Question:

OK, why would I buy a hybrid? Aren't we being conned.?

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OK, I drive a 8 year old VW...it gets 50mpg...it is in great running shape and always passes the emissions test...so, why would I recyle a vehicle to get a Hybrid...First, I get incredible mileage so the mileage/emission ratio would be lower...second, why dispose of a good vehicle to buy another that will take huge amounts of energy to produce; the Hybrid has batteries that will some day have to be disposed of and look the problems the small batteries cause...the basis of this question is...aren't we being conned?

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  1. Hybrids are not yet cost effective, only a first step. Let the rich idiots buy them first.


  2. well they are better for the environment but still too high in price for me even though they will save on gas as well.

    will see in the near future if I purchase one.

    K

  3. If your car is still low maintenance & giving 50mpg, then there is no reason to change. don't feel bullied by the big business media into buying stuff you don't need.

    But, thousands of new cars are sold every week. in which case buying a hybrid, or at least a car that does >60mpg, is a valid option.

    Imagine how much more mpg your VW would give if it were hybrid, capturing energy slowing down, no energy use in slow traffic, extra torque to aid acceleration ....

    Unfortunatly newer VWs are actually bigger & heavier than yours & so give worse mpg.

    better still would be wait a few years for a wholey electric vehicle like http://www.phoenixmotorcars.com,

  4. diesel does get good mpg.

  5. no there is no "conning"

    r u sure that- that thing gets 50 MPG

  6. no buy it for the environment friendliness or atleast for maybe tax break and great mpg at an affordable price

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  7. Yes they did make some very high MPG cars in the 1990s, I own one.  But they can no longer be bought - and anyway they don't suit most regular folks.  People want more power and NEED more space.

    Don't go thinking your car is clean because it passes smog.  Smog tests leave a lot of slack, and figure for cars getting dirtier as they get older.  Just compare your actual numbers to the ULEV and NZLEV standards new cars must meet from the factory.

    Hybrid battery disposal is not a problem.  Regular old car batteries are ALREADY recycled at nearly 100% rate, and they're cheap junk batteries made to last only 3-6 years.  Hybrid batteries will simply be recycled the same way.

    Of course it's looking like advanced electric-vehicle batteries are more likely to last the life of the vehicle. The 1999 Priuses have had very low failure rates, and they were "first generation".

    Of course you're being conned. You're being conned ("marketed" is the preferred word) into buying a new car.   But hybrids are not a con; they're a very promising new technology.  I'm not impressed with the ones on the market today, but I look forward to plug-in "strong" hybrids which have the best traits of an electric car and a hybrid.  If you don't want to wait, you could build one today from off-the-shelf electric-car and generator technology.

  8. Yes, I think they are a con.  They are no match for normal road cars in anything other than emissions, and even then, they are not dramatically better.  If you want a green car, look in to biofuels, not hybrids.

  9. those are very valid concerns.  Thanks for sharing.

    My opinion is that a hybrid is a way to ease the concerns of environmentalists.  You don't really get significantly better gas mileage with those cars.   I think that the best technology doesn't exist, or at least it isn't being made public, until oil is sure to be reasonable depleted, which is pretty sad.

  10. If you are getting 50 mpg right now then no, a hybrid probably isn't for you. Hybrids are more suited for the person who has the big SUV/van and/or drives a thousand miles per week. Hybrids do have their benefits but they are not for everyone. I say stick with your VW.

  11. Only if you do the math.

    The Hybrid car commercials are not made for people who are good at math.

    Please ignore them.

  12. If you drive a car that gets 50 mpg, don't buy a hybrid. Most people get alot less than that.

  13. no

  14. Congratulations on getting 50mpg! However, the promotion of hybrid vehicles isn't necessarily targetted at someone such as yourself who already gets super mileage. Rather hybrid vehicles are an important consideration for all the people who are driving inefficient vehicles that don't even get 30mpg. No, you aren't being conned...rather you appear to be oversensitive to what is a sensible alternative to all the gas-guzzling vehicles out there. As long as you vehicle continues to get 50mpg, there is no need for you to get a new vehicle...unless, of course, gas prices rise so high that a cost-benefit analysis that even your vehicle becomes impractical. That day may come, but not anytime soon.

    Your question about the batteries is a good one and that is precisely one of the technical problems still being worked on by hybrid manufacturers. Clearly, what is needed is a battery technology that is durable in the long-term, perhaps even the maximum lifespan of the car AND that can be recycled efficiently, perhaps to make more hybrid auto batteries.

  15. Yes, the hybrid is a big con, perpetrated by business who can look green and make a huge profit while actually making the environment worse.

    And before you go crazy with the whole (300,000 miles for Hummer vs. 100,000 miles for Prius), look at the Scion xB.  It is about the same size as the Prius and, if we go ahead and make the Prius lifetime 200,000miles (which is more than the expected lifetime of the Scion) and assume NO MORE energy is required to do such--which is completely false, you'd at least have to buy gas.  The Scion still uses only 1/3rd of the energy than the Prius.

    Hybrid owners have spent more money to produce more pollution and just can't accept fact.

  16. That's a pretty good point you brought there, but the purpose for the hybrid is for the environment. A cleaner way to drive. If you noticed that global warming/save the planet is the talk of the town. The people in high power are taking this seriously. You're partially right Earth_Wind_Poker, the companies are making these speacial cars, they just have to make sure their safe.

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