By Stephen M. Wheeler

Remember how expensive gasoline prices were last summer? As motorists, we’ve lived and “drived” with the fluctuating costs of fossil fuels. Now, with America’s desire to be less dependent on foreign oil, and stricter environmental laws coming into effect, we can expect to see more alternative fuel cars in the near future. Leading that convoy is the hybrid electric vehicle (HEV).

What’s an HEV?
Automakers have been experimenting with alternative fuel sources for years. Compressed natural gas, propane, even totally electric cars are in use today,but each have drawbacks that have prevented them from becoming mainstream. Enter the hybrid—part electric motor, part gasoline engine. Virtually indistinguishable from your standard car, an HEV is a technological breakthrough in engine efficiency. By utilizing clean, electric energy, less gasoline power is consumed. The result: better gas mileage and far fewer tailpipe emissions.

Two HEV cars are already on the market—the Honda Insight and the Toyota Prius. Ford, Chrysler, GM and other major auto manufacturers are close behind.

Same but Different
We’re not talking about an electric golf cart. Today’s HEVs have the look, feel and handling of a standard car. They can go from 0–60 mph in approximately 10 seconds. They have top end speeds that will earn you a stiff speeding ticket. They exceed all Federal safety standards. They’re everything you’re used to, plus a little more. Since an HEV gets double, or triple, your current gas mileage, you could save literally hundreds of dollars per year at the gas pump—not to mention time.

The Honda Insight is the current mileage leader at nearly 70 miles per gallon. With a ten-gallon tank, the Insight can travel approximately 700 miles before refueling. For many people, that might mean filling up the gas tank just once or twice a month.

Likewise, you’ll be significantly reducing the harmful emissions to our air and environment by driving an HEV. Both the Honda Insight with automatic transmission and the Toyota Prius qualify as super ultra low emission vehicles (California Air Resources Board), producing just 8% of the emissions of today’s standard cars.

How do they work?
An HEV actually has two advanced power sources under the hood, an electric motor with batteries and a gasoline engine. While the specifics vary between automakers, generally one or both sources supply power to the car when accelerating. When coasting or at a stop, the gas engine disengages. It is started again instantaneously when the accelerator is depressed.

Also, when braking or slowing down, energy is captured from forward momentum and used to recharge the electric motor’s batteries. (In a standard vehicle, this energy is wasted.) This self-charging, called regenerative braking, means you will never have to “plug in” your hybrid electric vehicle for a battery charge.

The Future
You can expect to see more HEVs later this year. Honda is expected to debut the Honda Civic HEV, the Civic being its second best-selling model; and Ford is expected to release the Ford Escape HEV, a sports utility vehicle that will get an unheard of 40 miles per gallon.

The gasoline combustion engine has served us for more than one hundred years. The hybrid gas and electric engine’s life span may be far shorter. Researchers are now focusing on hydrogen fuel cells to power cars for greater power efficiency and even lower-to-zero emissions. Perhaps the HEV in your future will be a hybrid hydrogen and electric car.

Whatever the future may hold, we know this: while gasoline powered engines may one day go the way of the dinosaur, the comfort, safety and familiarity of today’s vehicles will be with us for many, many more miles down the road.