Hybrid Jungle

E85 has been classified as an alternate fuel by the US Department of Energy to be used in your Flex Fuel Vehicle. Flex Fuel Vehicles (FFV) can run on normal gasoline or E85 Ethanol. E85 is the name designated for fuel that is 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline and you may also hear it referred to as biofuel. It can be produced from many sources but mainly corn, potatoes, barley, and byproducts from the production of paper and food. Any one of these products can be distilled or fermented into a non-consumable alcohol called ethanol. Read the rest of this entry »

By Roman Robinson

You may be surprised to find out that the United States consumes a quarter of the world’s oil supply but only carries three percent of the world’s oil reserves on its own territory. As a result, America is forced to import over 60% of the oil our country needs, relying more and more on foreign countries, particularly in the Middle East, to support our oil dependency.

Many experts are under the impression that the introduction and popularity of hybrid vehicles in the US will lessen our dependency on overseas oil. Powered jointly by gasoline and electric engines, hybrids use much less gasoline than conventional vehicles and therefore use less oil. Read the rest of this entry »

While many people will think of steam engines as a technology from the past, automakers are looking at incorporating steam power technology in their next generation of hybrid vehicles. Honda recently touted their heat harnessing hybrid technology, which can recapture energy by exploiting wasted energy from the exhaust. This innovative approach uses heat from the catalytic converter to boil water into steam which then then turns an electric generator that charges the battery packs. Finally, a condenser cools the steam back into water. This technology was used in a Honda Steam prototype and captured three times as much energy when compared to regenerative braking in a conventional hybrid car. Read the rest of this entry »

With every promising technology that arises you will see fear, uncertainty, and doubt associated with that technology. Hybrid cars are starting to enjoy widespread adoption, however I wonder how many people have made decisions not to buy a hybrid vehicle based upon erroneous comments. I have noticed that there are many myths associated with hybrid cars and I hope to clear up some of these myths for you in the following article.

Myth 1: Hybrid batteries lose their charge over time and need to be replaced.
Batteries typically lose there charge after the constant charging to 100% and discharging. Automakers keep the battery charged somewhere in between 40%-60% and never let it reach 100%. This really limits the potential for battery degradation. The batteries are designed to last the life of the car, and most hybrid warranties are good for 80,000+ miles and 10+ years. Read the rest of this entry »

By Peter J.H. Johnson

There was once a time when hybrids were restricted to the Hollywood crowd and college professors. However, over the last 6 years hybrids have become widely popular and can now be found in garages of everyday people. As the hybrid market continues to grow so too will the used hybrid market. What should you know about buying a used hybrid? Read on.

The basics
Buying a used hybrid is like buying any other used car. Well, sort of. The biggest concern when buying a used hybrid is finding out the condition of the battery pack. These battery packs can easily cost in excess of $5000 to replace. To ease the concern of new buyers, manufacturers put an extended warranty on the battery pack, hybrid control module, battery control module and other related components. Read the rest of this entry »

With the reality that hybrid cars are more costly than their non hybrid counterparts, people should make sure that they have made the right decision in purchasing the hybrid vehicle of their choice and that they get value for their money. Keep in mind while on average most hybrids cost 20% more than their gasoline variant, they are usually slightly more upscale in an attempt to justify the premium you pay for it being a hybrid. Hybrids are comparable in operating costs when compared to conventional gasoline cars and the hybrid batteries are designed to last the life of the car.

A number of hybrid car manufactures have developed and introduced hybrids of high quality and with many choices at hand, it will be difficult to make up your mind on which model to choose. In addition to the budget you have decided on, there are a number of things to consider in buying hybrid cars. Just like in a conventional car, you need to balance the safety, cost, mpg, reliability and practicality when purchasing. Read the rest of this entry »

A Quick Look at the Civic Hybrid with IMA (Integrated Motor Assist)
We all know, in basic terms what a hybrid is all about and what some of the advantages are, but do we really know how they work and why they work? Let’s take a closer look at that question starting with Honda’s Civic hybrid as an example. To make it simple we have a vehicle with a gasoline powered engine much like any other. Added to that, is an auxiliary electric motor that functions to keep the gasoline motor working at a minimum. The electric motor needs some type of power supply to make it function, enter the hybrid system battery which is in addition to the normal 12 volt vehicle battery. Now, we have all the basic components covered so lets get a little deeper into how all these parts work in harmony to power your hybrid vehicle.

We have to think about how and when the IMA system in a Civic hybrid is functioning. There are 2 modes that are used when you’re in the car. Either the System is in charge mode working to recharge the hybrid system battery or it is in assist mode where the electric motor is being used to power the vehicle. Read the rest of this entry »