BlogHer - car advice for women - Comments

Hybrids for real?

Mary Clare Hunt — Sat, 17 May 2008 14:40:19 -0500

Given that it's Bill making the statement, I think he's questioning whether they are doing the job or not. As Jody wrote, the Prius hybrid is 46 mpg, but others are 21-22 mpg. So what's the point? If you want to save gas, then buy the highest mpg on the market and save gas and emissions.

The other issue is the Life Cycle Assessment on that car. When you're calculating the carbon/pollution footprint, are you looking at all the supplier's footprints that went into the making of the car and then the recycling of all parts on the other side.

That's where the rubber really hits the road (or not).

Are Hybrids for Real?

fmaggi — Sat, 17 May 2008 14:21:29 -0500

Please excuse my ignorance, but living in Italy I don't think we even have hybrids just yet...No matter, I'd get mine in the USA. But, I heard on Bill Maher's Real Time that "there really aren't any hybrid cars"...

What does that mean? It means they don't help us save? Whassup witht that??

francesca maggi
burntbythetuscansun

It makes sense

Vered — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 15:32:55 -0500

To compare within a specific vehicle type rather than group them all together. Just like you wouldn't group SUV and sedan MPG for any other car.

There's a lot of info out there. I will sort through it and make a decision. Sigh. It was easier when I used to pick my cars based on exterior color. :)

Vered DeLeeuw
www.momgrind.com

Here is a little more

Jody DeVere -- Ask Patty — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 12:30:26 -0500

Here is a little more information about numbers, etc.

If you click to enlarge the "Hybrid Electric Vehicles" chart, it identifies the fuel economy and estimated fuel costs for EVERY HYBRID VEHICLE offered for sale in 2008: http://askpatty.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/ 2008/04/22/hybridmpgfuelcosts.png

I also updated the little chart that compares the hybrid/traditional versions of the three vehicles to include the estimated mpg figures for each car: http://askpatty.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/ 2008/04/23/hybridcostworksheet2_2.png

The EPA fuel economy guide is an excellent resource, as it shows the estimated fuel costs, and MPG for every vehicle for sale in 2008. So if you're trying to decide between vehicles, you can download and review this guide to estimate the difference in costs for each car: http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/FEG2008.pdf

I hope this will make the numbers less confusing!

My bike gets awesome MPGs

alyssaroyse — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 08:04:34 -0500

But our Civic Hybrid - only so / so.

My new goal is NO GAS AT ALL..... looking Smart Car. But until then, yes, hybrid is better, generally than not. I used to be snarky about hybrid SUV's, until i realized that the people who buy them are likely to buy the non-hybrid version of the same thing. So even though i may think it's silly, it's still better. Progress is progress (no matter how small.)

And of course, we still have to look at all the other ways in our life we consume fossil fuels...... cars may be the least of the problem.

___________
Alyssa Royse
JUST CAUSE: A Web Site To Save The World

Start Her Up: A blog for Women Entrepreneurs

Definitely keep researching

Denise — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 07:04:16 -0500

But be careful of information that lumps all hybrids into one lump and says "the average" this or that.

Check out the hybrid SUVs: http://www.hybridsuv.com/

34/30 mpg: 2008 Mazda Tribute (AWD)
34/30 mpg: 2008 Ford Escape (AWD)
34/30 mpg: 2008 Mercury Mariner (4WD)
27/32 mpg: 2007 Saturn Vue Green Line (2WD)
27/25 mpg: 2008 Toyota Highlander (AWD)
26/24 mpg: 2008 Lexus 400h (AWD)
21/22 mpg: 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe (2WD)
20/20 mpg: 2008 GMC Yukon (4WD)

If you remember that est gas mileage is often off by 10 MPGs and then think about lumping all of those SUVs in with the smaller, compact, hybrids (like the Prius and the Honda et al) then yes - the average MPG is only going to be high 20s.

Rather than looking at hybrids as one entity, I would recommend comparing the hybrid version of the TYPE of vehicle you're considering - and go from there.

If you really want an SUV - and are considering the Toyota, then you look at all of the different Highlander options and then look at other non-Toyotas that are similar. That's the kind of comparison that works.

Toyota has this tool that allows you to compare vehicles side by side - I put in 2 versions of the 2wd highlander plus the basic hybrid and it spits out all of the data for all three. The MPG is very similar for all three with highway driving but in the city, the hybrid gets significantly better gas mileage - so if you do city driving and want an SUV - the toyota highlander hybrid might be a better choice. If you mostly do highway, then maybe not.

Anyway - that's the type of comparison I've done - along with renting hybrids from the local toyota dealer and using the hybrids available with Zip Car/Flex Car to see how they perform in my every day life and on long trips. (Did you know it's cheaper for me to rent a Prius from our Toyota dealer for a week than it is to rent a small compact car from a rental car dealer?)

~Denise
BlogHer Community Manager

Flamingo House Happenings

The numbers in this article are confusing

Karoli — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 00:43:39 -0500

But hybrids aren't really, and I haven't seen a car come close to the Prius' performance that has the same size, room, versatility and comfort factors. Ours held a full drumset and set of congas along with three passengers and still got 48 MPG. Yes, you can find little itty bitties out there that get close mpg-wise, but I wouldn't drive my kids in one of them.

The 22 mpg quoted in this article above most likely applies to the so-called hybrid SUVs, which aren't very hybrid at all. I wouldn't put the Prius in that same league.

However, hybrid technology has much more potential than has been made available. I keep wishing that someone would put some serious pressure on manufacturers to move the ball down the court.

karoli (odd time signatures)

Thanks, I guess?

Vered — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 23:09:39 -0500

But now I'm more confused than ever. :(

I guess I should keep researching this.

Vered DeLeeuw
www.momgrind.com

Thank you

Denise — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 19:53:18 -0500

Exactly what I'd hoped you'd say, KK! I'd have had to rethink my entire love affair with the Prius if you'd come back with different numbers. And I would not have been happy about that at all.

So if I do buy a car after we move to Chicago - it will be a Prius. But I am considering doing without.... we shall see...

~Denise
BlogHer Community Manager

Flamingo House Happenings

We average 42-45 mpg

Karoli — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 19:50:50 -0500

We've had our Prius for a year and a half. For the first year, we had a greater ratio of highway to city driving and got an average of 48mpg. When the ratio changed to more city driving, the mpg dropped to 42.

The keys: 1) change your driving style to pay attention to not speeding; 2) no jackrabbitting starts; 3) make sure tire inflation is correct.

The best situation to be in a Prius is bumper-to-bumper traffic. When we're stuck in traffic, we get about 66 mpg. Love that.

karoli (odd time signatures)

Sure!

Denise — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 19:42:53 -0500

I've made several trips from Gainesville FL to Charleston SC in a Prius. (5 1/2 hours of freeway)

I've made one trip from Gainesville Fl to Charlotte NC in a Prius. (too many hours to count!)

My partner also drove a Hybrid Honda from Gainesville to Orlando (which is only 2 hours each way, so not a super great test) and she got pretty good mileage out of that too, not as good as the Prius but a lot better than the Subaru we drive all of the time - which does average in the high 20s and isn't a hybrid.

~Denise
BlogHer Community Manager

Flamingo House Happenings

Interesting, Denise

Diana — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 19:23:08 -0500

Would you mind sharing how often (and at what lengths) you've driven your Prius on Highways?

I'm not buying it

Denise — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 19:16:14 -0500

"Hybrids actually promise from 22 at the lowest end to 48 at the highest, with most of them averaging in the high 20s."

I've spent a good bit of time leasing the Prius and I've never gotten anything less than 40mpg whether I'm driving city or highway.

I wonder if the bigger hybrid type trucks aren't skewing the metrics, which means data like this isn't nearly as helpful to the person considering a hybrid as it could be.

(KK - drumsnwhistles - what's your Prius mileage now that you've had yours for a year or so? JoyofSix - how about yours now that you've been driving it for a few months?)

~Denise
BlogHer Community Manager

Flamingo House Happenings

Hybrid Snobbery

Diana — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 19:07:13 -0500

The marketing genius certainly has taken social ideals by storm - who'd have thought Americans would suddenly see something so small, so plain, so... ugly as a status symbol after all these years?

Thanks for the informative article, by the way, we're in the same boat as Vered. We're going to have to buy a new vehicle in the next year or two and have been weighing our options. We'd taken a step back from the Hybrid option recently this serves to reinforce that decision a little bit. Luckily, we have time to keep researching before making a concrete decision.

"But hybrids are cool"

Vered — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 18:57:31 -0500

So this cool image that the hybrid manufacturers created is just marketing genius. I applaud them for that.

Thanks for the info. I need to get a new car and was wondering if I should go the hybrid way this time around.

Vered DeLeeuw
www.momgrind.com