Hybrids safer than normal cars, more dangerous to pedestrians: study
By Brett Davis | November 18th, 2011
According to a recent study by the Highway Loss Data Institute in the US, hybrid drivers a 25 per cent less likely to be injured in a car accident compared with non-hybrid car drivers. Conversely, hybrid vehicles were found to be more dangerous to pedestrians than conventional cars.
External factors, such as the attitudes and driving habits of hybrid drivers may have contributed to the results, the study says, but the main element behind hybrid’s increased safety is the weight. Matt Moore, vice president of the Institute, said in a statement,
“Hybrids on average are 10 per cent heavier than their standard counterparts. This extra mass gives them an advantage in crashes that their conventional twins don’t have.”
“Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol” Star Paula Patton showing the BMW i8
The BMW i8 Concept is the Successor to the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics Car Featured in “Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol” Starring Tom Cruise and Paula Patton to be Released in December.
Woodcliff Lake, NJ – November 16, 2011… As scenes from the latest installment of the Mission Impossible film series played on an 18-foot-tall, 39-foot-wide silk screen, the screen itself was whisked away to unveil the first concept vehicles of the new visionary and sustainable brand, BMW i – the fully electric BMW i3 Concept and the hybrid-electric BMW i8 Concept – from which Paula Patton, star of Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol and BMW President Ludwig Willisch emerged, officially unveiling the vehicles for the first time in North America at the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show.
The BMW i3 and i8 Concept vehicles represent the first purpose-built electric and electric-hybrid vehicles to be made primarily of carbon fiber when they become available in 2013 and 2014, respectively.
The BMW i8 Concept, which is the successor to the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics car featured in Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol starring Tom Cruise to be released in December, is a sleek, low-slung, silver and glass sports car with flip-up doors. The BMW i3 Concept, previously known as the “megacity vehicle,” is more compact for congested city driving and features the same color scheme with large glass doors that open “coach” style, i.e. the rear doors opening in the opposite direction from the front.
Study finds that hybrids are safer in accidents but more dangerous to pedestrians
A recent study has shown that drivers behind the wheel of hybrid vehicles are 25% less likely to get injured in a crash then those driving conventional vehicles. The study was conducted by the Highway Loss Data Institute, an affiliate of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
The Data Institute’s VP Matt More says weight is the biggest contributing factor, as “Hybrids on average are 10 percent heavier than their standard counterparts. This extra mass gives them an advantage in crashes that their conventional twins don’t have.”
Included in the data are over 25 hybrid-conventional vehicle pairs released in 2003-2011 model years. Not included in the study are some of the most popular hybrid (or EV) models, such as the Toyota Prius, Honda Insight, Chevy Volt, Ford Focus Electric, and Nissan Leaf. The data institute recognized the variables in the study such as whom, how and when the vehicles are being driven. Not including the most popular hybrid models may have its justification in focusing only on vehicles that are not only sold as hybrids, but it would be interesting to see what the data would reveal if it were based on the most common hybrids on the road.
On the other side, the data institute also conducted a separate study finding hybrids may be 20 percent more likely to injure a pedestrian in a crash, versus the conventional models. This is attributed to pedestrians not being able to hear approaching vehicles operating on electric only. Japan currently requires the car have an alert, which will be a requirement in the states in the next three years. Nissan’s Leaf already comes equipped with the technology, and was not included in this study.
- By: Alexandra Koken
2011 Ford Fusion Hybrid Review
In the world of popular mid-size sedans, the 2011 Ford Fusion Hybrid claims to be the current fuel-efficiency champ. Whether that claim is sustained or not (and it won’t, when the 2012 Camry Hybrid will arrive), the Fusion Hybrid is tremendously pleasing to drive and remarkably quiet, yet it’s up against some pretty fierce competition such as the Toyota Camry, Kia Optima and Hyundai Sonata to name but a few.
Advanced hybrid technology
Hybrid technology has advanced remarkably well over the last decade. The early versions were somewhat crude in operation and didn’t achieve anywhere near the efficiency of today’s setups. Ford’s Fusion Hybrid is a good example of where this technology has gone as of late.
The Fusion’s full-hybrid system enables the vehicle to operate exclusively on electric power more frequently and for longer durations. And the system functions far more seamlessly than before, enabling near-invisible transitions between power sources.
The advancements are no better illustrated than in the Fusion’s ability to crest 75 km/h using only electric power, and to maintain that speed – albeit on flat roads – for much greater distances than previously attainable in hybrid vehicles. Thanks to the liberal use of electrical propulsion, the Fusion Hybrid can squeeze 1,125 km of city-based driving out of a single tank of regular fuel – this according to Ford.
Ford’s economy figures for the 2011 Fusion Hybrid shake out this way: 4.6 L/100km for city driving and 5.4 L/100km when highway cruising. My combination of city and highway meandering netted me an average return that ranged between 5.5 to 6.1 L/100km.
Although slightly greater than the posted data, I was impressed with this “real world” result. I’m not anal about maximizing economy like some hybrid zealots, so for me the numbers were pleasing indeed, especially given the comfort that this mid-size sedan brings to its occupants.
Honda Executive Confirms Work on Hybrid or EV NSX Replacement
Mere days after we bought a long-term 1991 Acura NSX, Honda’s RnD boss Mibe Toshihiro has confirmed that they are working on a new NSX.
Toshihiro told Autocar “We are now at a point where we can consider the next generation of electric and hybrid vehicles. President Ito has already mentioned a new NSX, and we have looked at that in the R&D department. .It would be an interesting project — electric or hybrid vehicles can be fun as well as economical.”
This goes along with earlier reports from Honda president Takanobu Ito that a next-gen NSX would not follow the same formula as the original. Our long term NSX has a mfg estimated weight of 3,010 lbs. Before getting excited, we should keep in mind that Honda claimed that the CRZ was the spiritual successor to the CRX, whether or not Honda has the ability to think the way they did in the late 80′s is debatable.
Photos of Tony Stark (RDJ) driving an Acura concept in The Avengers surfaced a few weeks back, expect to see that car wearing NSX badges as early as the Tokyo Motor Show.
2012 BMW ActiveHybrid 5: A BMW Hybrid That Almost Makes Sense
BY STEVE SILER
September 2011
BMW’s earlier steps into hybridization haven’t been the most decisive. The hybrid vehicles it has offered so far start at nearly $ 90,000 and don’t quite have the impressive fuel-economy numbers commonly associated with hybrids. The hybrid 7-series is rated by the EPA at 17 mpg in the city and 24 on the highway; the now-cancelled X6 hybrid, 17/19. (The upcoming i8 plug-in hybrid sports car will certainly better those figures, but with wild looks and an anticipated six-figure sticker, it isn’t going to hold much mainstream appeal.) Next year, though, the Bavarians will be taking a big step in making the once-bizarre notion of a hybrid BMW more accessible—though once again not quite as efficient as most hybrids—when the company launches the ActiveHybrid 5 in March.
Given that the ActiveHybrid 5 concept the company brought to the 2010 Geneva auto show was pretty much showroom ready, the official announcement of the production car presents no surprises. The first BMW to add electric power to the firm’s splendid turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six, the 5 plants an electric motor between the engine and an eight-speed automatic. The motor provides an additional 55 hp and 155 lb-ft of torque and gets its juice from a 96-cell, 0.68-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack mounted between the rear wheels. BMW claims a combined output of 335 hp and 330 lb-ft, increases of 35 and 30, respectively, over the 535i’s lonely turbocharged inline-six. Like BMW’s other hybrids, the 5 features brake-energy regeneration and an engine stop/start feature that shuts the engine down when coasting and stopped.
Unlike the 7-series hybrid, the 5 can accelerate on electric power alone. BMW says the battery and electric motor are potent enough to push the car to 37 mph or, at lower speeds, cover approximately 2.5 miles before asking the combustion engine for help. Mash the right pedal to the floor and the ActiveHybrid 5 should hit 60 mph in 5.7 seconds, according to BMW, which is usually a couple of tenths on the conservative side in its estimates. While the company isn’t sharing final EPA ratings yet, it claims the fuel-economy improvement over the 535i will be a double-digit percentage. Seeing as a 535i with the eight-speed auto scores 20/30, figure on the hybrid being right around the 22/32 rating of the less-powerful and newly four-cylinder 528i.
Meet Eco Pro
The ActiveHybrid 5 arrives with BMW’s nifty Driving Dynamics Control system that aligns throttle, transmission, stability-control, and damping characteristics into Comfort, Sport, and Sport+ settings. The hybrid, however, gets a fourth setting known as Eco Pro. The opposite of the Sport modes, Eco Pro optimizes powertrain settings for relaxed driving and maximum efficiency, tasking the electric motor with as much of the work as it can handle while decoupling the engine as much as possible. In this mode, the engine can shut down while coasting at speeds of up to 100 mph. Eco Pro also turns the corona rings around the headlights green. (Actually, it doesn’t, but we wish it did, and we’d find Eco Pro more attractive if it did. We hereby submit that as a suggestion for BMW product planners to consider. You’re welcome.)
Renault-Nissan has invested $5.6 billion in EVs thus far
Published September 8, 2011
By Jeff Cobb
2011 Nissan Leaf.
As advanced-tech vehicle followers know, some pundits have questioned just how successful electric vehicles will be in coming years, but Nissan is squarely in the opposite camp.
This week Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn disclosed the company has thus far invested $ 5.6 billion (4 billion Euros) in the nascent technology, and has more left where that came from.
“We have already invested EUR4 billion, and we will be above that as we have development still to do,” Ghosn told Dow Jones Newswires on the sidelines of a meeting organized by the French industry minister with local vehicle manufacturers and equipment suppliers.
