Are hybrids really enviromentally friendly?

Question

if someone takes the amount of energy to produce one vs a coventional car, the effects of disposing the batteries and most of all, the life expectency of the hybrid car.

for example, my ford truck, f350 diesel gets 20mpg on the highway, i run straight bio in it and it will last well over 300k, or heck, even 400k before the engine needs rebuilt, the trans will last about 120k-150k before needing rebuilt.

i doubt a hybrid would ever last that long, so in effect 3 hybrids would equal my one truck as far as longetivity goes.

add that with all the costs of making the hybrid, transporting hybrids, extraction and transporting the raw materials for making hybrids, is having a hybrid truly more environmentally friendly?

it seems to be just exchanging one mpg savings for another, overall pollution and fuel consumption to me would be the same, added higher costs for repairs, they don't seem environmentally friendly near as much as they are made out to be.

Answer 1

no according to  the college people they run test on all these

fuels regular gas made the least pollution beside that it takes oil to run these factories where is the savings

Answer 2

not really

Answer 3

Not yet.

Answer 4

nothing is perfect when it is first produced

hybrid cars are still in their infant stages, it will take a while before they perfect the design

right now, it is important that the idea counts, the end product may take more energy to produce, in the future, hybrid cars will definitely be more energy sufficient

Answer 5

A study by an Oregon automotive research company details vehicles’ energy costs per mile — from inception through production right to your garage. The results are surprising and could put a damper on environmentalists’ support of hybrids. Because the study takes into account every aspect of the production process, hybrids like the Honda Accord Hybrid have an energy cost of $3.49 per mile. Compare that to a regular Accord, at $2.18, or a Hummer H3, at $1.98, and that green vehicle taxes the environment more.

The study has actually been out for some time, but we hadn’t read it before and thought it might spark an interesting discussion.

Now, these results don’t impact mileage at all. Buyers looking to save at the pump get better mileage with efficient hybrids. This study simply highlights the hidden environmental impacts of these new technologies — mainly the additional batteries and electric motors a hybrid requires. Of course, over time — with more research and development — the environmental impact should decrease. For now, though, don’t be so quick to frown at the Hummer H3 driver next to you at the stoplight.

Answer 6

Let's put to rest this urban myth about big vehicles like trucks or Hummers being better for the environment than a hybrid like the Prius. Get comfy...

The current record for a Prius is over 360,000 miles with the original nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery and hybrid drive train. Prius are regularly used for taxis and government use (see New York and the state of Colorado). These are not typos and anything you may have seen to the contrary is another urban myth.

Electric motors do not have the moving parts and wear and tear of gasoline or diesel engines. They do not require the maintenance of internal combustion engines (ICE's) and electric motors will outlast ICE's by many years. There are electric motors that have run continuously for 50, 60 or more years. If you doubt it, check with an electrical engineer or a factory that uses electric motors.

As far as the "higher cost for repairs" go, let's look at full hybrids because they have even more electrical works than a mild hybrid like the Saturn Vue Green Line or the Silverado Hybrid. We'll use the Prius again, considering it is the biggest selling hybrid and the most visible.

- You never touch the NiMH battery or the hybrid system, it is self regulating. No cost there.

- The brake pads should never need to be replaced because they are hardly used due to the regenerative braking system.

- The ICE is not tuned up for 100,000 miles.

- There is a sealed continuously variable transmission and the fluid is not changed until 90,000.

- The tires are about $96 each.

- Oil and filter changes every 3000 miles and tire rotations every 6000 miles, just like any other vehicle.

And that's about it. No surprises and the maintenance is pretty simple.

Moving on to the environmental ideas, like the nickel for the batteries...

The plant in Sudbury where Toyota buys approximately 1.5% of the plant's annual nickel output can be seen using this Google maps address:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&la...

Sudbury, Ontario is called the mining capital of the world for good reason.

The Sudbury plant has been in continuous operation since the rock was blasted to make way for the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1883.

That means that nickel has been mined there for the last 124 years. The Prius has been on the road since 1999. What about all the environmental damage done for the 116 years before the Prius ever came along?

There used to be a great deal of pollution at the Sudbury plant, just like there was at a lot of factory facilities. However, new pollution controls are in place and Sudbury residents themselves will talk about how things are improving dramatically in the area around the plant. Young trees are growing there, even now.

Another thing noted about the area around the plant is the Apollo astronauts trained there. It has been said that the area around the plant was as lifeless a wasteland as the moon. Actually, the astronauts trained there because the rock formations were similar to those on the moon. This area of Ontario was hit by a meteorite which created a basin and caused much of the look of the area. The moonscape feeling is also from the slag heaps from smelter output. Anyone who has ever seen any factory facility knows there is always a large amount of material left over from the original raw materials, be that a nickel plant, a steel smelter, or a dog food producer.

Also the environmental damage is not all due to the nickel plant - there is other industry, and a lot of the trees disappeared due to extensive logging.

Take a look for yourself. Here's a breakdown:

The Sudbury nickel plant produces around 60,000 tons of nickel per year. If Toyota buys 1000 tons/year, that's around 6% of the total output.

I have personally presented a Prius battery to local safety responders and fire department personnel. The entire pack weighs 117.47 pounds, which is the components as well as the actual nickel itself. The nickel weighs about 50 pounds. So that's 50lb per Prius, with 2000 pounds per ton, that's 40 Prius per ton of nickel.

Considering the plant puts out 120,000,000 pounds of nickel each year, each Prius uses about 0.000024 of the annual production of the Sudbury plant. Please double check my math and contact me if I need to make any corrections.

So, let's use common sense when looking at a vehicle like a Prius and what it uses for fuel, space, and amount of material to build. And then let's consider what a vehicle like a Hummer would require in those three areas. Obviously, a vehicle like the Hummer consumes much more resources, and the same basic types of resources, as the Prius.

Answer 7

There was just an article in my local newspaper that tackled this same question, regarding the Prius. It turns out that, to make this car, the parts have to be shipped overseas, worked on in as factory, then shipped back, worked on some more, etc. This releases a large deal of carbon dioxide into the air & causes a lot of environmental damage.

The batteries also contain nickel, a nonrenewable resource. Mining the nickel causes a lot of overburden & greatly disturbs the local habitat.

In the end, the article concluded that, in fact, the Prius had a larger ecological footprint than the cars it was supposedly better than.

In reality, we're just exchanging one damaging thing for another.

Note: This isn't true for all hybrids. Some use more sustainable methods. it depends on the make & model.