Jan
30
Eco ( BMW 116d ) Vs Hybrid ( Prius )
January 30, 2009 |
Today I’d like to have a think about the current ‘green car’ marketplace and in particular weigh up where we stand with regards to economical, conventionally fueled cars (taking the BMW 116d as a good example) versus hybrid cars (such as the latest version of the Toyota Prius).
Gas powered cars have, to a certain extent, become overlooked by the Green Media as hybrids like the Toyota Prius and combination-fueled motors made all the headlines. Until recently that is, as manufacturers have begun to wake up to the possibility of producing more traditional vehicles that can actually compete with these new technologies - on emissions, fuel efficiency and (most importantly for some) green credibility and style. Enter the BMW 116d, a car that not only posts 60mpg plus (without the aid of any real ‘new’ technology) but carries all the cache of the brand it is now spearheading. BMW, Mercedes, Volkswagen and many other big manufacturers (even GM and other American producers) are now catching up to Japanese and eastern manufacturers in terms of efficient gas engines and diesel technology.
The real media darlings, hybrids like the Toyota Prius and upcoming Chevrolet Volt, have been forced onto the increasingly green-conscious public (worldwide) as the real future for personal transport. But in reality, the infrastructure still does not truly exist to make these cars truly practical in the currently established system of transport. How then, do we go forward? Well, the true challenges to hybrid technology are still to come as in the next 10 years we will likely see either a shift and sustenance of such technology or a backlash as other new technologies (or ever more efficient gas powered traditional cars) hold sway.
To consider the marketplace we have today, the choices you make as a consumer in buying a new car are simple - how do you see the future of green cars and technology, do we reinvent the wheel (as we are already trying to and, to some extent succeeding) or do we just make the original wheel turn that bit easier and go that bit further?
Comments
5 Comments so far
Translator
By N2H
Compare away by all means, but don’t forget that (a) diesel pollutes far more than petrol. How much NOx and particulates does a Prius give off? Zero. (b) here in the UK diesel costs 10p/l more than petrol so a diesel car won’t save money even if it is as economical as a petrol hybrid. (c) to compare like with like cars of similar size should be used - comparing a 1 series BMW with a Prius is daft.
Nobody is saying a Prius is the only way forward. But for over eleven years since its launch the Prius has been clearly the best. I love driving mine so much I will never buy an “ordinary” car again…
Interesting Jerry. Perhaps you are one of the 3 in 10 people (I remember this vividly from a survey I read last year) that actually drive a Prius because they think it will have some environmental benefit. Not just because they think it makes them cool.
I bought my Prius because it is astoundingly cheap to run - 60mpg, £15pa road tax, £170 insurance, even the servicing (to my surprise) is cheap - because it is still, to this day, the cleanest car on sale in Europe, and because it has some nice gadgets like bluetooth, nav. system, etc etc. I don’t care what other people think so am not interested in, and anyway wouldn’t know what is or isn’t cool.
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The difference to the prius (mpg and CO)is not that big and some people (if not a lot) will prefer the premium of driving a bmw (handling, performance, confort, image, design).
Do not forget than the bmw has slightly higher emission and lower mgp, but has a lot more power and performance. So I think if the same tech would be used in a 1.4l diesel engine, it should beat the prius.