Hybrid Cars
Hybrid Cars
I have always wondered what Hybrid cars were all about. Especially because over the past couple of years gas prices have been at record highs. I knew that there were such things as electric cars but until this last year or so I have only seen the wealthy be able to afford to drive them. And from what I had heard about Hybrid cars was that they were over priced, small, and not so attractive cars. No wonder nobody owns them. Now I am starting to see them more often and they aren't as bad as everyone had said. For this exploratory essay I first wanted to figure out what a hybrid car was and how it compared to regular cars. I wanted to find out everything that there is to know about them. I wanted to research the hybrid as if I wanted to buy it, which I do. First off in my search I wanted to figure out what exactly a hybrid car was and how it worked. There are two configurations for hybrid cars. The first configuration uses a gasoline engine to run a generator. The generator supplies electricity to the motor, which drives the wheels, which allows the gasoline engine to run constantly while achieving optimum fuel efficiency. This then minimizes emissions owing to incomplete combustion. A hybrid car with parallel configuration uses both an engine and a motor to drive the wheels depending on driving conditions (1). Hybrid cars use both gas and electric. The gasoline engine is the primary source of power, while the electric motor is used at low speeds. Emissions levels are reduced because the gasoline engine shuts off at low speeds. An additional benefit of the parallel configuration is that no outside source of electric power is required because the engine itself generates the required electricity(How Stuff). As I was searching on the internet; I also had in mind to find out if everything I had been told about hybrid cars was true. Things like they are expensive to repair, you have to replace the battery all the time, or that they aren't very safe.
I have always wondered what Hybrid cars were all about. Especially because over the past couple of years gas prices have been at record highs. I knew that there were such things as electric cars but until this last year or so I have only seen the wealthy be able to afford to drive them. And from what I had heard about Hybrid cars was that they were over priced, small, and not so attractive cars. No wonder nobody owns them. Now I am starting to see them more often and they aren't as bad as everyone had said. For this exploratory essay I first wanted to figure out what a hybrid car was and how it compared to regular cars. I wanted to find out everything that there is to know about them. I wanted to research the hybrid as if I wanted to buy it, which I do. First off in my search I wanted to figure out what exactly a hybrid car was and how it worked. There are two configurations for hybrid cars. The first configuration uses a gasoline engine to run a generator. The generator supplies electricity to the motor, which drives the wheels, which allows the gasoline engine to run constantly while achieving optimum fuel efficiency. This then minimizes emissions owing to incomplete combustion. A hybrid car with parallel configuration uses both an engine and a motor to drive the wheels depending on driving conditions (1). Hybrid cars use both gas and electric. The gasoline engine is the primary source of power, while the electric motor is used at low speeds. Emissions levels are reduced because the gasoline engine shuts off at low speeds. An additional benefit of the parallel configuration is that no outside source of electric power is required because the engine itself generates the required electricity(How Stuff). As I was searching on the internet; I also had in mind to find out if everything I had been told about hybrid cars was true. Things like they are expensive to repair, you have to replace the battery all the time, or that they aren't very safe.