However, my uncle’s needs are not the same as my dad who is a contractor. In the end, you need to weigh the pros and cons before deciding on which vehicle is best for you. After much research, it is my opinion that a gasoline powered car is better than a hybrid for these reasons: purchase and repair costs, towing and passenger/cargo capacity, and the cars impact on the environment. First, when purchasing a vehicle a consumer should not only be concerned with the purchase price, but with the cost of repairs as well.
The initial cost of gasoline powered cars is around 75% lower than a hybrid for these reasons: hybrids have very expensive batteries, a different engine design which complicates manufacturing, and they are basically mobile computers that make them difficult to repair without special training. Regardless of which type of vehicle you own, many people think that the initial cost of a vehicle is bad enough and then something bad happens. Repairs can cause your wallet to take another large hit. Simple moving parts are bad enough when a door handle breaks off, but what if one of the computer parts fails or your electrical system has a malfunction?
This happens with both gasoline and hybrid cars, but repairing your hybrid means twice the amount of money. For example, the battery in a hybrid has a limited shelf life and when it does need to be replaced it can cost from $3,000 to $6,000, but you can buy a rebuilt engine for your gasoline powered vehicle for about $1,500. Many of the gasoline powered vehicles maintenance issues can be repaired with relative ease at your local mechanic’s shop. However, a hybrid has an advanced computer system and your mechanic practically needs a degree in computer engineering to work on one.
The Essay on The Cost of Computer Literacy
What are the costs of computer literacy? Some people argue that there are no such costs, but I believe there are a few which may be relevant. Does computer literacy affect the way we communicate, and if so, is this necessarily a bad thing? What is our future, as computer literacy becomes a necessity? What are the personal, financial, and social costs, as computer literacy becomes a necessity? ...
As a result, when something goes wrong, the hybrid owner can only take the vehicle to a dealership that specifically sells that particular make and model. There is no way that your local could handle a hybrid’s computer system. These two factors, the initial purchase price and future repair costs, make a hybrid a less attractive purchase than a gasoline powered vehicle. Second, consider what your job or lifestyle require from a vehicle. Do you need to haul stuff for work? Do you have a big family and love to travel cross country with things in tow? For instance, my dad is a contractor and hauls an eighteen-foot trailer.
Therefore, towing capacity is important when he is considering a truck purchase. His GMC K1500 can tow upwards of 10,000 pounds. Even the 2013 hybrids cannot compare with roughly a 5,500 pound towing capacity, but remember that towing that weight only happens when the engine makes the shift from electricity to gasoline. What needs to be understood is that a hybrid engine first relies on electricity, but the electrical spark cannot move the pistons as high or as fast as the explosions that happen in the internal combustion engine of a gasoline powered vehicle.
As a result, in order to get the extra horsepower needed when towing, the hybrid automatically switches to gas mode. Now, what about your average person? Families have different types of interests and activities that they enjoy. Some families like taking their camper cross country, others race snowmobiles or dirt bikes, some show horses, and then there are the families who partake in 4-H and are proud of the family cow. These activities make towing capacity very important. Hybrids are great for those living in a city where you travel short distances for both work and recreation.
Inside capacity is important too. If your family likes to go camping or fishing, packing space is important. However, hybrids have roughly 50% less cargo space than the average Minivan with seating capacity typically maxing out at 4 to 5 people. This is a problem for large families like mine with 6 people and a full size dog that loves to come with us on camping trips. As a result, hybrids will not work for everyone. It is not a matter of switching from a hybrid car to a hybrid truck because their towing and passenger/cargo capacity is limited, regardless of the vehicle’s body type.
The Term Paper on A Brief History Of The Hybrid Vehicle
Brief History of Hybrid Vehicle Development First built in the early 1900 s by inventors tinkering with combinations of the electric motor and the gasoline engine, hybrid vehicles were dropped when gasoline-fueled vehicles became more reliable and easier to start, and gasoline fuel more readily available. Research and development of hybrid vehicles was revived by concern about oil dependency in ...
Again, a gasoline powered vehicle would be my choice. Third, saving the environment has been a hot topic. To reward those who buy hybrids, tax credits have been given and the purpose of the “Cash for Clunkers” program was to get the gas guzzling vehicles off the road and replace them with more carbon neutral ones. However, hybrids being carbon neutral or environmentally friendly is sort of a myth. Let me explain why. First, hybrids are designed and marketed to run on clean electricity that will help protect the environment. Remember though, they have a gasoline backup.
The gasoline backup is two-fold, when the batteries charge runs out and when the vehicle needs extra horsepower. If you do not have access to a charging station or you are pulling a trailer it is not uncommon for hybrids to make the switch to run on gas. Now there is a carbon footprint. Second, during the cold winter months a fully charged hybrid will only get thirty miles to the charge before switching to gas because of the way that the cold reacts with the wiring and the battery. Again, there is a carbon footprint. Third, ironically the majority of the electricity we use is a direct result of coal fired plants.
Yes, the electricity comes from carbon emitting, footprint creating coal fired plants! Solar, water, nuclear, and wind only creates less than half of our electricity, and that depends on which state you reside. Here in Wisconsin 67% of all electricity comes from coal. Once again, there is a carbon footprint. Finally, a hybrid does have little or no emissions, but only when fully operating on electricity. However, the production of the special batteries and complex electric motors requires a great deal of toxic minerals such as nickel, copper, and aluminum. Also, what happens to the batteries when they die?
Well, the production of the batteries, charging of the batteries, and disposal of the batteries makes hybrid vehicles twice as harmful as internal combustion vehicles and increases the potential of human toxicity, freshwater toxicity, and smog. Can you say environmental impact? We need to ask ourselves, are we really better off with this new technology or are we setting ourselves up for a more hazardous environmental impact? Sometimes it is better to stay with the thing you know. It is better to stay with gasoline powered vehicles because their environmental impact is understood and being improved upon.
The Essay on Hybrid Cars Gasoline Power
... production today. These vehicles were preferred over gasoline powered vehicles but gasoline powered vehicle technology developed faster than the hybrid-electric technology. ... new, electric vehicles outnumbered gasoline-powered vehicles. The problem for the electric car was that electric battery technology did ... they just use the electricity generated from the natural gas power. These cars that run ...
Now think about a hybrid versus a gasoline powered vehicle again, which would you pick? There are three basic reasons for us to stick with gasoline powered vehicles. First, there is the cost. The hybrid is nearly 75% more expensive than a gasoline powered vehicle. That increase in purchase price is countered by the overall savings on gas, but only for those who repeatedly travel short distances like my uncle. For my dad, those savings would not be there. Second, we need to look at towing and passenger/cargo capacity. Different professions have different needs from their vehicles.
If you have a job trailer or have heavy loads a hybrid may not be for you. Family activities also may not be suited for a hybrid. That 50% decrease in interior capacity alone may be enough for you to ignore a hybrid. Third, we all want to save the environment, but the movement towards hybrids is not the right answer. Nationwide, the majority of our electricity to power a hybrid comes from coal and that creates a huge carbon footprint. However, if the electricity came solely from solar, nuclear, wind, or water, the making of the vehicle’s battery is more hazardous to both us and the environment than the operation of a gasoline powered vehicle.
It is true that a hybrid has virtually zero emissions while operating on electricity. However, the hybrid causes major pollutants during production with its advanced computer system and high metal content battery. The hybrid creates a carbon footprint when pushed to its towing limits or when driven in colder regions because it must switch to gasoline. Finally, the hybrid creates an environmental hazard during both the building and disposing of its battery power source. So what is the answer? You will have to decide that for yourself.
The Essay on Hybrid Power: Running Without Gas
... types of hybrid cars, the parallel hybrid and series hybrid. In the parallel-hybrid car, fuel tank provides gasoline to engine while batteries supply power to electric ... electric vehicles with power. If all car-users would charge their automobiles, supply of electricity must be very, very abundant. More electricity generating power plants ...
Personally, I would choose a gasoline powered vehicle. Overall a gasoline powered vehicle has a more reasonable purchase and repair cost, it has the capability of handling everyone’s needs for both work and play, and it has less of an impact on the environment. Hybrids are not as eco-friendly as gasoline powered vehicles. Therefore, I urge you not to be swayed by the biased and highly misleading message of the green movement and help us keep making more eco-friendly improvements on our gasoline powered vehicles.
