What makes a "hybrid" vehicle different?

Question

What do they do to hybrid vehicles, such as the Ford Escape Hybrid, to make them hybrid? How does it save the environment?

Answer 1

its electric and uses gas.

Answer 2

The price!! They cost a lot more then the average car!!

Answer 3

I'll give you 2 reviews that should explain:(both from last year)

http://www.fordvehicles.com/features/new...

http://www.fordvehicles.com/features/new...

And here's my personal review:

I'm in the Midwest where gas prices are amongst the highest in the US.& where I'm at (Chicago suburbs) we can't get enough of them!

And since i sell & drive Fords , I'll give you a breakdown on the Ford Hybrid Escape :

Priced at $25,740 (FWD)

Federal tax incentive is $3000 on this model.

( This vehicle qualifies for the largest tax incentive of all the Hybrids. To find out what other vehicles qualify for you can see the chart at the IRS website )

The Battery (and all hybrid componants) is covered under the Ford Warranty for 8 years or 100,000 miles.

The cost to replace the battery (IF you would need to ) has yet to be determined. We have thousands on the road ('05, '06, '07 & '08 model years) & have been clocking hundreds of thousands of miles & the batterys are holding up quite well.

Maintenance costs on the Hybrid Escape is identicle to the non-hybrid Escape with one exception. The recommended Oil change interval for the Hybrid is ONCE A YEAR or ONCE EVERY 10, 000 miles (whichever occurs 1st)

Lastly I will tell you about fuel savings . For this I will use my own personal, real life experience. We all know that the EPA ratings that you see on a window sticker are not neccesarily accurate. So those figures are completely useless.

When comparing a non-hybrid Escape VS a Hybrid Escape I DOUBLED my Mpg.....so therefor my fuel costs were cut in half !

When comparing vehicles please don't assume that just because a vehicle is labeled "Hybrid" that it will cut your fuel costs in half.

All hybrids are NOT created equal & some actually get pretty lousy gas mileage. There are different kinds of hybrid systems & the Ford hybrid system is classified a "Fully Hybrid" There are others that are classified as "Mild Hybrid"

For more detailed info I suggest you go to http://hybridcars.com/ There is a page at this site that shows how to maximize the Hybrid Escapes fuel economy & get 40-45 mpg !

And New York City has a fleet of them in use 24/7 since 2005. They have logged HUNDREDS of THOUSANDS of hard & abusive miles on them. All with NO problems & no battery replacements.

By the way ALL Toyota Prius are imported from Japan.

All Hybrid Escapes are built in the US.

(if that makes a difference to you)

Answer 4

Hybrid cars/trucks run from a battery and gas. After a charge the battery can last for so long then you can change over to using gas until you can recharge the car. A lot of car makers are making hybrid vehicles today.

Answer 5

A hybrid engine consists of two parts. The normal gasoline motor which you see on the regular Ford Escape. And the Electric motor. The electric motor has a battery which is charged while driving. The electric motor is used at very low speeds (under 20 mph) and a high speeds it assists the gasoline motor. Some cars have very small batteries just so that the manufacturer can call it a hybrid. Be sure to look at the MPG on the "Hybrid" you buy. The Lexus R400 has a tiny electric motor which barely assists the gasoline motor which doesn't affect the MPG rating at all. The prius on the other hand is more powered by the battery than the gasoline getting up to 50 MPG. Hope this helps!

Answer 6

A hybrid car is a cross between an electric car and gasoline car. When a hybrid car is on it uses part electric and part gasoline power to drive the car. You save gas using a hybrid car.

Answer 7

A hybrid vehicle uses an electric engine accompined by a gasoline or other type of engine to make the car move. But in a hybrid the engine is being worked less because of the electric engine. So you save money because you use less fuel and the engine actually lasts longer because of less stress on it. Emissions is also lowered too.

Answer 8

its runs on electricity, I think

Answer 9

A vehicle with more than one power source such as a small internal combustion engine and an electric motor."

For more info take a look at this web site. / http://www.hybrid-vehicle.org/hybrid-veh...

Answer 10

the answer to this is quite simple, there are also many articles about hyrbids, and ford and toyota have special sections on their website detailing the components of hybrids and what specifally is different about them. i would suggest you use yahoo search engine to find the specifics but basically it is a gasoline engine mixed with an electric engine to produce lower pollution, increase efficiency and get better gasoline mileage. the hybrid car in coming years will play a major role in transportation in america and the world, it is definately worth researching.

Answer 11

A hybrid can either use standard gasoline or run on electricity. If the auto says hybrid, then it can use both.

Answer 12

They re-construct the engine so it uses gas and electric, they also add solar panel at the hood of the car (sometimes).