Auto Trends

As gas prices excel and “gas guzzler” sales dwindle, manufacturers have turned to the use of the magic word “hybrid” to once again grab hold of some resemblance of a market audience. What such a phenomenon has brought to us however is a series of hybrid vehicles that are truly embarrassments of their own kind. They are no better on gas than an ancient 2-valve, 350 cubic inch small block with a Holley double pump carburetor!

Well, maybe a little… but not much. Let’s take a look at a few of these wolves hidden in sheep’s clothing:

1. 2007/2009 GMC Sierra Hybrid-Last year the GMC Sierra became a feature on the Internet as one of the worst fuel economical hybrids you could buy. At 15 mpg, you might as well have been running a supercharger rather than that electric motor, then at least you could have had some real fun for your $80 per tank fill-up. In the attempts to redeem themselves, the Sierra has a new rendition set to come out this October that promises 20 mpg. While this is a marked improvement, there are going to be several SUV hybrid models in the mid 30 mpg’s. So unless you really need that much truck, there are better options. The Sierra Hybrid is still going to cost you an arm and a leg to operate at over $4.00 per gallon.

2. 2007/2009 Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid- With basically the same platform as the Sierra, the Silverado Hybrid was a similar story with only 15 mpg to show for itself in 2007. We can expect the similar upgraded dual electric motors for 2009 and around 20 mpg. Yeah, they are improving… but so is everybody else!

3. 2007/2008 Lexus LS 600h- We could understand a full-size truck in the 20 mpg range, but a luxury sedan hybrid? The Lexus 600h (the “h” stands for “hold onto your wallet”) also topped several lists on the Web last year as having one of the worst hybrid fuel economy for 2007. The 2008 Lexus hybrid is no better at 20 mpg. When it comes to hybrid technology, this sedan is all talk. Lexus already had a smack on the wrist in Europe for claiming its hybrids were better for the environment than they really are.

4. 2007/2008 Lexus GS 450h- Not to pick on Lexus, but their GS 450h fell short on the hybrid list both last year and this year as well, coming in at just 23 mpg. It’s a high ranked car with a quality build, but nobody could ever accuse the 450h as being a gas tea toddler.

5. 2007/2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid- The Saturn Vue hybrid was on this list last year, matching the Highlander on mpg (26), but this year it bumped itself up to 32, so the finger of SUV shame falls solely on the Highlander this year.

The word hybrid has become a status symbol today that is being used to discern between those who care about the environment and those who don’t. But don’t let that fool you… these 5 vehicles are a perfect example of how the “h”-word has become more of a fad than an actual cause!

All Hybrids are sloooow-

This is a very common misconception, which is soon to be changed. There was indeed a time when hybrid technology was lucky to see much over 50 to 100 horsepower. Today however, each separate electric engine on a hybrid can really add up to some real numbers. For example, a typical set up could include one large electric motor for the rear wheels at 200 horsepower, and then a 50 horsepower electric motor for each of the front wheels, and presto… 400 total horsepower!

Hybrid batteries are bad for the environment-

This rumor has sure been passed around a lot as of lately. The myth has a common sense nature that says that disposed batteries are bad for the environment. Well, yes, the old school technology (nickel-cadmium) batteries WERE bad for the environment, but rechargeable NIMH (what today’s hybrids use) are both recyclable and far less-toxic.

Plug-in hybrids have a very limited driving range-

This used to be very true. For a PHEV to last 30 to 50 miles on a single charge was quite impressive. Good for day to day usage, but you would never want to take it cross-country with this kind of range. Today however, 200+ miles per charge is possible with batteries such as the Altairnano. The Altairnano is also capable of a full charge in around 10 minutes, which is just over 5 minutes from the typical stop at a gas station. There has been talk of charging stations in the future along with the gas pumps, making it even easier to get around in your PHEV hybrid.

Hybrids are very complex and costly to repair-

Hybrids are actually quite similar to any other combustion vehicle in their basic design, so almost any trained mechanic can do the standard maintenance. The more technical high voltage aspects of a hybrid are less known and considered more of a specialty repair, but this is only a temporary situation. As hybrids grow in popularity, more and more mechanics will want to become certified in their technical repair and the competition will drive the prices down. A hybrid engine is actually similar in design to that of an electric drill, albeit more complex, but it is not beyond learning. There was once a time when the combustion engine was considered highly complex too.

A hybrid is a lot like Pee Wee Herman, you either like em’ or you don’t. And what happens over the course of time with something that people either like or don’t like, is a lot of myths begin to circulate. Some are true, some aren’t, some are partially true, and some are just flat out ridiculous. Let’s look at a few of these up close:

There aren’t enough plug outlets in the world to make effective use of a hybrid-

MB- That is partially true, which is why most hybrids do not depend on an electric outlets only to function. This myth comes from the PHEV’s (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles), that are recommended to be plugged in every evening in order to have enough charge to get you through the day without using gas. The typical hybrid today has a combustion engine and regenerative braking that keep the battery cell fully charged, so in a sense the entire system is completely self serving (that is other than the necessary gas to keep its combustion portion functioning properly).

Hybrids are very dangerous when involved in an accident-

MB- To really get at the root of this myth, we have to understand what this is really saying. Oftentimes this statement is referring to the fact that a hybrid is even more dangerous than a standard vehicle in a collision. This is just not true. Any combustion engine of course has the danger of fire if sparks are present and gas is leaking. The fear is beyond this hybrids offer a great chance of a high voltage shock if a wire has been severed. The actual truth is hybrids have a built in fail safe mechanism than shorts the entire system in the event of a main wire becoming breached. They can be dangerous, but not really anymore dangerous than any other vehicle.

Replacing a hybrid battery is incredibly costly-

MB- This comment is predominantly hearsay, as there has not as of yet been a hybrid battery that has officially ran out of warranty. They currently are warranted for 8 to 10 years and/or 80,000 to 150,000 miles. So up until now, consumers have been getting their batteries at zero cost should anything go wrong. This myth comes from the knowledge that nickel-metal-hydride (NiMH) is not an inexpensive technology by any means. But, the good news is, with the advancement of battery technology, we are looking at future versions that will be able to last for up to 20 years of continual service and will cost well below $2,000 to replace. $2,000 over the course of 8 to 10 years of service should not be considered “incredibly costly” by anyones standards.

(to be continued…)