A Friday afternoon spoof of figuring out hybrids in a non-hybrid world.

Today I took a test drive in one of those new Camrys, the one's that don't come with electric motors. It was a different experience for me. First, when I turned the car on and put it in drive the car wouldn't go. The salesman chuckled and said I had to start the engine. I actually had to start the engine myself. It made this really funny noise while it was doing it too, sort of like a normal electric motor but sounded more like it would blow up if it ran too long. Might take a while to get used to that I thought.

Out on the drive the engine kept revving up then down, up then down, over and over. Made the car lurch a bit. I told the salesman I think there is something wrong, but he said it was changing gears. Oh I said, not really understanding (I think he didn't want to admit something was wrong). When I came to a stop the engine stayed running. Now there is definitely something wrong I said to the salesman, but he again said that was normal. I guess I'm suppose to shut it off myself at a red light, but he said just leave it running. Kind of weird though, the battery was charged and the engine was warm. I don't know what it was doing that I should leave it running.

It had a very abrupt start from a stop without the electric motor to provide a smooth easy start, although it was quick. The FE gauge didn't come off the 0mpg mark until I got going quite fast though. I did try shutting the engine off coming to a stop at one point but the steering and brakes got really hard to use. The salesman kind of freaked out when I did that, but I responded this is a safety concern. Who wants a car that the steering practically fails if the engine should stop?

For the most part the car looks like a normal hybrid model though, except for the "Gasoline Only" logo on the fenders and the HSD (HiFuel Single Drive) badge on the trunk. The trunk was quite a bit bigger. Apparently the gas tank is bigger too as you'll need a lot more fuel to drive this car the same distance.

All in all it was quite an interesting car so I might buy one. Maybe not quite as fun to drive because the engine is running all the time and making the car jerk around a bit changing those gear thingies. But I liked how fast it went and I'll have a lot more chance to stop in and chat with my friends at the gas station. I might ask the dealer if he can get that noisy start motor to power the steering and brakes so in case the engine does stop I won't have to worry about ending up in a ditch.

 

LOL, very creative.

 

Droid, do you read Bizzaro? This is just like something they would do...

 

gotta luv those crazy Canucks. It's a great feeling, basking in our smugness.

I cringe at the thought of driving other cars. no smart entry, taking the keys out when your done with it.

I was stuck on the 401 yesterday in bad traffic. probably held up for almost an hr with the stop and go. For some reason, it didn't feel so bad. Probably had to do with the fact that I burnt almost no gas as i inched along the hwy. There's no turning back now. I'm spoiled for life. Can't imagine buying a lowly "low-bred" car again. I'm a big bike enthusiast. I hope the manufacturers (read the consumers allow the manucturers) to refocus on FE motorcycles.

 

Hats off to Droid 13. I was thinking about starting a thread from a faux suicidal perspective ("I've been sitting in my TCH in the garage for HOURS with the car on, and I don't feel whoozy or the slightest bit tired!") since every time I pull into my garage, I'm in golf-cart mode. Your story is much better.

 

Good job droid!

This reminds me of some of the comments made on the board. Complaints are made about things like the slight shudder when the gas engine starts up.

People forget that a "regular" car has about 3 to 4 "shudders" before reaching highway speed - the gears shifting!

For the last 100 years - from the model T to the 2007 Mercedes S-Class, automobile drivetrains have remained essentially unchanged. I'm glad there are alternatives available now!

 

Well, today I found myself in the alternate universe described in Droid13's original post.

We've had our Jasper Pearl TCH for a few weeks now, and I've become quite accustomed to it. Yesterday I drove it for over 4 hours, and loved every minute of it.

Fast forward to today. I rented a 2007 Camry (non-TCH) for a business trip, and drove it for 4 hours. What a strange experience. The starting procedure seems so crude. And what's with all this revving and shifting just to go up and down hills on the highway? As much as I tried to pulse-and-glide, I just couldn't get the darn engine to turn off! When I got to my destination, I was shocked to see the fuel gauge down to half already. Then to add insult to injury, it didn't even tell me I did an "Excellent" job of driving it! What a weird car.

 

There is no future for a car like that. It's just a fad

 

If you had been responsible you would have told the car rental company about this problem so that they could get a potentially dangerous situation corrected.