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 Post subject: Telegraph/Prius
PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 00:58 
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Delete if duplicated:

PRIUS


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 06:59 
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An "inconvenient" truth Hybrids are not "green"

Reasons to get one....

1) take advantage of a tax loophole (including congestion charge)

2) Try and kid yourself you are doing something for the environment

If you have any sense get an astra diesel and save yourself a packet.

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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 10:08 
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I was amused by the contribution from one Prius owner:

Posted by Myron on July 1, 2007 1:35 PM wrote:

It all depends how the driver commands the Prius. Have a need for speed and you get worse economy figures. Command the Prius it as it SHOULD be driven and you'll get excellent fuel economy figures.


which begs the question

"How should a Prius be driven (commanded?)?"

to which the answer is, clearly

"the way a Prius owner drives"


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 10:22 
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Do you thinnk he drives with a captains hat??


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 12:53 
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...and when required, you speak into the little mouthpiece on the bridge, and demand...

"Full Ahead Both!"

:D

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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 13:17 
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Prius driver training school

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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 13:19 
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Gizmo wrote:
Prius driver training school

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Naa, that would be dangerously fast to use as a training vehicle...

:lol:

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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 14:37 
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Beat this then! :shock:

http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents ... ends_race/

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You will be branded a threat to society by going over a speed limit where it is safe to do so, and suffer the consequences of your actions in a way criminals do not, more so than someone who is a real threat to our society.


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 15:35 
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And don't think the big guys aren't interested too...

http://horsepowersports.com/fords-total ... r-project/

Sorry if this isn't new here.

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You will be branded a threat to society by going over a speed limit where it is safe to do so, and suffer the consequences of your actions in a way criminals do not, more so than someone who is a real threat to our society.


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 Post subject: Re: Telegraph/Prius
PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 17:24 
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jomukuk wrote:
Delete if duplicated:

PRIUS


good article.

Quote:
However much fuel it does or doesn't save, the Toyota Prius has become a byword for fatuous lip-service to environmentalism, be it from those seeking to profit from popular green credentials - preening celebrities waving their Prius ignition keys in front of the media, or the likes of David Cameron and Ken Livingstone giving another cynical photo opportunity to a car whose success has been virtually guaranteed with public money - or private individuals who simply hate anyone criticising their choice of car (especially if it cost them £18,000). Such attitudes are more about self-promotion than saving the planet and are echoed by Toyota and Lexus hybrid advertising, which in the past month has been found to be (respectively) "misleading" and "untruthful" by the Advertising Standards Authority.


Finally someone with "green" credentials willing to look at the facts, speak sense and not leap on the latest bandwagen, which is what anyone who really cares about the enviroment should do.

I've always thought of the hybrid as flawed, overated stop-gap technology with a sanctimonious marketing campaign.

And as for claims the "you have to drive the hybrid a certain way", you can get 70+mpg out of practically ANY family hatch if you care to drive it "a certain way". Fact is, most people don't.

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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 18:13 
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if they really want to be green shouldn't they strip out all the extra weight in the car?

All the following could easily be removed but I guess the environment isn't important enough to them to make sacrifices this big:
Aircon, electric mirrors, electric windows, rear spoiler, cruise control, radio/cd player, satnav, clock, cupholders, power steering

Then we could start on soundproofing, abs, traction control, padded seats and so on.


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 20:10 
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Let's be honest, the invironmental lobby need vehicles to get around like everyone else, take Monbiot for example, cough cough.

The problem is, that most of these people have a transport requirement like the rest of us and in order that they aren't seen as hypocrites, a vehicle manufacturer comes up with a solution, hybrid technology. Don't however let the fact that this hybrid technology may not actually be effective, get in the way of allowing the nannys to feel better about themselves.


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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 20:20 
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johnsher wrote:
if they really want to be green shouldn't they strip out all the extra weight in the car?

All the following could easily be removed but I guess the environment isn't important enough to them to make sacrifices this big:
Aircon, electric mirrors, electric windows, rear spoiler, cruise control, radio/cd player, satnav, clock, cupholders, power steering

Then we could start on soundproofing, abs, traction control, padded seats and so on.


Actually, thats why I like *old* landrovers/range rovers (The modern ones are far too techcy)

They are not very comfortable and the fuel consumption is not brilliant but the fact that they last pretty well for ever more than compensates for this!

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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 22:11 
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johnsher wrote:
if they really want to be green shouldn't they strip out all the extra weight in the car?

All the following could easily be removed but I guess the environment isn't important enough to them to make sacrifices this big:
Aircon, electric mirrors, electric windows, rear spoiler, cruise control, radio/cd player, satnav, clock, cupholders, power steering

Then we could start on soundproofing, abs, traction control, padded seats and so on.

Oh, you mean a Citroen 2CV! :lol:

University of Warwick website wrote:
its shell is made from hemp,

I knew they had to be students! :lol: If it catches fire in the pits, there will be a queue waiting to breath in the smoke! :shhh: :cloud9:

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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 22:29 
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“We already have the shell, brake pads, fuel and tyres sorted. My aim is to end up with a race car that’s 95 per cent biodegradable or recyclable. If we can build a high-performance car that can virtually be grown from seed, just imagine what’s possible for the average family car.”



UMM - biodegradable - "A "biodegradable" product has the ability to break down, safely and relatively quickly, by biological means, into the raw materials of nature and disappear into the environment"--- so your new car disintegrates at a rate that would make even a 60's BMC/Fiat car look respectable

Grown from seed - hang on , i'll nip down to the BMW shop - got the ground well fertilised,and get som BMW seed .Problem is that i've got snail problems in my garden --will that mean that the body will suffer from snail trails ??

What sort of seed are they on ??? :roll:

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PostPosted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 23:40 
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I think the article was a bit unfair in some ways. For a start, it's not Toyota's fault that Ken Livingston and other politicians were too stupid to look at it objectively and grant their exemptions to ANY car that could achieve a particular CO2 figure!

I also don't quite understand what all this "extra weight" stuff is all about. I had a quick look at the website and it's kerb weight is quoted as just over 1300kg (depending on options). Is that so bad for a modern 5 door saloon?

Then there's the "drive cycle argument". Last time I looked, there WAS a "steady-state" component to it - although I freely admit the urban cycle seems dominant, and the "steady state" bit is ridiculously slow by UK motorway standards.

FInally, although it IS true that the stop-start nature of the urban cycle bit favours the electric propulsion system. I spoke to one of the engineers that did the "official" test once and they weren't so daft as might be supposed. They did the test in such a way as to leave the battery with the same amount of charge as it started - otherwise it would have had a very unfair advantage because it could have used the battery as a "buffer" with the test being so short (i.e. come out of the test having taken more "energy" into the chamber than it was allowed to).

None of this means that I like the Prius OR that I think it's the answer to the world's problems. I do, however, think that hybrid powertrains (mated to modern diesels with particulate filters) could be a very valuable stop-gap though. Especially in the US!


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 05, 2007 02:26 
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johnsher wrote:
if they really want to be green shouldn't they strip out all the extra weight in the car?

All the following could easily be removed but I guess the environment isn't important enough to them to make sacrifices this big:
Aircon, electric mirrors, electric windows, rear spoiler, cruise control, radio/cd player, satnav, clock, cupholders, power steering

Then we could start on soundproofing, abs, traction control, padded seats and so on.


Hey does this mean my '91 Golf is more green than a Prius? It's certainly a whole heap more fun to drive - oh sorry no fun with green issues :roll:

Barkstar

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PostPosted: Thu Jul 05, 2007 07:19 
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Mole wrote:
I also don't quite understand what all this "extra weight" stuff is all about.

carry more weight than it needs to means it's using more fuel than it needs to.

Mole wrote:
Is that so bad for a modern 5 door saloon?

no but DON'T YOU CARE ABOUT THE CHILDREN?

:wink:


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 05, 2007 07:21 
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Ernest Marsh wrote:
Oh, you mean a Citroen 2CV!

pretty much, yes albeit with a slightly less agricultural engine. Somehow I don't see it catching on with the green-is-trendy crowd.


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 05, 2007 09:20 
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Ernest beat me to it. I was going to say the model T Ford. Looks like we could be going full circle.

Well, the heavier a vehicle, the safer it becomes and we all have to be safe don't we? Can't have little Johnny being tossed around in the back, the lazy little tosser.

It works with humans too: I once bumped into a big fat man and I came off worse. He had his own air bag on his belly. He requires more fuel than me, just like the fat cars. I heard he eats four Big Macs and a milk shake in one sitting.

This isn't good for him or the environment so he should be taxed more than me to force him to be healthier.

But hang on, if he's healthier he will live longer and consume more resources in the long term wont he? Maybe I've got it wrong... :scratchchin:

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You will be branded a threat to society by going over a speed limit where it is safe to do so, and suffer the consequences of your actions in a way criminals do not, more so than someone who is a real threat to our society.


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