Electric cars: Greener, cleaner driving 71ful, drivers who were used to a convenient ill-up at the nearest service station were not ready to
trust a car powered by a battery that might run out of juice in the middle of the highway. As a
result, the electric car died a premature death.
9 When Toyota launched the Prius in 1997 in Japan, the breakthrough hybrid gas-electric car
looked like a best-of-both-worlds solution. here are two types of hybrids: series hybrids, which
use a small gasoline or diesel engine to generate the power that drives an electric motor and
recharges the battery pack, and parallel hybrids, which can switch between a gasoline engine and
an electric motor, depending on the power needed for driving. Electric motors work best for
acceleration, while gasoline engines produce a steady speed on the highway. Hybrid cars are light,
compact, quiet, and fuel- and energy-eicient, and some shut of automatically when the car is
stopped at a traic light. Conversely, hybrids are more expensive to purchase, service, and main-
tain, and their high-voltage battery can be dangerous in an accident or fail to charge fully in
colder climate conditions. Although hybrids are low in emissions, they still give of greenhouse
gases.
10 he Prius has been the front-runner in the hybrid race for market share, and its sales in 70
countries suggest that car buyers are more tuned in to the hybrid’s beneits than its drawbacks. Of
course, every other carmaker has been following on Toyota’s heels with its own hybrid sedan,
coupe, SUV, pickup, van, and luxury models. Judging by the variety of series and parallel hybrids,
including diesel, plug-in, mild, and full hybrids on the market, the hybrid seems to be well on the
road to replacing the conventional internal combustion–powered automobile.
11 Ever since Karl Benz built the irst modern gasoline-powered automobile in Mannheim,
Germany, in 1885, the car has undergone constant metamorphosis. To see how cars keep up with
the times, all anyone has to do is attend an annual automobile show or subscribe to an automobile
publication. Whereas car manufacturers have been more concerned in the past with styling and
performance, they are beginning to focus more on making cleaner and greener cars, which makes
one wonder what cars will look like down the road. In 10 or 20 years, will we be driving a new
generation of hybrids, or will the electric models make a comeback? Will people be cruising down
the highways in cars powered by hydrogen fuel cells, or motoring around town in mini Smart
cars? Will cars, at some point, be able to ly?
12 In any case, people are not likely to abandon their cars, even if cities build more eicient,
afordable, and environmentally friendly public transportation systems. People’s love afair with
the car is still going strong, and if car manufacturers have their way, it will not cool down any
time soon.After reading
In the Pre-reading section, check to see if your predictions about the reading text were correct.