Contemplating the purchase of a hybrid car? Then you will be noticing a lot of comment and some strong views on the rights and wrongs of doing so. Some people believe that the hybrid car is the latest and greatest innovation in the auto market. Others feel it is just a passing phase. Some claim they can save a lot of money, but you're skeptical and wonder whether it's really worth it. So how do you find the truth? How do you recognise the true benefits of a hybrid car amongst the smokescreen of uninformed opinion and hysterical hype that surrounds the subject of hybrid cars? Hopefully the following will give you a reasonable chance of separating fact from fiction and help eliminate the more common hybrid car myths.
Myth one: Hybrid cars are another name for electric cars
Untrue! Hybrid cars are mainly gas fuelled and are equipped with conventional engines fitted with battery assists. The battery assist assembly provides a means of using power from rechargeable nickel-metal hydride battery pack.
Myth two: A hybrid car always saves you money compared to a conventional gas fuelled model
This depends upon circumstances. If you only drive in city or urban areas you may or may not save on fuel costs. Similarly the outcome for distance or highway driving is variable and dependent on the way a person drives as much as a multitude of outside factors. Somewhere it has been reported that if the whole population converted to driving overall fuel consumption would drop by approximately 10%. I will leave you to decide whether that is a significant number or whether greater savings could be achieved in other ways.
Myth three: A hybrid cars battery will run out
Not true in normal use! The battery in a hybrid car does not run down in normal use like (say) a torch battery. This is because a hybrid car differs from a conventional car in that when stationary for any reason, the engine does not idle but continues to provide power. This power is used to recharge its battery during the stationary period and thus ensures that the battery is kept near fully charged. Hence in normal use a discharged battery should never be a problem in a hybrid car.
Myth four: The rechargeable battery in a hybrid car will need to be replaced every 2 years
Untrue: If this were the case, no hybrid car would ever be sold. Auto manufacturers faith in the longevity of hybrid car rechargeable batteries is confirmed by the fact that most come with at least an eight year guarantee.
Myth five: A hybrid car rechargeable battery will keep my car going after I run out of gas
Not true for practical purposes. This shows only partial knowledge of the workings of a hybrid car. Remember, a hybrid car's battery is an assist. Therefore a hybrid car's main motive power comes from gas in the tank. When you run out of fuel, charge from the battery may keep the car running for just a little while, but the drain will be enormous and the car will very quickly come to a halt with no fuel and a flat battery!
Myth six: the advent of hybrid cars will cause conventional car sellers to go out of business
Very unlikely to be true and certainly will not happen overnight. Any general changeover to the use of hybrid cars will be dependent on a number of different factors. Current prices are still above conventional cars and some people will simply wait for the price to eventually drop as more cars are manufactured. This of course is a chicken and egg situation that is difficult to forecast. Further it is not yet clear whether people will actually save money with hybrid cars, nor how much will be saved. Therefore, they are slow to join the rush of people who want a hybrid car. Finally, at the right time for the industry, surely conventional car sellers will merely take on board the new hybrid car sales opportunity alongside conventional sales.
Myth seven: Hybrid cars will only save you about 88 dollars a year
This is a true myth, in that it is an impossible figure to argue about, either for or against. I believe it was once broadcast on some news station, but who knows whether it is right or wrong either in the specific or in the generality. As always in these cases, if you want to find out about some specifics about hybrid cars, and you want to cut through the fog surrounding the subject, you have to take the bull by the horns and research the hybrid car marketplace yourself. You will find a multitude of different models of hybrid car, and numerous different manufacturers at home and abroad. A hybrid car may be of benefit to you and it may not, but given the number of variables in the equation, the final decision must remain with you.
