Posted on 05/12/2007 11:19:39 PM PDT by Rick_Michael
The only problem with this theory, is that electricity costs twice as much per BTU as gasoline, even at $3.00 per gallon.
Diesel electric trains and submarines have been around for fifty years. I reckon that automotive hybrids don't use diesels for aesthetic reasons more than practical ones. A diesel-electric hybrid would get fantastic mileage, but still have the noise and sooty emissions of a diesel.
Deisel is a better, cheaper and more green option than any hybrid EVER built. Its unfathonable the government is subsidizing this hybrid crap.
Even putting the overall environmental impact of production aside, hybrids make no sense for the vast majority of Americans who do not live in a dense urban area. Only in such a place will a hybrid save much, as it will shut down the engine during the frequent stops.
Many Americans today are commuting 15-50 miles on freeways. They may encounter some stop-and-go traffic, but that is usually for a small percentage of their driving.
For freeway commuters, and people who live in suburban and rural areas, diesels make much more sense.
My understanding is that diesel-electric is not used in locomotives for efficiency; it’s simply impractical to develop a direct transmission of that size.
People in the horse and buggy industry used to say the same thing too.
While I dont like the government subsidizing anything, I not going to bemoan private industry giving this a good try. If they can get these things working well, cheaply, and safely then why on Earth is anyone hear up in arms about it other than some weird idea that if Electric or Hybrid cars succeed that it would be like voting for Al Gore.
We have a Ford Escape Hybrid. Doesn’t get the milage we were supposed to get (29-30 instead of 34). but still does well for a small SUV. I really like the technology. If I am not useing the Navagator, I watch the power distibution system. Still find it cool afte a year. We did get the tax advantage as well. Both Fed and State. Does not off set the cost. Still I like it.
Also, I don’t think high gas prices are to much of a worry for a population that pays a dollar for .5 liter of water ($7.40 a gallon) or $4.25 for a 12 ounce cup of coffee at Starbucks ($54.40 a gallon).
Being older, I can remember that people (in the 1970’s) were saying that the death of the RV was $1.25/gallon gasoline. (They wer also predicting ‘Global Cooling’ and a new ice age). I tend not to get spooled up about the silly side of life anymore.
No, the article doesn't talk about passing the savings on to the consumer at all. It talks about Toyota being able to increase its profit margins on the sale of the hybrid cars. Right now they are not as profitable as their "regular" cars.
By the time I found out they had even made diesel Chevettes,mini-pickups,or Escorts, they weren’t.The diesel premium on a new VW on top of the VW price was/is too much for me. GM could have done much better with the diesel conversion of the mid-70s Olds ,etc.;instead GM skimped and made a diesel that established the idea that diesels are only for big trucks.
Thanks for the links, but I use Mobil-1 100% synthetic oil in all of my cars, I don’t think I will have to replace any engines any time soon.
I think I read that GM is developing an electric-drive hybrid. So, we’ll see what the efficiency is at some point.
When are you talking about? In recent years, VW's diesel price premium was $200-300.
The forthcoming diesels may be a bit more, though, due to the Bluetec exhaust treatment. Although, I think that's still relatively inexpensive.
You make a good point; we do seem to get worked up about fuel costs out of proportion with how much money we actually spend on motor fuel.
Bottom line is that predictions made today cannot take into account the technologies and science of tomorrow.
In 1890, it was perfectly reasonable for well-educated people to state that heavier-than-air flight was impossible. In 1930, it was reasonable for people to say that humans could not survive spaceflight or even survive in an aircraft breaking the sound barrier.
So when people continue to state that things like electric cars and cold-fusion will never work, I tend to dismiss them out of hand.
That still doesn't negate the efficiency of diesel vs. four stroke. The advantage of the four stroke is weight per HP (hence no diesel aircraft) and better acceleration. With a diesel hybrid, you could get the acceleration from the electric motor, long term power from the diesel.
According to this site, http://www.westegg.com/inflation/infl.cgi:
"What cost $1.25 in 1972 would cost $6.01 in 2006.
"Also, if you were to buy exactly the same products in 2006 and 1972, they would cost you $1.25 and $0.26 respectively."
I’d rather have a used car that used dino oil and got regular cooling system maintenance than a car that ran synth and had a neglected cooling system.
Well, Edison’s prediction has held for over a century, so he was still pretty accurate. I’m sure practical electric cars will become available in the future, and maybe cold fusion, but all these predictions remind me of those old (50’s-60’s) issues of Popular Science with the storied and artist’s renderings of flying cars, atomic airplanes, passenger submarines, houses on Mars, etc. I have a bunch of those old magazines, and they’re a hoot.
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