Hybrid Cars Analysis

Hybrid Cars Analysis

Introduction

A hybrid car is a car that uses two or more power sources to run a car rather than one source as in normal vehicles. It usually consists of one or more electric motors combined with an internal combustion engine unusual from normal vehicles (Bitsche, 2004). The exhaust of the car is connected to an electrical generator which also acts as a motor, which then helps to charge batteries. These motors either work alternatively or can work together in a combination depending on how much power a car requires at that moment. The hybrid cars can be divided into two different types which include series and parallel. In a series hybrid vehicle, the vehicle has no mechanical connection and is totally dependent and driven on electric motor. On the contrary, a parallel hybrid car has an internal combustion engine and an electric motor which are both installed in a manner as to provide power to the vehicle together or individually. Reduced fuel consumption is one of the main advantages of the hybrid cars and this is one of the great advantages to consumers, especially in Third World countries where fuel is an expensive resource to consume (Shrivastava, 2008). This is the main objective of the creation of cars on the drive. Hybrid car was first developed by Porsche in the year 1990. Besides, the car is much more environmentally friendly due to the much lower emission of pollutants, including carbon dioxide.

Discussion

Hybrid cars have become a new 'in' thing nowadays. Most companies are working on and trying to switch to the production of hybrid cars. Hybrid cars and their different models will be discussed below and would be analyzed.

Toyota Prius

Toyota Prius has become one of the world's largest selling and successful hybrid cars (Taylor, 2006). It has a nickel metal hydride battery pack of 4.4kWh. Its fuel consumption in hybrid mode is 4.6 l/100 km and it costs 32000 US$. The electric mode of the car can travel only about 18km and if the battery runs out of energy, fuel consumption might increase to 5 liters per 100 km i.e. 47.04 miles per gallon.

Chevrolet Volt

However, Chevrolet Volt is another hybrid car which runs as Vauxhall and Opel in the Europe and Holden Volt in Australia. Volt has a lithium-ion battery pack of 16.5kWh. The fuel consumption of Volt in hybrid mode is 6.21/100km according to the EPA tests. The price of the Volt is 39,145 US$. The electric mode of the car can travel up to 21.8km. The car if compared to Toyota Prius is a bit expensive. Nevertheless, the car has a bigger battery pack and also has strong engine therefore needs more energy to run.

Nissan Leaf

Nissan leaf is one of the most popular Japanese hybrid cars (Ross, 2010). It has attracted more than sixty thousand buyers. Nissan hybrid was kind of a benchmark for all other hybrid cars at the start of the sale. Nissan Leaf has a lithium-ion battery pack of 24kWh which ...