Toyota hybrid cars, just a niche?

In a recent article by John Dinkel, Power to the People 2015, covering the engines of U.S. cars 10 years from now, there is an interesting quote. "Regarding consumer demand, Dave Hermance, executive engineer for environmental engineering at Toyota, says, "I think perhaps 5 percent of total U.S. vehicle sales by 2010 will be hybrids; by 2015, maybe 10 percent.""

While Toyota has been a big leader in the hybrid vehicle movement because of the Toyota Prius, perhaps their lead in hybrid cars, or more important, clean technologies isn't as clear.

Statements such as those by Hermance seem to imply that Toyota has no intention of making hybrid cars their conventional cars within the next decade or two.

Unlike choosing a DVD player, rather than a VCR, health implications are involved in this choice between vehicles. In my opinion, automakers shouldn't have a choice any longer.

This isn't about simple consumer demand anymore.

This is as much about National Security as it is about environmentalism.

Just today, following the horrible Tsunami in Asia, scientists are predicting even worse scenarios based upon global warming data and modeling.

Helping make America safer, right now, isn't that expensive. The Toyota Prius sticker price, of a $19,000.00, is a very fair price for the innovation provided. The Ford Escape hybrid proves that SUVs can be, at least, significantly more fuel-efficient.

And the Honda Accord hybrid proves not only that hybrids are significantly more efficient than their conventional cousins in terms of fuel-efficiency and pollution, but that they also outperform their cousins in speed and quickness.

While advanced gasoline engines, such as the Ford Focus PZEV can meet strict emission's standards, and cylinder deactivation can reduce fuel-efficiency by 20 percent, the combination of an Advanced Gasoline Engine and an electric motor, otherwise known as a hybrid powertrain, produce the greatest efficiency.

This combination creates cars today that can have a significant, positive impact on the environment tomorrow.

Anything less should be unacceptable, and anything less - considering the legacy of automobile pollution - should be considered negligence.

More hybrid vehicles.