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| Prius: a very cool way to save the planet |
January 4, 2005 |
By Jim Harris
JIM ESTILL IS THE CEO OF SYNNEX CANADA. HE MOVES IN FAIRLY RAREFIED CORPORATE CIRCLES AND HIS PEERS ALL DRIVE A BMW, MERCEDES AND OTHER LUXURY RIDE. JIM, HOWEVER, IS THE PROUD OWNER OF A TOYOTA PRIUS.
The Wow factor is wicked for the Toyota Prius, and Jim likes driving a far cooler car at half the cost of the $60,000-plus autos his colleagues have.
Jim is one of the growing number of buyers who can afford luxury cars but have chosen to do some good for the world instead. Hybrids reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 50 per cent and smog emissions by more than 90 per cent.
Given that the majority of oil and gas in North America is used in the transportation sector, this is clearly an important environmental technology.
Think of a normal car, weighing 2,000 pounds, slowing down from 100km per hour to zero.
All of that kinetic energy is wasted as frictional heat when the brakes clamp down on the brake pads.
A hybrid has two engines — one gas and one electric. The electricity is generated by the electric engine when it serves as a brake, slowing the vehicle. The reclaimed energy is then stored in the car’s batteries, a process called regenerative braking.
The electric engine then kicks in again during acceleration, when cars use the most gas. So the hybrid uses the electric engine as the base engine for acceleration and the gas engine supplements acceleration.
For these reasons, gas consumption is cut by 50 per cent.
SMOG IS KILLING PEOPLE
The Toronto Board of Health estimates up to 1,500 people die every year during the city’s smog alerts. In Ontario alone, respiratory diseases are estimated to cost more than $1 billion a year in health care costs and absenteeism.
One of the primary causes of smog is stop-and-go traffic. The Prius reduces smog emission by more than 90 per cent because the gas engine turns off when the vehicle is stopped. And if the car only needs to inch forward it uses the electric engine.
DOLLAR SAVINGS
Canadians drive an average of 15,000 kilometres a year, and with gas prices at about 80 cents a litre the savings with the Prius come out to about $1,000 a year.
Gas prices will continue to rise, so savings will only increase. At the moment, the car will save $10,000 in gas over a 10 year period, but with the likely rise of gas prices and the value of interest, I predict the car will save $30,000 over a decade. In other words, the car will pay for itself in
gas savings over 10 years.
And consider the advantages for taxis, which drive 10 times the distance of average cars. Andrew Grant is a Yellow Cab driver in Vancouver. In 2001 he bought a Prius and over the next two years put 330,000 kilometres on it. His savings paid for the car in just two years. With today’s higher gas prices, the car will now pay for itself in just 18 months.
PROTECTING THE CANADIAN ECONOMY
In October 2004, oil hit US$55 a barrel — the highest ever in absolute terms.
What will happen when the price shoots up to US$75 a barrel? Or US$100? Our economy will be thrown into toxic shock.
Higher oil prices are inevitable. It’s simple supply and demand economics.
By focusing on building an energy efficiency industry in Canada we can become a world leader in creating “green collar” jobs.
DRIVING THE FUTURE
The current waiting list for a Toyota Prius is two months in Canada and up to six months in the U.S. That should tell car makers everywhere which way the wind is blowing. Honda has been on board with its hybrid Civic and Insight for years, but among North American auto makers only Ford has announced a product, its 2005 Escape SUV.
Hybrids are here to stay, because they increase fuel efficiency, improve the environment and help future-proof the nation against the inevitable economic shock of US$100 per barrel oil. Finally, hybrids are way cool, and so compelling I went out and bought one.
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