Atlanta stated on their website about pros and cons of hybrid cars they stated “Some hybrids actually have lower mileage on the freeway than in the city: Because hybrids are designed to perform at their best in cities, you’ll notice lower gas mileage on road trips or other long-distance drives” (Palkovich). When the mileage lowers on trips it becomes on par with other vehicles which is not the reason one buys the car for.

Besides hybrid cars being hard to maintain and expensive to own, they are also impractical for most people. The Toyota Prius is a front wheel drive car with only 121hp which puts it at a disadvantage when compared to other cars. This performance might seem like a small detail but it can end up saving your life in some instances and can prove safer with responsibility and skill. For example when performing a pass on a uphill road or on a curve the lower horsepower and torque may slow this process down enough to get caught in the opposite and with oncoming traffic. The average consumer will assume that because hybrids have an electric motor and a small gas motor that it will have more horsepower but “ The combined power of both is often less than that of gas powered engine. It is therefore suited for city driving and not for speed and acceleration” (Conserve energy future). This obviously isn’t suited for people who live in rural areas and in areas where you need a powerful all wheel drive car to drive safely without many risks. There is a reason the prices of SUVS and trucks are going up, because more and more people need a car with space and power, something most hybrid cars just cannot do.

Environment

Hybrid cars may be better for the environment, well that is what is often perceived by the average consumer. While this holds some truth it is wrong because while gas cars constantly give off harmful emissions, the batteries of hybrid cars are going to do more long term damage because of what they are made of and what they need to do to get those materials. The way they get the materials for the batteries is through strip mining which is very harmful to the environment because it leaves huge holes in the earth’s surface. Also when the battery powered motor runs out of battery it needs to be charged and it is charged by the gas motor that acts as a generator for the battery engine. They also still use gasoline as their main source of power which defeats the idea of using less gas.

Hybrid cars might be seen as better for the environment but in reality they are hard to maintain, cost too much and are impractical for most people. Hybrid car might be seen as the permanent replacement for gas cars but the truth is that they just are not developed enough to be replace normal gas cars.