Honda and Nissan in hybrid schemes
Two major car makers have revealed plans to roll out green technology in the coming year.
Honda is to introduce its Insight hybrid vehicle in America next week, after good initial sales in Japan. Latest figures show that the car has sold 18,000 since launching in its home country at the beginning of February.
Recent reports suggest that the success of the Honda model is leading to a price-war with Toyota when it comes to environmentally-friendly cars.
Meanwhile, Nissan has also announced proposals to bring its hybrid vehicles to a wider market.
The Japanese firm is planning to launch a luxury gas-electric hybrid saloon car in 2010, although this is yet to be confirmed by the company.
Hybrid cars will face competition
The forthcoming launches of the Joule – the electric MPV with 6 seats and a 400km range – and high-profile hybrid cars including the Toyota Prius III and its competitor the Honda Insight, mark exciting developments for environmentally-friendlier driving, but conventionally-powered vehicles do not appear ready to be consigned to history.
A car and motorcycle hybrid
The Naro is a petrol-powered, two-seater prototype car that illustrates a possible future direction for conventionally powered vehicles.
It is perhaps best described as a car/motorcycle hybrid in that its driver and passenger sit one behind the other and the vehicle leans through corners.
In common with only the smallest and most fuel-efficient commuter motorcycles, the 400cc Naro is expected to deliver 100 miles per gallon – better even that the diesel-powered Smart ForTwo CDI, which manages an impressive 85.6 mpg.
The Naro design uses less than half the fuel of a conventional car and occupies a third of the road space.
A spokesperson for the Environmental Transport Association (ETA) said: “It is vital that cars become more efficient, but the market moves slowly and without robust environmental controls, vehicles like the Naro are still some way off – one day the commuters who would use a scooter but for concerns about safety and weather protection will be potential customers for vehicles like this.”
Will hybrid technology take over from petrol?
It seems likely that hybrid technology may offer a more practical alternative to electric-only vehicles and certainly hybrid vehicles look set to become more common a sight on the roads after Chinese company, BYD recently launched the world’s first massed-produced, plug-in vehicle.
Vehicles like the Naro demonstrate that petrol and diesel powered vehicles can become much more efficient if they are forced to compete with fully-electric and hybrid vehicles.
| hybrid car info | …at a glance |
|---|---|
| What is a hybrid car? | A hybrid vehicle must have two independent methods of propulsion; each with their own power supply |
| How do hybrid cars work? | Petrol-electric or diesel-electric hybrids supply power to the transmission from a battery, by means of an electric motor. However, they also contain a conventionally-fuelled engine, which both recharges the battery and supplies extra power to the transmission |
| Where can you buy hybrids? | Hybrids are slowly becoming mainstream, but so far only Lexus, Honda and Toyota produce hybrid cars available in Britain |
| Advantages of hybrid cars | more fuel efficient than a conventional vehicle of the same type, reduced emissions and cheaper running costs, exempt from London Congestion Charge and no changes needed to your driving habits |
| Disadvantages of hybrid cars | Still relies on fossil fuels and therefore generates greenhouse gases and they still cost more to buy than conventionally-powered cars |
Related hybrid car articles:
New hybrid car is DIY
Brown wants all cars electric by 2020
Green car buyers’ guide
Green driving tips
New car tax: How much will you pay in 2009?
China launches first plug-in hybrid
World’s cheapest car has a rival
Naro website
Greener motoring, now
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