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Hybrid Vehicles Lexus GS 450h Lexus GS 450h MPG-Real World Numbers
86 messages, Last post on Sep 17, 2009 at 4:23 PM
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Replying to: bmwconvert (Sep 22, 2006 9:10 am) I think the 450H is a great car. I wish every BMW 7-series buyer would buy one of those. The planet would be better off, by a small margin, I admit. I wish Toyota would make something nifty that got 30 mpg. I am being forced to buy a Camry Hybrid, which isn't as sporty as I would like. I'd love an IS hybrid. Or a Camry Solara hybrid. That would be sweet. but it looks like a TCH for me. 
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Replying to: alp8 (Sep 22, 2006 10:20 am) You should at least test drive the Honda Accord Hybrid. It really zips, but I have also seen people getting over 30 MPG in this car (when driven correctly).
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Replying to: stevedebi (Sep 22, 2006 1:01 pm)  The Accord did not have as solid a feel as I currently want when I touch the switches, sun roof, etc. I think the Accord is great, but I want something a bit nicer. Of course, it didn't help to drive a car that had plastic wrap over all the seats, etc. I guess they need to keep them wrapped up nice in case they need to trade them to another dealer, but it does make for less of a driving experience. |
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I posted this comment several months ago and I think it's pertinent to this discussion... We need a manufacturer to produce a hybrid with a switch, similar to the sport/normal suspension setting, that will allow a driver to switch between performance and economy from their hybrid powertrain. I read a while back in a Wired magazine article that there's a wide range of performance/economy trade-offs that can be made and that the technology is not that complex. Toyota hardwires this today by making the Camry so much more efficient than the GS (ignoring for this argument the performance differences in the gas engine). A previous poster commented that the GS doesn't fully exploit its battery power because it's designed to keep a large amount in reserve to respond to demands for fast acceleration. It would be logical to let the driver make this choice depending on one's driving style at any given moment. Maybe Toyota's working on this for the next generation?
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Replying to: bmwconvert (Sep 25, 2006 9:46 am) Finally let me make this statement: Don't buy a car you don't understand.
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Replying to: idele (Sep 25, 2006 11:26 am) Finally let me make this statement: Don't buy a car you don't understand. Actually, it appears that you didn't understand BMWconvert's suggestion. The GS "button" doesn't switch the car between a "performance - 25 mpg mode" and an "economy - 40 mpg mode" - that's what BMWconvert is looking for. It's a nice idea, though not sure if it's feasible. It would be cool if the Camry Hybrid had a button you could push that would add performance/sportiness but compromise MPG (i.e. 30 mpg when you want to impress certain friends), and then normal mode would give you 40 mpg, but a bit pokier (to impress my granola-crunching buddies) and if none of us could drive vehicles unless we understood them, I think 99% of us would be walking
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Replying to: bmwconvert (Sep 25, 2006 9:46 am) But that is just the point - you can't ignore the engines. The Camry has an Atkinson cycle 2.4L engine, and that engine with the weight of the Camry could not easily go into a "Sport" mode; there simply isn't enough power in the battery to provide the extra thrust on a constant basis. You would run out of "juice", forcing the engine to run continuously, further dropping MPG. I suspect it might do about the same MPG as an I4 Camry (or worse). The GS has a large engine, and you can't produce Camry-like MPG with the GS weight class and that many cylinders. I think it even uses the Otto cycle instead of Atkinson. Hybrid technology has the capability of allowing a smaller motor to perform like a larger motor. So there is a design choice to be made - power or economy? The Honda Accord Hybrid, and the Toyota HH, RX400, and GS chose power at the expense of economy. The Camry, Prius, and Civic chose economy at the expense of more power. The other problem to consider is - which setting would the EPA use to test fuel efficiency? My guess goes to the "fast" setting, to indicate worst case. All of the manufacturors are interested in upping their corporate MPG. So having "sport" modes on the engine (even if it were possible) would not be useful to the automakers.
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Replying to: stevedebi (Sep 26, 2006 8:40 am) For example, how about letting the electric motor run to 30mph instead of 20mph as it is now? A little tweak or two like that would probably add up. It would hardly take reengineering the whole thing. It's just a different setting in the control systems. I'd use the economy for commuting and switch to the performance when I want to enjoy the ride. There's precedent for this with normal/sport suspension settings and the normal/sport switch on the automatic transmissions of many luxury and sports cars.
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Replying to: bmwconvert (Sep 26, 2006 10:07 am) If it had been possible to allow the electric motor to run longer, Toyota would have done it. They were restricted as to the size of the battery. Consider that Toyota is interested in maximum MPG, just as much as you are. Toyota optimizes the HSD for the vehicle implementation. The GS was designed for power and comfort, with slightly better MPG than an equivalent ICE only car.
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Replying to: stevedebi (Sep 26, 2006 12:21 pm) |
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