At the Detroit Auto Show reveal of the soon-to-be-produced hybrid Ford Mustang, marketing manager Mark Schaller said the following: “The world has figured out a way to take that technology and use it for performance… that will be the way we use that technology for this car . . . it’s not meant to be a hyper-miler car; Mustang is all about having fun while you drive.” (Italics added.)
And the trained seals clapped.
But, excuse me, please. If the object of this exercise isn’t mileage then why go to the trouble? I mean, what is the point, exactly?
To show it can be done?
Like the pyramids?
A hybrid drivetrain makes no sense except as a way to reduce the amount of gasoline a vehicle burns. In other words, to make it more economical to drive.
A second drivetrain is added – the electric motor and its battery pack – in order to relieve the gas-burning engine of the chore of propelling the car as much as conditions permit (as when the car is stationary or just creeping along at low speed, in heavy traffic) in order to reduce fuel consumption.
Current Prices on popular forms of Gold Bullion
In order to save money.
You accept a reduction in performance – and fun – as the price of that.
Remember your Dr. Strangelove? His explanation of the reason for making public the existence of the Doomsday device? It’s the point of the thing, you see.
The fact that you can make a “performance” hybrid doesn’t mean it should be made. It is like keeping the Doomsday machine a secret.
Why?
First, it adds weight – the weight of a second drivetrain. As a for-instance: The hybrid Lexus GS450h sport sedan – another “performance” hybrid – weighs 4,112 lbs. The regular, non-hybrid GS350 weighs 3,726 lbs. The hybrid is lugging around 386 pounds of electric motors and batteries – roughly the equivalent of a small block Chevy V8 sitting in the passenger seat.
Or a pair of Oprahs.
This (more weight) tends to . . . decrease both efficiency and performance – for the same reason it’s hard to have hot ice cubes.
The GS450h has more total power (338 hp vs. 311 for the GS350) because it has two power sources (gas engine and electric motor/battery pack) but because of that almost 400 pounds of extra beef, the GS450 is only just barely quicker than the GS350: 5.6 seconds to 60 vs. 5.7 for the non-hybrid GS.
Remind me again what the point is?
You could fix this by adding a larger/stronger IC engine – but that will burn up more gas. Or you could install a larger, more powerful electric motor/battery pack to make up for a small, gas—sippy but not-too-powerful IC engine. But that will make the car even heavier which will make it less efficient – and also more clumsy. Handling will be affected and probably not for the better.
This may matter to people who purchase cars like the Mustang, which is not a car like the Prius.
Second, expense. It is the enemy of economy.
An expensive technology is pretty much by definition not economical technology. Solar panels come to mind. It’s a lovely idea but the cost to replace an asphalt shingle roof with a solar panel roof is much too high to make it worth doing in economic terms. Do it because you think it’s neat or because you like the idea of not being tied to the grid, all fine. But from an economic point of view, it is rubber roomy.
Same goes for a “performance” hybrid like the Lexus GS450 . . . or a hybrid Mustang. Hot ice cubes .
