Essay on Our Future with Hybrid Cars

At the turn of the century (the last one), gasoline-powered cars did not dominate the streets. Steam and electricity vied with gasoline for the affection of consumers. For awhile it was an open question as to which would eventually dominate. A similar situation exists today--or will, in the very near future. Gasoline-powered cars will share the roads with vehicles powered by other forms of fuel or "hybrids" that use a combination of power sources. This is the growing consensus among automotive engineers. I believe that the opinion that the end of the internal combustion engine will come, and that it will be replaced by the fuel cell era, is not correct. Rather I believe that there will be a time when various engines and power sources will exist simultaneously. (Alternative Road Transport Fuels 1996)
It is already happening. Honda has just begun selling its sporty Insight two-seater, a vehicle that uses a highly-efficient three-cylinder gasoline engine and electric motor/rechargeable battery pack in tandem. In the next few weeks, Toyota will enter the fray as well with the four-seat Prius--a vehicle similar in concept, which also uses a small, internal combustion engine/electric motor tandem power team. These cars represent the cutting edge of so-called "hybrid" vehicle technology, which uses the best aspects of each power source to minimize the liabilities of the other.

Since the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt, engineers have been improving the basic design of the elemental 4-stroke (intake, compression, ignition, exhaust) piston engine. All of this work has paid off handsomely and given the IC engine a tremendous leg up on other types of propulsion. It is self-contained, and carries its easily replaceable fuel source with it. Turn the key, and the modern, fuel-injected IC engine starts right up. There are no complicated gizmos to operate, no weird dials or indicators to fret over.

But there are teething pains to be overcome before these futuristic technologies become any real competition to the hegemonic control of the straight-up, gasoline-burning internal combustion engine. The writing may be on the wall--but it will be years before we notice any major changes in the cars most of us drive. The internal combustion (IC) engine is one of the few 19th-century technologies that will continue to dominate our lives well into the 21st century. And it reigns supreme, air pollution concerns notwithstanding, because it is nearly perfect as an automotive powerplant................

ESSAYS ON TECHNOLOGY