Tag Archives: gas

Ford Escape Hybrid

ford escape hybrid 2012

So far as new cars go, I’m fairly confident in my belief that hybrid technology is the future. That being said, I was absolutely delighted when my brother took the initiative to check out used hybrid cars.

After weeks of shopping around for the best used model, he finally came cross the 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid. At this point in time (a year or so ago) I was living with my brother due to my being laid off, so I can say quite confidently that I’ve spent more than a few dozen hours driving the 2008 Escape Hybrid. To start off, he picked it up for a reasonably low price. I believe the amount was in and around 19,000 dollars; much less than he might have had to drop had he bought himself a newer model.

Toyota Prius Hybrid

I purchased a 2009 Toyota Prius in July and I must say that thus far I am quite pleased. I was unsure about used hybrid cars but the more I own it, the more I like it. I was actually looking into one of the hybrid trucks but I’m glad I went with the Prius.

The gas mileage, of course, is the primary benefit of owning one of these cars. Mine tends to average around 49.5 MPG, even with mostly city driving. When I purchased the Prius, I wasn’t expecting much pick-up. After all, it only has a 4-cylindar engine; I figured the trade-off for gas mileage was beneficial. As it turns out, though, there really isn’t much of a trade-off at all. When I step on that accelerator, it definitely takes off.

The Prius definitely holds its own if you’re the type who likes to gun it taking off from a stoplight. If you are that type, though, you won’t get very nice mileage (speaking comparatively, of course). Heavy acceleration will lower it noticeably – not a whole lot, but usually around a couple MPGs. Without a doubt, though, it’s still a lot better than 99 percent of everything else on the road.

The Prius has a nice, bright touchscreen built into the center control panel. This is the screen the optional GPS navigation system uses as a display. Without the GPS, it displays climate controls, audio controls, and a few other miscellaneous goodies. When it’s not displaying controls, it shows either a live diagram of the hybrid system or a bar graph of your recent gas mileage. Upon purchasing the car, you will stare at these diagrams constantly, because they’re really quite fascinating. I can attest to the fact that over time, though, the fascination quickly wears off. The standard stereo equipment in the Prius is really quite good. I don’t consider myself discerning enough to be a true audiophile, but the Prius can definitely deliver some rich sounds. The bass can overwhelm a bit at times, but the bass and treble levels are customizable via the touchscreen. Seating is reasonably comfortable, though not remarkably so. The front seats are more comfortable for long road trips than is the back seat, as is the case with most mid-size cars.

Lastly, it’s amazingly quiet. When I’m pulling into my driveway, I don’t hear the car itself at all. There’s a pretty usual amount of road noise on the highway, of course, just because of the speed, but the car itself rarely makes much noise at all (Though if you accelerate quickly, you can hear the engine kicking in). Overall, a great vehicle. You will definitely be impressed with the gas mileage, and even besides that, it’s a pretty great car.

BMW Hybrid

bmw hybrid 2012

German Engineering Brilliance and Elegance fitted with Revolutionary Hybrid Technology, A combination of Style and Performance

Joining the number of Car manufacturers that have been concerned for the growing demand for environment friendly cars, German car manufacturing giant BMW has announced that they too would soon be producing and selling Hybrid cars. If you’re looking at used hybrid cars, within the next four years, BMW will be providing its own version of the phenomenal and popular hybrid car.

Knowing the many innovations and excellent qualities BMW has contributed to the motor world, we can be sure that this would be another automotive engineering breakthrough that would set the par others would follow.

Hybrid Car Myths

If you are thinking about used hybrid cars, you may be hearing quite a bit of “talk.” Some people think the hybrid car is the best thing on the market. Some people say it’ll just pass. Other people say they think they can save a lot of money, but you’re not sure it’s really worth it. What’s the truth, and how do you separate myth from fact with all of the stuff that is being thrown at you?

Below, you can read and understand the common hybrid car myths.

Hybrid cars are the same as electric cars

This is not true because hybrid cars are fuel-powered for the most part. They have what are called battery assists. The assist is powered by a nickel-metal hydride battery pack that is rechargeable.

You are guaranteed to save money with a hybrid car

If you are doing city driving, you may save gas and you may not. The same goes for highway driving. There are just many different factors. It has been said that if everyone bought hybrid cars, the gas consumption would decrease by only 10%. That’s not a very big difference.

A hybrid cars battery can run out

A hybrid car’s battery should not run out while you are driving it. The engine in a hybrid car does not idle when stopped (at a red light for instance.) What does it do instead? It recharges its battery. So there’s no need to worry about a hybrid car stopping you.

The hybrid cars rechargeable battery only lasts for 2 years

A hybrid car certainly would not be worth purchasing if this was the case. A hybrid car’s rechargeable batteries usually come with an eight-year warranty.

If I run out of gas, I can keep driving on the hybrid car battery

Keep in mind, a hybrid car’s battery is an assist. That means that hybrid car’s still run on fuel. After you run out of gas, the battery may keep the car running for just a little while. However, the car will stop very soon.

Hybrid cars will soon put conventional car sellers out of business

This probably won’t happen anytime soon. The reason for the delay has to do with the how much a hybrid cars. Many people simply can’t afford one. Also, people just aren’t too sure whether they will really save money on hybrid cars. Therefore, they are slow to join the rush of people who want a hybrid car.

Hybrid cars will only save you about 88 dollars a year

I did hear something on the news about this once, but it may not be true. If there’s something you really want though, and there’s a lot of smoke surrounding it, you simply have to start digging and do some of your own research.

There are many different models of hybrid cars, and many different manufacturers make them. This means that there may be many more variables involved than the ones discussed here. You can even try buying a used hybrid through a cash for clunker program. A hybrid car may help you, and it may not, but the final decision is up to you.

Can We Afford A Hybrid Vehicle?

Hybrid cars and trucks are starting to roll off the assembly line at an unbelievable rate now that the big three automakers of America are realizing their mistakes of the past thirty plus years. They should have been working on alternative fuel efficient vehicles before they came close to bankruptcy in the latter part of 2008. A lot of people are looking into used hybrid cars as a way to purchase one less inexpensively.

What else would one expect though from an industry that has made millions and experienced the popularity of the SUVs and the pickup trucks. Why design eco friendly cars that runs on a different power source when the ones that they are building are selling like hotcakes?

It’s now time for the big three to start rolling out the hybrid vehicles. These vehicles are going to increase the fuel efficiency of the same models by about 40%. I’m sure they can do a lot better than that, but its a start. Which is something that’s been overdue for many years.

General Motors and Ford have been saying that they have the hybrid vehicles available in the same popular models that everyone has been buying for the last few years.

The question is though, Is this a little too late? The economy has taken a beaten in the last year and who really knows how long we’ll be in this situation. Hybrid vehicles cost more than the conventional models, but compared to how much you’ll save over the years on gas, it well worth it. Unfortunately people may not have the means to buy a new vehicle for  some time and who knows if the American automakers can make it until the economy turns around.

Another question to ask is if no one is buying the hybrid vehicles over the next two years, are they going to think that no one wants them or are they going to think that it’s the condition of the economy. Will they stop making them because of the lack of sales?

We’ll just have to wait and see, but if you are going to buy a used vehicle, you might want to look at these used hybrid models.