Miles Per Gallon Vs Power and Performance

Submitted by wilson70 on Tue, 2006-01-31 20:32. weekly discussions

With gas prices reaching a high of around $2.25 in the Chicago land area does this mean the end of people buying big gas guzzling trucks? Some trucks get a little 10 mpg, but people still buy them. Even with the introduction of Hybrid cars which have proven to get as many as 75 mpg. But is it worth it, is economy more important to people than power and speed?

But with the introduction of hybrid cars why do people still buy big trucks or fast cars the require performance gas which can reach prices as high as $3.50? The basic reason is that is comes down to performance. A hybrid car's acceleration is much lower than that of a car that runs only on gasoline. A hybrid cars top speed is well below that of even full size pick-ups. The one hybrid that gets 75 mpg reachs a top speed of 50 mph. Would this car even make it on the highways or expressways of America where speeds can reach as high as 70 mph? While trucks who only recieve about 15 mpg on average can reach speeds as high as 120 mph. But these truck companies are selling more than the hybrid companies. With this would any of these companies ever switch to making hybrid cars when the American buyer chooses to buy trucks and fast cars?

With gas prices rising though will this raise the sale of hybrids? America is one of the few countries with people driving big vechiles not for the use of transporting goods. The average car in America is almost twice the size of those in europe. Will hybrid cars ever completely replace the gas guzzling trucks and cars of today? Why or why not?

The following are links to sites that I found interesting.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Alternative_Energy/1979_July_August/An_Amazing_75_MPG_Hybrid_Electic_Car
http://www.edmunds.com/buyguide/trucks/

And this site is one that I found interesting on how to find the gas prices on the areas near you.

http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/gasprices/states/index.shtml

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Gas Guzzling Cars

Submitted by awilson on Thu, 2006-02-02 11:22.

I don't think that hybrid cars will ever fully replace big cars and trucks in the United States. Other countries are far less likely to spend lots of money on things than Americans. Americans like to show off and get whatever looks the best and goes the fastest. We like to get places in a hurry and hybrids don't allow us to do that. It's just the way we are. We think that spending lots of money is cool. The only way I think hybrids will completely take over is if the economy gets really bad.

gas guzzlers

Submitted by ckstacy on Fri, 2006-02-03 18:17.

I do not believe that hybrid cars will ever take over the car market in America. Even with gas prices getting higher and higher, Americans continue to drive gas guzzlers. I myself drive the king of gas guzzlers - a 1966 Impala - and I do not plan on changing. A little rise in prices is not going to keep me from getting the horsepower and acceleration that I want. Hybrid cars will gain in sales and popularity, but their are some Americans that just refuse to drive something so small and slow.

Eventually

Submitted by clallen on Sat, 2006-02-04 16:39.

I think it is just a matter of time. As of right now, hybrid cars are not as popular due to many reasons, social impression, utility, too small, too slow. To combat this car companies will spend more funding on developing/research so that new editions of electric cars the difference between horsepower and acceleration of todays cars will be insignificant. Bush said something about funding toward companies to develope hybrid cars during the State of the Union, so this may come sooner than expected.

Once these new editions of electric cars have same or near the power of todays cars, people will start openening themselves up to hybrids. They will realize that the only difference between electric and todays cars is the difference that they will have to spend on gas.

more power

Submitted by cburgess on Sat, 2006-02-04 16:52.

There is another reason why most people will spend countless extra dollars on a big beefy SUV or truck and thats because they are safer. If you have seen the vehicles that get excellent mpg ratings, not only hybrids, but ones like a volkswagons with 3-cylinder diesel motors that get 50 mpg. They all have one thing in common the look like mobile beer cans. This has a lot to do with performance or lack there of. Hybrids are small because they don't have the power to move the mass of the bigger vehicles. Until the performance rating goes up on the hybrids i don't see them being a big hit in the states.

Americans love their cars.

Submitted by ehedstro on Sat, 2006-02-04 17:22.

Americans love their cars. They love going fast and driving big vehicles, that is what we do in America. Therefore saving on gas with hybrid cars is not going to change the fact that Americans are going to continue buying fast, luxury cars. The gas prices getting higher will sell some people on the idea of having a hybrid car, but in the end most people will buy the gas guzzling sport car, SUV’s, or truck. At the present, there are a lot of people who are willing to pay the extra amount of money for gas. Of course, if the technology changes making the quality and speed of the hybrid cars the same as the gas cars, then hybrid cars may be the way of the future.

Cars

Submitted by hong26 on Sat, 2006-02-04 22:29.

Currently, people are willing to spend more money to have fast and powerful cars. I guess people can afford to spend a lot of money on gas. To these kinds of people, performance is more important, and gas prices really don’t make a big difference. If I were to buy a car now, I would also choose a car with high performance, even if it means spending more money. I think it’s going to take a while for hybrid cars to gain popularity. But, I believe the performance of hybrid cars will eventually improve, and maybe someday replace existing cars.

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