Hybrid Cars to Get New Mileage Ratings

Skidge writes "Wired is running a piece showing the drastically reduced mileage ratings for hybrids after the upcoming changes in gas mileage calculations by the EPA. While the cars themselves aren't changing, plugging these new numbers in to the equation makes a hybrid much less cost effective: "The two top-selling hybrid vehicles, the Prius and Honda's Civic Hybrid, will lose 12 and 11 miles per gallon respectively from their city driving estimates." The new values come from more realistic testing; the old, over-inflated ratings were higher in part because the cars idled a lot, allowing the hybrids to completely turn off their engines. The new ratings should be more in line with what hybrid drivers are actually seeing."

Comments

Re:Sampling?

[Bassman59]

Manual or Stick?

Methinks you mean "manual or automatic."

What I do try to do, and what I'm getting better at recognizing, is that I try not to 'waist' energy by having the car do more than it needs to do, particularly in braking.

It's good that you put the word 'waist' in quotes, because it's the wrong word. perhaps you mean "waste?"

Re:Sampling?

[drinkypoo]

Throwing out numbers is not a substitute for automotive engineering expertise.

Pulling platitudes out of your ass is no substitute for real-world experience, either.