Are all hybrid cars good at reducing emissions ?
In recent advertisements, Lexus uses one hand to present the 400-plus horsepower of the petrol powered LS 600h L hybrid and the other to pat its own back for saving fuel and planet alike. Jim Farley, general manager of Lexus, “It’s the progressive person’s alternative. Hybrids are a huge platform for us at Lexus, and they’re only going to get bigger.”
However, in a review by The New York Times in July 2007 the following was noted : “when I drove the Lexus in mildly spirited fashion, its mileage dropped to 19 m.p.g and in bumper-to-bumper traffic, where you expect a hybrid to excel, the LS 600h L mustered only 14 m.p.g”. So the hybrid actually emits far more carbon dioxide than, say, a Mercedes-Benz diesel E-Class that can attain 30 m.p.g.
Der Spiegel, one of Germany's premier publications titled an article "BMW'S HYDROGEN 7 - Not as Green as it Seems* "
“BMW is manufacturing the first series of hydrogen fueled cars. The Hydrogen 7's standard combustion engine has been adapted to run on both liquid hydrogen and regular gasoline as well -- and tons of it. The company says the car will consume an average of 13.9 liters (3.7 gallons) per 100 kilometers (roughly 17 miles per gallon) using regular gasoline and a whopping 50 liters to drive the same distance when fuelled by hydrogen. In other words, BMW has created an energy-guzzling engine […]. Some of the [liquid hydrogen] tank's contents have to be released as they heat up and evaporate -- even the best insulation system can't keep temperatures down forever. After nine days, half the tank load has gone bad.”
The Neutral Group is in favour of increasing consumer understanding in this regard - the current range of parallel hybrid cars are using CO2 abatement as a marketing message - whether they achieve the levels of planet friendly CO2 emission reduction expected by the buyer should be investigated. For example both Mini (BMW) and Volkswagen have current conevntionally powered models which produce less CO2 per km than the famous Toyota Prius.
Sources :
The New York Times, July 2007