If we went back a few years, we’d find everyone was obsessed with hybrids. Car magazines were filled with reviews of the latest hybrids. The government was practically drooling over the tech, offering people incentives to buy. Even supercars were aiming for more eco-friendly levels of fuel usage. Our question is quite simple. Has anything changed, or are hybrids still the epitome of a cool car?
Well before we get to that it’s worth going back further still to the first electric cars.
Introducing The Electric Car
In the late eighties, early nineties developers started toying with the idea of an electric car. It seems like an important innovative idea. After all, research and reports kept being released, showing we were slowly killing the planet. To this day we still are, and that’s why there’s an increased push towards the hybrid. But remember, when the first electric car was released it was a joke. You could only travel a few miles before it gave up completely. As well as this, it was nowhere near fast enough to get the power of a supercar. That all changed with the introduction of the hybrid.
The New Hybrid
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Then in 2000, the hybrid was born. It showed everyone that electric cars didn’t have to be ridiculed. They could be fast and fun. They could handle just as well as any other car on the road. More importantly, they could save the planet. That was important because at this point many were already on the eco-friendly bandwagon.
But it wasn’t until the release of the first hybrid supercar that people started taking these engines seriously. The BMW i8 was an absolute marvel. At just under a hundred grand you could travel as fast as any other supercar using a hybrid engine. It didn’t have the roar of a petrol engine; it had the purr of a hybrid. It was truly incredible and is still a popular vehicle today. So what changed?
Are Hybrids Eco-Friendly?
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You might think that if you drive a hybrid, you’re doing your part to save the planet. That’s what everyone believed when they first arrived. But as recently as last year reports started to emerge. The popular producers of hybrid cars had been lying about the level of pollution making them created. That meant the hybrids weren’t as eco-friendly as people believed. Particularly, when taking into account the greater than imagined pollution costs of production. It was a classic example of the ends justify the means. That brings us to today. Are hybrids still popular?
Are hybrid cars still cool?
We’re not sure whether they’re cool, but they are certainly still popular, with good reason. First, whenever a new car model is released, you can bet that the first design is going to have a hybrid engine. This is certainly true for the new Audi A8 in 2017. That will first be released as a hybrid. Second, the tech is still improving. Developers are still eager to make hybrids the way forward. They continue to make them greener and better for the environment as well as easier to manage and drive. The cost is an issue that bounces back and forth. In some ways, electric cars and hybrids are cheap to run and maintain. But the cost of first purchase are growing. Particularly if you want the best hybrids on the market. Hybrids were supposed to be car models everyone could afford. If you have a look at a car company like Carco Group, you’ll find many hybrids on sale at various prices. But not everyone manages to pay over hundred grand for their vehicle. If you want one of the best hybrids, that’s exactly what you’ll need to do.
Picture From Flickr
What’s The Alternative?
Well, that’s the issue? If there was an alternative, maybe hybrids wouldn’t be as popular as they are today. But there isn’t. There’s no better way to save fuel than to buy a car with a hybrid engine. We can’t go back to using petrol because we don’t want to kill the planet. Hydrogen might offer a real possibility for zero emissions. But that hasn’t been embraced by the general public yet. Right now, hybrids are still the future.
Just How Popular Are The Really?
Although when we examine whether hybrids are cool, it’s worth thinking about how many people own them. Based on press and media coverage, you might expect the answer to be quite high. But is it? How often do you come across a car that’s barely making any noise? A real hybrid doesn’t roar and howl. It’s quiet and soft, even at high speeds. When you remember that, we think you’ll realize that most people don’t own a hybrid. But then again we suppose that’s what still makes them cool and a desired asset today.
