Hybrid cars don't really help the environment!?

Question

ok if you had an all electric car that you would have to plug in at home to recharge, it still wouldn't help the environment because of coal burning factories! Don't ya have to burn coal to get electricity in your car?? So if there's more of a demand of electricity, and i'm sure a car would need that amount, then more coal would need to be burnt so there would be more acid rain n stuff like that :(

Answer 1

Because hybrids generate their own electricity they are using less gasoline and producing less emissions.  So in that respect they are causing less damage then a non hybrid that is getting the same MPG from an all gas power plant.  That being said my car that gets 32 MPG from a gasoline engine is still better than a Ford Escape hybrid that only gets 24 MPG.  

Cars that run solely on electricity, while they don't emit anything themselves, do need to be recharged.  Unless that electricity comes from solar, wind or hydroelectric sources, there's pollution.  So electric cars, while they might make their owners feel warm and fuzzy for "doing something for the environment" aren't the the answer to reducing pollution or for reducing uses of fossil fuels for that matter.  In fact because of the inherent inefficiency in transferring energy long distances, from the power plant to the outlet (some of the energy is bled away as heat, sound, etc...)  electric cars could actually be considered as more polluting than a similar small gas powered car.

Answer 2

there are many eco friendly ways of making electricity like hydroelectricity or wind mills or even nuclear energy

btw Dana1981

there is a 100% electric car (not a hybrid) that has to be plugged into a electrical source to recharge. its called the tesla roadster

sells for about 98000$

check it out before saying there is no technology like that yet

Answer 3

Yes they do.

First of all, hybrids don't plug into the electric grid!  Plug-in hybrids haven't been developed yet (Chevy Volt will be the first one in 2010).

Secondly, electric motors are extremely efficient (close to 90%) whereas gas engines are only around 25% efficient.  

http://ffden-2.phys.uaf.edu/102spring200...

Thus even with the current US power grid mix (52% coal), EVs and plug-in hybrids reduce greenhouse gas emissions dramatically.

ICE = gasoline car (internal combustion engine)

HEV = hybrid gas-electric car (uses gasoline to recharge batteries)

EV = electric vehicle (plugs in to recharge batteries)

"EVs reduce CO2 by 11%-100% compared with ICEs and by 24%-54% compared with HEVs, and significantly reduce all other greenhouse gas emissions, using the U.S. grid mix. If all U.S. cars were EVs, we’d reduce global warming emissions. Using electricity strictly from coal, EVs still would reduce CO2 by 0%-59% compared with ICEs (one analysis found 0% change; six others found reductions of 17%-59%) and might produce 30%-49% more CO2 than HEVs (based on only two analyses). On the other hand, if electricity comes from solar or wind power, EVs eliminate all emissions. Using natural gas to make electricity, emissions fall in between those from coal and renewable power."

Seighart - I said there are no plug-in hybrids, and there aren't (except some Priuses have been modified to be plug-ins).  I am well aware of the many electric cars available, but they are not hybrids.

Brian - the Escape hybrid gets 32 mpg (plus it's an SUV, not a car), and your information about EV efficiency is wrong.  Yes some power is lost in transmission from the power plant to the home, but it's still far more efficient and less polluting than an internal combustion engine, as my linked study shows.

Jack - the Prius gets about 50 mpg.  Do you really think it improves mileage efficiency by 50% just with the regenerative braking system?  Come on now.

Answer 4

Hybrids are magic because they are driven by ex-hippies.  It is called "Flower Power."  Just like you can "visualize whirled peas" you can VISUALIZE that your hybrid is magically getting energy from cosmic forces instead of using the same amount of energy to do the same thing.

No, seriously:   Actually hybrids DO consume less energy in one detail:   Instead of having friction brakes they have electric generators that recapture the forward motion and turn it into electricity while slowing down the car.  So energy that is wasted when you put on your brakes is recaptured.  

The rest is just a shell game.

Answer 5

I just invented a care that works on burning hippies its totally green

Answer 6

Get with it----- the coal generating plants emit very little as the scrubbers just flash off steam, no pollutions . The materials like CO2 are taken out too.

Answer 7

Hybrids are better for the environment then gasoline cars. The thing is tho, is that they still use fossil fuels. Getting a Hybrid is like an addict lowering how much drugs he takes. He's still taking drugs. Your still using fuel with Hybrids. Don't invest in them. Look into full electric, Hydrogen, Biodeisel or w/e else. I'm  for Hydrogen myself.

Answer 8

No matter what we do we are wrong.

Answer 9

sort of. hybrids get their electricity from recapturing energy lost from braking and stuff though, so your electric car analogy isnt quite the same.

kinda like hydrogen fuel cells though which everyone totes as the energy of the future. they say thats the answer, but it takes a lot of energy to free hydrogen, and we probably get that energy from fossil fuels. its more of a battery than an energy source. the best way is to use trains and other mass transit systems more, drive less, and drive smaller more efficient cars rather than big bulky trucks