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I was reading some
AutoWeek forum entries this morning about hybrid
cars when I realized that most hybrid critics are not
only narrow-minded, but they have a complete lack of
vision.
How does the quote go, "There is only one constant in
the universe, change." I guess the Buddhists call it
impermanence, or the idea that in 100 years, everyone that
exists today will be gone, yet the world will go on, it
will just be different because change is constant.
If hybrid critics were leading the world for the last 100
years, the world would still be riding horse and buggy.
Fortunately, change is inevitable.
But back to the point. The two main criticisms of hybrids
are 1.) They aren't as fuel efficient as the EPA rates
them, and 2.) They don't save money.
It is true that hybrid vehicles aren't as efficient as the
EPA rates them. All vehicles aren't as efficient as the
EPA rates them. So what's the point?
Additionally, individual driving habits have a HUGE affect
on fuel efficiency - in both hybrids and conventional
vehicles. Even a standard Toyota Highlander can achieve
better than average fuel efficiency by adjusting driving
habits. Nonetheless, the Highlander
hybrid or Escape
hybrid can achieve much larger increases in fuel
efficiency by adjusting driving habits compared to their
conventional versions.
Shouldn't hybrids just be more fuel efficient?
Well, they are. For the average driver, hybrid technology
will achieve better fuel efficiency than a standard
vehicle, especially in city driving. And if you adjust
your driving habits, you can significantly increase a
hybrid's fuel efficiency performance.
Since most drivers of hybrids are concerned with saving
fuel, hybrid technology offers an excellent tool for them
to meet their goals.
Testers from AutoWeek, etc., aren't concerned with the
fuel efficiency capabilities of hybrids, they are
concerned with proving that hybrids don't achieve EPA
predictions.
If you don't care about fuel efficiency, well, then a
hybrid isn't for you. If you aren't going to use a tool
correctly, then it probably is best not to use it. If you
want to put a screw in the wall, a hammer can do the job,
but it won't do it as well as a screwdriver because the
screwdriver is a better tool for the job.
For those drivers seeking to achieve the greatest fuel
efficiency, many hybrid vehicles are by far the best tools
available, but you still have to use the tool correctly to
achieve maximum performance.
Why is that so hard for critics to get? Not everyone has
to stroke their ego by driving the biggest or the fastest
vehicle.
Additionally, why are critics so concerned with hybrid
performance anyway? If they are so concerned with fuel
efficiency, why are they worried that a Prius
might achieve 45 mpg, rather than 60 mpg? Shouldn't they
be more concerned with why a Dodge Durango is only getting
10 mpg instead of 14 mpg? I mean, lets get real.
Regarding the costs of hybrid technology, critics have a
point, but so what?
People pay more for the right gas-guzzle obscene amounts
of foreign oil but somehow that's cost effective in the
eyes of these critics - that's worth the extra money?
Yet, choosing to spend extra money to help reduce foreign
oil dependency and to help save the environment isn't
justified. Please!
Well, America better wake up. Global warming is real -
whether it is caused by man or by nature - and the
majority of the world is beginning to take this threat
quite seriously. Well, except for America, and the world
is becoming much angrier with America for this position.
We can continue to pretend like the opinions of the rest
of the world don't matter in our ever-more-interconnected
world, but we'll do so at our peril, but I digress.
Ultimately, many hybrid owners can recover the costs of
their vehicle with intelligent driving. And if not, how do
you put a cost on clean air and a cleaner environment?
If you don't care about clean air and a healthy
environment, then quite frankly, you are the problem, not
the driver of a hybrid car. Any help is still help and
changing direction always requires leaders.
Still, many hybrid vehicle drivers aren't just buying a
hybrid to save money, or just to reduce foreign oil
dependency, or just to clean the environment. Many are
making an investment in the future.
While many hybrid vehicle drivers could drive any vehicle
they want, they choose to buy a hybrid to help fund the
development of new, cheaper generations of hybrids.
Already, experimental hybrid vehicles demonstrate that the
potential of hybrid technology is barely being tapped.
Plug-in Prius hybrids can easily achieve more than 80 mpg,
the Enigma
diesel hybrid achieves 80 mpg, yet can go from 0 to 60
in 4.3 seconds, and other experimental
hybrids have achieved more than 100 - even 200 - miles
per gallon.
Today's hybrid buyers are helping to make tomorrow's
hybrid technology more fuel efficient, more powerful, and cheaper.
Perhaps another technology will come along and hybrid
technology won't be needed. Or, perhaps it will be hybrid
technology that finally makes fuel cell vehicles
realistic. Rather than waiting and continuing to
gas-guzzle, however, hybrid buyers are taking action
because they believe a better tomorrow starts today.
Apparently, hybrid critics would rather just keep talking
and hammering screws into the wall as they wait for
tomorrow.
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