Hybrid Car Comparisons For 2007 - Buy A Hybrid Save The Planet?

For the past couple -three years, there has been much buzz going on about Hybrid Cars and the many benefits they seem to offer. It seems that Hybrid Cars may be the solution to both major problems we face in the United States today when it comes to transportation...

What are those two problems facing the United States when it comes to transportation?

1. Surging Oil Prices

2. Concern about the environment

So, how do you know which hybrid car to buy?

Compare your options and the benefits.

Owning a Hybrid car will offer you many, many benefits.

To name a few hybrid benefits:

1. Tax breaks by many states and Federal Government
2. Fuel cost savings - Hybrids use less fuel
3. Hybrid Cars are better for the environment producing less emissions

For these reasons and the never ending surge of gas pump prices, hybrid cars have experienced a sharp increase in sales.

More and more car manufacturers are joining the hybrid vehicle arena with their own versions. Both the old stand by companies that have been around for ever as well as many new "green car" companies are popping up to enter into the Hybrid Car Revolution. This is wonderful for those of you who are planning to buy a hybrid car, you now have so many choices it's almost unbelievable, that?s why you really need to compare hybrid cars to see which one would fit perfectly with your needs.

In this article we will only compare two of the worlds leading hybrid car manufactures, the Japanese giant's Toyota and Honda.

Toyota and Honda are credited with producing many top innovations of hybrid technology and their hybrid cars are the most popular, most awarded hybrid vehicles on the hybrid market today.

Here, in this article we will compare the hybrid cars they are offering for 2007 year, these will include the Honda Accord Hybrid, Honda Civic Hybrid, Lexus GS 450H, Toyota Camry Hybrid and the Toyota Prius.

Their fuel efficiency can be compared through their average consumption per mile in different situations, like; City Driving ? where the traffic is constantly stopping, Highway Driving ? where the engine can freely operate at maximum level and their combined average usage.

Miles Per Gallon and Average Used Per Gallon

• Honda Accord Hybrid ? 28 MPG (city), 35 MPG (Highway) and 31 MPG (Combined Average)
• Honda Civic - 49 MPG (city), 51 MPG (Highway) and 50 MPG (Combined Average)
• Lexus GS 450H - 25 MPG (city), 28 MPG (Highway) and 26 MPG (Combined Average)
• Toyota Camry Hybrid - 40 MPG (city), 38 MPG (Highway) and 39 MPG (Combined Average)
• Toyota Prius - 60 MPG (city), 51 MPG (Highway) and 55 MPG (Combined Average)

Before you just go out and pick the one with the highest MPG average, you need to consider something else.

Fuel type.

All of these vehicles use regular gasoline except for the Lexus which uses Premium Gasoline that is much pricier per gallon.

You also need to compare the size class of each hybrid car as well as the engine size and liters of the engine.

• Accord Hybrid is a midsize car with a 3 liter - 6 cylinder engine.
• Civic Hybrid is a compact car with a 1.3 liter ? 4 cylinder engine.
• Lexus GS 450H is another compact car with a 3.5 liter ? 6 cylinder engine.
• Toyota Camry Hybrid is a midsize sedan equipped with a 2.4 liter ? 4 cylinder engine
• Toyota Prius is a compact car with a 1.5 liter ? 4 cylinder engine.

The bigger the car and the more powerful the engine is, the more fuel will be consumed. Considering all these aspects and doing your homework can lead to a fantastic hybrid vehicle purchase.

You have to put all of the considerations on the table when searching for the best hybrid to buy.

So, before you rush right out an get that shiny new hybrid car, compare first and do your homework. Find the one that will suit your needs and fit your personality best and you will be on your way to helping save the environment as well as saving yourself some money on fuel.

Frederick Musser is the owner of e85 Tips. A site dedicated to informing the world about alternative fuels and energy and their many benefits.

For more information on e85 and alternative fuels please visit e85Tips.com

Toyota Camry Hybrid Car Review

In an effort to boost the lagging sales that have been in force since the gas prices went through the roof most of the auto makers in the world are looking for ways to improve gas mileage. This is the main reason why so many of the largest car makers are rolling out models that are hybrid versions of their existing models. This is directly targeted at the consumers who are having a hard time dealing with the stress and strain of the increased gas price and are thereby buying fewer cars. In the past three years car sales have dropped an amazing forty percent which is a testament to the effect that the gas prices have had on the sales and the total industry. Toyota has been in the lead with the hybrid vehicles thus far. Using the technology that they claimed to have created, they are turning the entire line of models they offer into hybrids and this tactic has helped them to boost sales by about thirty percent world wide.

The Toyota Camry is one of the more popular models that this company has produced in its class. The Camry has always been a bit more sporty then the rest of the line and that has appealed to a much broader market then the other models which were aimed at the aging baby boomers and their children. Still the Camry has also been an important family car in most cases, and the four door style has seen a definite jump in sales since the hybrid version was released. It is important to note that companies like Toyota did not see the brunt of the sales down fall since they have always produced fuel efficient vehicles since they were invented. They did however see enough of a drop that they saw fit to bring about the hybrid technology which has revolutionized the entire auto making industry.

The Toyota Camry hybrid is nothing short of amazing. Using the multiple electric motors that has been so useful they have brought in a new day in driving. The main accessories, like power steering and air conditioning, are all run from the electric motors, which means the car can run as all electric rather than having to run the car on gas. One of the nicer perks is the self charging batteries. The batteries start to become recharged every time the car decelerates and can maintain enough power to travel over three hundred miles without stopping for recharging.

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The Hybrid Battery Car Plugs In

The future of the hybrid battery car is so bright you have to wear shades. Some would say the interest in the plug in hybrid is down right electrifying.

The hybrid battery car got a huge boost when President Bush featured it in a speech on his energy policy. It's part of the plan to replace over three-quarters of Mideast oil imports by the year 2025.

The location the President chose to give the speech is also significant. He spoke at Johnson Controls, a Milwaukee auto parts company that is making lithium-ion battery cells for the next generation of the hybrid battery car.

The race for hybrid technologies continues as the U.S. Energy Department pushes for hydrogen fuel cells to replace gasoline in cars. The department has targeted the year 2024 as a time when those fuel cells will be widely used in hybrid vehicles of all kinds.

There are really two forces driving the development of hybrid technologies. Number one is the uncertain Mideast sources of fossil fuels. The other is the cost per barrel of oil. As the cost of oil increases the race for information on hybrid cars becomes even more important.

Because hydrogen fuel is very expensive to transport some predict that the hybrid battery and ethanol technologies will precede any hybrid fuel based on hydrogen.

Government support means that plug in hybrid cars are on the horizon. These vehicles would get a battery charge from an ordinary electric outlet. Lithium-ion batteries will make this possible. These batteries will be large versions of the lithium-ion battery you use in your cell phone. You could be driving a plug-in hybrid by the year 2010.

The energy density of lithium-ion is typically twice that of the standard nickel-cadmium battery. There is even a growing potential for higher energy densities with these power source.

Lithium-ion is a low maintenance battery, an advantage that most other battery types can't match. Self-discharge is less than half compared to nickel-cadmium, making lithium-ion well suited for modern fuel gauge applications. They pose no threat to the environment for lithium-ion cells cause little harm when discarded.

Like most hybrid technologies, this one has its draw backs. Chief among them is that the lithium-ion batteries are fragile and require a protection circuit to maintain safe operation. All short comings are expected to be overcome as research and development continue.

To be successful hybrid fuel technologies must include petroleum alternatives. Right now ethanol would lessen the need for oil if mixed with gasoline. Here in the U.S we already make nearly 4 billion gallons of ethanol from corn. The irony is that a great deal of energy is needed to manufacture ethanol and that energy often comes from fossil fuel and natural gas.

Ethanol is an alcohol-based alternative fuel that is produced by fermenting and distilling starch crops that have been converted into simple sugars. Feed stocks for this fuel include corn, barley, and wheat.

Ethanol has a better chance of surviving as an important hybrid fuel when it is made from "cellulosic biomass" such as trees and grasses. These produce a hybrid fuel called bioethanol. Ethanol is used to increase octane and improve the emissions quality of gasoline.

Ethanol is blended with gasoline to create E85, a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline. E85 and blends with even higher concentrations of ethanol qualify as alternative fuels under the Energy Policy Act. Vehicles that run on E85 are called flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs) and can currently be purchased from several vehicle manufacturers.

There will be one surviving hybrid fuel in the future. What is your guess on which it will be? Or are there some surprise hybrid technologies in our future?

Mark Walters follows hybrid technologies and recommends that you learn more about the Hybrid Battery Car Here.