Monday, June 28, 2004
Hybrid cars
Two of my students are driving a Toyota Prius, the hottest name in automobile world these days, one is driving the 2001 model and the other 2004 model.
When the next day I went to check out our local dealership to have a 'test drive', I was told they don't even have a demo car, it's all sold-out. "Go to Berkeley, they may have a demo car!" How often did you hear a dealership refer you to their competitors?
Next week, Ernie gave me a ride to the class, and I got my first-hand experience on the hybrid.
First of all, I had to say it's very cool to see a car with a almost toy-size gear shifter, and it only has 4 gear positions, Parking, Drive,Neutral, and Brake, the last one is used only when you want to collect more kinetic back to the battery, the reason a hybrid can save energy.
Another thing Ernie proudly showed me was when we were in front of a red-light, I didn't know what he did, but the car was *dead quiet*, without *any* noise, not even a Lexus can do that, haha.
I guess I will do some soul-searching and see if it's worth the pain to wait for 6 months for a Prius, or a Honda Civic hybrid,
When the next day I went to check out our local dealership to have a 'test drive', I was told they don't even have a demo car, it's all sold-out. "Go to Berkeley, they may have a demo car!" How often did you hear a dealership refer you to their competitors?
Next week, Ernie gave me a ride to the class, and I got my first-hand experience on the hybrid.
First of all, I had to say it's very cool to see a car with a almost toy-size gear shifter, and it only has 4 gear positions, Parking, Drive,Neutral, and Brake, the last one is used only when you want to collect more kinetic back to the battery, the reason a hybrid can save energy.
Another thing Ernie proudly showed me was when we were in front of a red-light, I didn't know what he did, but the car was *dead quiet*, without *any* noise, not even a Lexus can do that, haha.
I guess I will do some soul-searching and see if it's worth the pain to wait for 6 months for a Prius, or a Honda Civic hybrid,
