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Hey, I've heard that claim that hybrids are worse for the environment than pure internal combustion engines. Honestly I don't see how that's possible and I've

by 3am 15y ago

Hey, I've heard that claim that hybrids are worse for the environment than pure internal combustion engines. Honestly I don't see how that's possible and I've never seen read anything that supports it. But I'm not an expert - do you have a source or can you explain it?

quantumhobbit 15y ago
Must be referring to the manufacture of the hybrids batteries. I think there was concern a while back they caused a lot of pollution. I never heard anything definitive one way or the other.
sounds 15y ago
Here are some places to start. You really need to research to come to a solid conclusion (your own conclusion). http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090419130916AAYkRdW http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090419130916AA... http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071028204335AAyBECY http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071028204335AA... http://www.hybridcars.com/battery-toxicity.html http://www.hybridcars.com/battery-toxicity.html
- 3am 15y ago
  I did google it already (and found some of those links, though I appreciate you passing them along). I know a fair amount about the subject matter, I was just looking for a real expert (maybe an electric/chemical/industrial engineer that worked in the area) here, in case my conclusions were incorrect. The internet is great and all, but it breeds altogether too many fake wikipedia SMEs :)
  - sounds 15y ago
    I have engineering training. But to really tell you whether the Prius is an improvement or not over a non-hybrid Corolla -- I'd need engineering data Toyota isn't going to release. And just narrowing it to that comparison is going to turn off a lot of people.
steins 15y ago
hey.. I haven't done extensive research, but I have read several articles claiming that saying that mining the materials that go into batteries is a very very dirty process and pollutes the entire area around the mining operation, and the energy cost of producing a battery is very high. I have a feeling that once the technology has been around for awhile it will get cleaner, but who knows... I would love to know more if anyone else has done more research.
- tzs 15y ago
  On the other hand, a small number of fixed pollution sources can be better overall for the environment than a large number of mobile sites spread all over, even if the former emit more total pollution.

by 3am 15y ago

quantumhobbit 15y ago

Must be referring to the manufacture of the hybrids batteries. I think there was concern a while back they caused a lot of pollution. I never heard anything definitive one way or the other.

sounds 15y ago

Here are some places to start. You really need to research to come to a solid conclusion (your own conclusion). http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090419130916AAYkRdW http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090419130916AA... http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071028204335AAyBECY http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071028204335AA... http://www.hybridcars.com/battery-toxicity.html http://www.hybridcars.com/battery-toxicity.html

3am 15y ago
I did google it already (and found some of those links, though I appreciate you passing them along). I know a fair amount about the subject matter, I was just looking for a real expert (maybe an electric/chemical/industrial engineer that worked in the area) here, in case my conclusions were incorrect. The internet is great and all, but it breeds altogether too many fake wikipedia SMEs :)
- sounds 15y ago
  I have engineering training. But to really tell you whether the Prius is an improvement or not over a non-hybrid Corolla -- I'd need engineering data Toyota isn't going to release. And just narrowing it to that comparison is going to turn off a lot of people.

steins 15y ago

hey.. I haven't done extensive research, but I have read several articles claiming that saying that mining the materials that go into batteries is a very very dirty process and pollutes the entire area around the mining operation, and the energy cost of producing a battery is very high. I have a feeling that once the technology has been around for awhile it will get cleaner, but who knows... I would love to know more if anyone else has done more research.

tzs 15y ago
On the other hand, a small number of fixed pollution sources can be better overall for the environment than a large number of mobile sites spread all over, even if the former emit more total pollution.