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A single tank of gas: isn't that then mostly a matter of the size of the tank? My friend with his Jeep can go very far, no issues, but filling the tank costs an

by Xixi 6y ago

A single tank of gas: isn't that then mostly a matter of the size of the tank? My friend with his Jeep can go very far, no issues, but filling the tank costs an arm, a leg and a kidney. Gas consumption is horrible, it just has a huge tank. That said hybrid systems are basically KERS: they matter when slowing down (charging the battery instead of warming up brakes), and at very low to low speeds (better efficiency of the electric engine compared to a gasoline engine). I would not expect a trip on the highway without traffic to be better at all with a hybrid car than with a gasoline car.

dragonwriter 6y ago
> I would not expect a trip on the highway without traffic to be better at all with a hybrid car than with a gasoline car. Hybrid systems allow the gas engine to (essentially) always run at its ideal speed if it is running at all, storing extra energy when less is needed and drawing power from the battery when more is needed. On an idealized highway drive, with cruising speed at exactly the pure gas car engine’s ideal speed, with no variations due to turns, hills, traffic, etc., this is no benefit, but real highway driving tends to differ from this ideal enough that hybrid cars have benefits even in freeway driving.
- freeone3000 6y ago
  This is true of a second-generation hybrid, like the BMW i3 (with range extender). A first-gen hybrid, which is most hybrids (including the Infiniti QX60, the BMW 3-series (not i), the Mercedes E-class) still power the wheels primarily with the gas engine, and only use the electric engine in certain reduced circumstances. With the gas engine directly driving the wheels, you don't get a lot of benefit from the hybrid except in start-stop conditions.
  - dragonwriter 6y ago
    The first-gen/second-gen language is a bit odd. More common would be “mild” vs. “full” hybrid, but most hybrid cars sold, in the US at least, are full hybrids (what you call “second-generation” hybrids); Toyota Prius nameplates alone account for almost half of all hybrids that have been sold in the US, and all of those are full hybrids.) It may be that mild hybrids dominate if you are counting individual models, but certainly not if you are counting vehicles.
csunbird 6y ago
But, within Europe, most of the driving is done under 50km/h and within the cities, where hybrids shine. I agree that hybrids are a stupid solution, a full EV is way to go, but, for example, there are only two superchargers for Tesla in whole Berlin, which has almost 4 million population. The infrastructure has to be improved and the batteries needs to get larger or more efficient, because I find stopping every 2hrs to charge your car for 30 minutes stupid. Hybrids are just a band-aid solution until we have proper (and cheap) EVs.
- ants_a 6y ago
  Fast charging is not really needed in cities where daily driving distances comfortably fit into almost all EV-s ranges. What is needed is parking space in residential areas with access to Type2 charging.
  - Xixi 6y ago
    Access to a parking space with charging, any kind of charging, is the reason I don't own an EV yet. Japan is really lagging behind here: the building I live in was finished in March 2020, it's not even one year old, and there's no way to charge an EV car in the parking spots!

by Xixi 6y ago

dragonwriter 6y ago

> I would not expect a trip on the highway without traffic to be better at all with a hybrid car than with a gasoline car. Hybrid systems allow the gas engine to (essentially) always run at its ideal speed if it is running at all, storing extra energy when less is needed and drawing power from the battery when more is needed. On an idealized highway drive, with cruising speed at exactly the pure gas car engine’s ideal speed, with no variations due to turns, hills, traffic, etc., this is no benefit, but real highway driving tends to differ from this ideal enough that hybrid cars have benefits even in freeway driving.

freeone3000 6y ago
This is true of a second-generation hybrid, like the BMW i3 (with range extender). A first-gen hybrid, which is most hybrids (including the Infiniti QX60, the BMW 3-series (not i), the Mercedes E-class) still power the wheels primarily with the gas engine, and only use the electric engine in certain reduced circumstances. With the gas engine directly driving the wheels, you don't get a lot of benefit from the hybrid except in start-stop conditions.
- dragonwriter 6y ago
  The first-gen/second-gen language is a bit odd. More common would be “mild” vs. “full” hybrid, but most hybrid cars sold, in the US at least, are full hybrids (what you call “second-generation” hybrids); Toyota Prius nameplates alone account for almost half of all hybrids that have been sold in the US, and all of those are full hybrids.) It may be that mild hybrids dominate if you are counting individual models, but certainly not if you are counting vehicles.

csunbird 6y ago

But, within Europe, most of the driving is done under 50km/h and within the cities, where hybrids shine. I agree that hybrids are a stupid solution, a full EV is way to go, but, for example, there are only two superchargers for Tesla in whole Berlin, which has almost 4 million population. The infrastructure has to be improved and the batteries needs to get larger or more efficient, because I find stopping every 2hrs to charge your car for 30 minutes stupid. Hybrids are just a band-aid solution until we have proper (and cheap) EVs.

ants_a 6y ago
Fast charging is not really needed in cities where daily driving distances comfortably fit into almost all EV-s ranges. What is needed is parking space in residential areas with access to Type2 charging.
- Xixi 6y ago
  Access to a parking space with charging, any kind of charging, is the reason I don't own an EV yet. Japan is really lagging behind here: the building I live in was finished in March 2020, it's not even one year old, and there's no way to charge an EV car in the parking spots!