Car and Driver PRO-HYBRID opinion piece
#1
Car and Driver PRO-HYBRID opinion piece
http://www.caranddriver.com/article....ticle_id=10260
Really a good read. Plus, he reports on a test drive of an rx400h in MY NECK OF THE WOODS, Flagstaff to Phoenix, and how the engine cut off at 80 MPH on the downhill run.
Really a good read. Plus, he reports on a test drive of an rx400h in MY NECK OF THE WOODS, Flagstaff to Phoenix, and how the engine cut off at 80 MPH on the downhill run.
Interstate 17 pitches up and down, but mostly down, over the 140-mile run from Flagstaff to Phoenix, Arizona, descending from 7000 feet to about 1000. I was watching the Lexus's "power" screen out of one eye; it shows the flow of power through the hybrid system. With the cruise set at 70 mph, I noticed the engine shut off when the downgrade got steep enough. So I kept inching up the cruise. How fast would it go without the engine? I ran out of hills before finding the upper limit. But I can tell you that the RX400h will dead-stick down at 80 with the A/C and power steering alive. If you weren't watching the screen, you'd never know the engine was off. Would a car that clever be a pleasure to you? It is for me.
#2
Re: Car and Driver PRO-HYBRID opinion piece
Brilliant comeback at the end for the 'payback' arguement:
"If you want to save money on your next car, here's my advice: Skip the onboard nav option. You'll never save enough in maps and 50-cent phone calls to get your initial cost back."
We've got an ally over there at C&D!
"If you want to save money on your next car, here's my advice: Skip the onboard nav option. You'll never save enough in maps and 50-cent phone calls to get your initial cost back."
We've got an ally over there at C&D!
#4
Re: Car and Driver PRO-HYBRID opinion piece
By this time I was into the game. To keep my engineless streak going, I admit rolling past the stop sign onto the main road. No traffic, no foul. That left another 100 yards to the crest, gently uphill now, but also inescapably up . . . would it, could it? YES! Now a long, half-mile coast to the highway, 1.7 miles from home with the engine still off.
Hybrids are really fun for me.
Hybrids are really fun for me.
Also, it's nice to see a magazine that typically glorifies throaty power and sleek options tip their hat to hyrbids.
What am I talking about, the RX400h has throaty power and sleek options.
Last edited by lars-ss; 11-09-2005 at 09:26 AM. Reason: spelling and space reduction
#5
Re: Car and Driver PRO-HYBRID opinion piece
The last sentence on payback really was quite clever. Too clever, perhaps ?
His message was wonderful: Hybrids are really good, pleasurable cars in their own right; even before one considers the environmental benefits.
I could not agree more.
His message was wonderful: Hybrids are really good, pleasurable cars in their own right; even before one considers the environmental benefits.
I could not agree more.
#7
Re: Car and Driver PRO-HYBRID opinion piece
Originally Posted by Pravus Prime
Heh, I liked. I'm amazed that we'd get anything that unbiased from them.
Over the years they've written a number of articles covering the merits of hybrids and even ran an article about a year ago comparing the Civic Hybrid and Prius against the Echo (for a high FE gas-only car) and the Jetta TDI. The Echo finished last, followed by the Jetta. The Prius and Civic took second and first place overall both for their fuel economy delivered and the actual driving pleasure that can be derived from a hybrid.
C/D is the only magazine I maintain a subscription with. I'll buy a few of the others off the rack maybe once or twice a year if I hear about a great issue they've put out, but C/D is the only one that's consistently good enough for me to want to have a subscription with. They are primarily an enthusiast magazine, but it's not like it's Import Tuner or Fast Fords magazine. To a certain degree, it takes an enthusiast to fully appreciate what hybrids have to offer.
#8
Re: Car and Driver PRO-HYBRID opinion piece
That is a good read! It was nice how he started off debunking the asinine assumption that hybrids have to pay themselves off in fuel savings. His description of how he had fun staying in electric and coasting at 80mph are pretty good too! Maybe they will get some people thinking about how much these things might be worth to them.
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