It was such a breath of fresh air-more on that later-to read The Herald’s Sunday editorial extolling the merits of hybrid cars (“It’s time for us to curb our petroleum binge”). Hybrids are powered by both a gas engine and an electric motor, and they never need to be plugged in!
My wife and I have owned a 2002 Toyota Prius hybrid car for more than two years, using it as our primary family and business vehicle. We’ve experienced 40,000 miles of totally trouble-free driving, including over the mountain pass numerous times to Spokane. Our overall average mileage is 43 miles per gallon. Our car seats five people, is very comfortable, has plenty of acceleration and will keep pace with traffic at any speed. It is a “super-ultra low emissions” vehicle – here’s where the breath of fresh air comes in! Toyota will soon have its Highlander SUV out in a hybrid configuration, and Ford will follow with its Escape SUV. Pickups and larger truck models will be introduced soon after that.
Simple math demonstrates what the impact would be if America would embrace this idea. If the average car gets 20 mpg, after 40,000 miles it would use 2,000 gallons of gas at about $2 per gallon. That’s $4,000. My Prius hybrid at 43 mpg used 930 gallons over the same distance. If each household had one hybrid vehicle, it could cut consumption dramatically and eliminate our nation’s dependence on foreign oil.
It is a simple, affordable way to change the world for the better and it’s available right now.
Edmonds
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