Bbc -topgear

T

ttbonnie

Guest
this i thought was funny enough to share, if you havent seen the show check it out-
they were doing a test on economical sports cars
the winner audi r8 hab 5 mpg-
looser ferrarri 1.7 mpg

the next was a toyota prius vs a BMW m3(435 hp)
the test was the bmw had to keep pace with the prius
at full throtal the toyota got 17.2 MPG
the M3- 19+

also the enviormental damage to produce a prius is worse than a driving a landrover discovery!

there bottom line was change your driving habbits.
an old friend of mine always said more cylinders/HP less is required to produce the same effects (4 banger at 70mph vs v8 at 70 mph)

and one for us over 40 MPG cruising at 80MPH +/- :chair:
beating the heck out of 4 wheel vehicles
tt..
 
neuroboy

neuroboy

750cc
bottom line is there are no hard and fast rules. for example, here's an article that suggests that hybrid is only "greener" than buying a used car with good mileage (corolla, etc) if you use it for 10 years--otherwise the economy car uses less resources to own and drive.

and just because a land rover takes less resources to build than a prius (because of the lack of a battery) doesn't mean that gulf in mileage between it and a hybrid doesn't come into play. . . but i think the guys on top gear acquitted themselves nicely in saying that the bottom line is how you drive a car that makes the difference.
 
S

sgt brad

Scooter
yep and now we've got the epa wanting to tax cow farts as well. we've got a buttload of oil in the gulf and alaska, but the idiots won't let us at it despite the fact that the alaska pipeline has been functioning basically problem free for 45 years!!! we've got an entire army standing on top of one of the largest oil fields in the middle east and we are paying iraq with our tax dollars, but the idiots cry "no blood for oil" as people last winter froze to death in massachusettes because they couldn't afford the heating oil. we've got an eight year record of global cooling backed up with science and data rather than hypotheses and speculation like the global warming weenies. we've got idiots that would sink a fishing trawler to save a harp seal, but demand the right to abort an infant. it's insane. i admit that constantly dumping on mother nature is stupid, but we are going to regulate, tax and legislate ourselves right out of existence as a nation. i wonder how well the environmental movement is going to get traction when we all speak russian, mandarin, chinese, farsi, arabic or whatever. taxing farting cows...good grief!!!!!
 
Thruxtonian

Thruxtonian

Street Tracker
Thruxie, Pls explain. Why can't you use jaws 'o life on a Prius? I'd like to know, in case I'm on a scene with FD, I can either stop 'em or run the other way...
 
sweatmachine

sweatmachine

moped
I have a 2006 VW Jetta TDI (diesel). My girlfriend's parents both drive almost brand new (2007 or 2008) hybrids. Her dad has a Prius (ugly as sin) and her mom has a Civic Hybrid (also ugly, but relatively speaking it's ok).

Both of their cars are pathetically slow (and did I mention ugly?) and don't get near the mileage they expected especially on the highway. My car has had the ECU reprogrammed for more boost from the turbo, more aggressive fuel map/timing/etc and it is pretty damned fast for what it is. I used to drive an Integra, and my TDI will smoke it. Before I had the chip work done ($300) it was pretty slow, but it made a huge difference in power. I get 35-38 mpg in the city and 40-45 mpg on the highway. Plus, my car blows black smoke when I hit the gas!
 
D

drlapo

Hooligan
here is my idea for the perfect car:
5 seat subcompact
5 speed manual trans
2 cyl 500cc diesel constant speed engine to drive an AC motor gen set
Silicon rectifier to change AC to DC
DC electric motor to drive wheels
the diesl motor would run at a constant, most efficient, speed to charge batteries to power the electirc motor
during deceleration and braking the motor/gen would also charge the batteries
and a soundtrack through the radio so that when the driver pushes on the "gas" pedal it goes "VROOOM VROOOM"
 
D

draggin

Scooter
Thruxtonian said:
Thruxie, Pls explain. Why can't you use jaws 'o life on a Prius? I'd like to know, in case I'm on a scene with FD, I can either stop 'em or run the other way...
Click to expand...
There are high voltage lines running through the body panels, so if you use the jaws to fold the panels back, it can kink or strech the wires, causing a short, then... well BOOM.

SO if you get one, make sure you are willing to die to be green!
 
Paddyboy30

Paddyboy30

Two Stroke
draggin said:
There are high voltage lines running through the body panels, so if you use the jaws to fold the panels back, it can kink or strech the wires, causing a short, then... well BOOM.

SO if you get one, make sure you are willing to die to be green!
Click to expand...

That's pretty much right. I went through a course with my volunteer fire company on vehicle rescues with newer vehicles, and hybrids of all sorts pose a very dangerous situation because of the high voltage lines. Added to that are curtain airbags located above the doors and in the roof pillars that can virtually explode if cut assuming that they haven't gone off as a result of the crash. The very safety features on new vehicles make it very dangerous for emergency responders to safely remove victims from their cars.
 
D

dscott3509

Two Stroke
sweatmachine said:
I have a 2006 VW Jetta TDI (diesel). My girlfriend's parents both drive almost brand new (2007 or 2008) hybrids. Her dad has a Prius (ugly as sin) and her mom has a Civic Hybrid (also ugly, but relatively speaking it's ok).

Both of their cars are pathetically slow (and did I mention ugly?) and don't get near the mileage they expected especially on the highway. My car has had the ECU reprogrammed for more boost from the turbo, more aggressive fuel map/timing/etc and it is pretty damned fast for what it is. I used to drive an Integra, and my TDI will smoke it. Before I had the chip work done ($300) it was pretty slow, but it made a huge difference in power. I get 35-38 mpg in the city and 40-45 mpg on the highway. Plus, my car blows black smoke when I hit the gas!
Click to expand...

I had a 2001 TDI Jetta. Never chipped the thing, but loved the mileage. Sadly, it started having all kinds of electrical problems at 50k miles. I burned through 8 glow plugs, 4 glow plug harnesses, and a few other electrical issues. Paid for 2 glow plugs, and all other work was done under warranty. Traded it in after the final glow plug harness replacement was done.
 
Paddyboy30

Paddyboy30

Two Stroke
curezee said:
Yes any Hurst or jaws cutting or opening rescue tool + a hybrid = BAD!
Click to expand...


Hurst? Jaws?? forget those! You need a good set of Holmatro Rescue tools! Granted my Chief is a Holmatro rep, but after using Hurst and Holmatro, there's not much comparison :)
 
sweatmachine

sweatmachine

moped
dscott3509 said:
I had a 2001 TDI Jetta. Never chipped the thing, but loved the mileage. Sadly, it started having all kinds of electrical problems at 50k miles. I burned through 8 glow plugs, 4 glow plug harnesses, and a few other electrical issues. Paid for 2 glow plugs, and all other work was done under warranty. Traded it in after the final glow plug harness replacement was done.
Click to expand...

sorry to hear that. I have just over 70k miles on mine with no issues (knock on wood).
 
D

dscott3509

Two Stroke
I have a friend who has 150k on his with no problems. I just got unlucky with a bad one off the line. It was a fun car, though.
 
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