hybrid - How do they work?

[GaryM]

I bought my '04 Prius because I live 50 miles each way from work and wanted to be able to drive back and forth without going broke.

yes, it get's good fuel economy, usually in the 48 MPG range, better if I drive slower. Took a trip yesterday and averaged 51 for about a 125 mile RT.

It's been a great car for me, only $600 in repairs for 185K miles. So I certainly wanted to get another one.

Not saving the planet, at least not too much of it. Not a tree hugger either. Buy what suits you best.

 

[txdon]

And that is how it should be. You buy a car because it meets your needs. I really don't see why they bought the car. They are driving mainly highway miles so the battery is not in play.
Later,
Dan

Well, actually you are partially right - the best gas milage is in the city, but it only drops a few mpg on the highway. When the highway is hilly, and you go down hill, the batteries charge, and when you go up hill extra power comes from the battery motor that you just charged.

 

[dmccarty]

Well, actually you are partially right - the best gas milage is in the city, but it only drops a few mpg on the highway. When the highway is hilly, and you go down hill, the batteries charge, and when you go up hill extra power comes from the battery motor that you just charged.

I should have worded my statement a bit different. If one is driving mostly/mainly on the highway I don't see how paying extra for a hybrid vs a similar econo car make money sense. In the city I would think that the hybrid make money sense.

The battery charges when going down the hill even though the engine is running? I take it the car must have some sort of cruise control that charges the battery yet prevents the battery charging from slowing the car from X mph? Pretty nifty.

I would be more nifty if you could run solar panels to create power which one could use to run the car. I keep reading that the price per PV watt was down to $2 per watt. And that it should be $1 per watt soon. I looked at some installed cost of say a 6,000 watt system...

The ball park prices I was seeing on the web had an installed cost of $8-9 per watt! 8*6,000 is a great big pile of money. Even $4 per watt times 6,000 is a big pile of money.

I still don't trust the batteries in the hybrid. The warranties are interesting but if the battery fails right after the end of the warranty one is out of a pile of money. Do they prorate the batteries after the warranty has ended?

Later,
Dan

 

[Travelover]

.......................<snip> I still don't trust the batteries in the hybrid. The warranties are interesting but if the battery fails right after the end of the warranty one is out of a pile of money. ....<snip>.......

I don't see what the problem is. If you are worried about the battery life, don't buy a hybrid and quit worrying about those that have purchased one. Maybe they just like having something unique in the same way that many of of us own tractors that don't really "pay for themselves".

Anyone ever own a boat??

 

[Heywood Jannockitov]

I'd be more concerned about unforseen repair costs due to unanticipated damage or wear and tear on ridiculously expensive electrical components.

I read a long-term review where a journalist took a Prius to the cottage and scuffed the undercarriage of the car on the high crown of the cottage road, damaging the casing on the main bus cable that runs from the battery pack to the electric motor.

The cost to replace the damaged cable? $3000.00

 

[Highbeam]

The TDI goes "vroom vroom" and the prius goes "Ahhhhhhhhh", I love that commercial and I am glad to see that VW is finally announcing the superiority. Until there is a plug in hybrid or basicly an electric car with a gas generator backup then the TDI is the winner IMO.

 

[Heywood Jannockitov]

Until there is a plug in hybrid or basicly an electric car with a gas generator backup then the TDI is the winner IMO.

I second that

 

[dmccarty]

I don't see what the problem is. If you are worried about the battery life, don't buy a hybrid and quit worrying about those that have purchased one. Maybe they just like having something unique in the same way that many of of us own tractors that don't really "pay for themselves".

Well, the subject of this thread is how do hybrids work. We have some TBNers who own hybrids who are sharing some interesting information from real experience not from market BS. I still don't trust the batteries but that does not mean I'm not interested in the technology. And its possible that my concerns about the battery life are not warranted, pun intended. I have NEVER said that someone should not buy a hybrid. If they want it and have the money, buy one and have fun.

I buy cars and tractors to serve a function at a given price. The information I have read over the years says that hybrids cost more money for a comparable vehicle due to the battery and customer demand. Demand will go up and down with the market. But if the technology of the battery is such that it is reliable and does not have to replaced during a long time period of say 8-10 years then for me hybrids get interesting.

Later,
Dan

 

[GaryM]

I'm a member of two Prius/Hybrid discussion boards. I'd say that discussions/laments about battery failure and replacement are most noticed by their absence.

The traction battery in the Prius consists of set of individual cells. The bad cell or cells can be replaced on an individual basis, assuming the failure was not caused by mechanical damage in a crash of course.

I've had to make two repairs on mine. One was an electrically driven coolant pump failure at about 110K. I'd call that was a hybrid connected failure as all the other vehicles I'm familiar with don't have electric coolant pumps. This particular pump cools the electronic inverter that raises the battery voltage to the 500V that the system uses.

The other repair was a right front wheel bearing that wore out. Oh, I also replaced the 12V auxiliary battery because it was weak, but had not failed yet.

On the other hand I've spent much more on repairs to my 97 Ford Expedition, including several replacement spark coils and at least two batteries. Not to mention shocks and brakes. And that's with less than 119K miles.

So I'm happy with my Prius and looking forward to getting the new one when it shows up.

 

[Heywood Jannockitov]

I guess you are hoping the coolant pump failure hasn't shortened the life of the inverter, and it lasts until you get rid of the current (no pun intended) car.
That inverter is a $2000.00 item. The Prius has too many expensive hybrid related components that, if any fail, will have instantly negated any fuel efficiency gains.