[s-cars] VLAC

[LL - NY]

Autoweek has a long term Prius in their fleet. You may wish to attempt
to read their articles on the car if you are considering one. They appear
to be getting less and less enamored of the car, the longer and longer they've
had it. It has been getting fuel milage on par with a Jetta TDI, and it appears
to be considerably less fun to drive. Worth your read if your thinking of one.

LL - NY

On 4/24/05, Varon H. Fugman <vfugman at globaldialog.com> wrote:
> My, what a popular topic!
> 
> I'll throw in my vote for the Acura TSX... nice handling for a front-driver
> (but not enough power to be a potential urS6 replacement.)  Subaru Legacy GT
> good on the non-OOOO AWD side.  Or consider a Saab 9-3 or 9-5... not a
> German car for sure, but again nice handling for a front-drive and the
> 4-cylinder turbo has a plenty of torque.
> 
> On the hybrid side, the Toyota Prius is the only way to go.  With the Honda,
> the small gasoline engine runs all the time with an assist from the electric
> motor.  The Prius is a full hybrid, and can travel for several blocks on
> electric motor power only.  You don't get to shift for yourself, but this
> automatic is no slushbox.  In fact, it is the most sophisticated drivetrain
> in a current production vehicle.  The Prius actually has two electric
> motors, one the prime mover when running on electric power, the other is
> hooked to the engine via a planatary gearset and controls the power flow
> between the gasoline engine, the main motor, and the wheels.  It also varies
> the effective ratio of the transmission.  There are no bands, gears to
> shift, torque converter, or even variable diameter pullies.  Very clever!
> 
> But would it be fun to drive on mountin roads?  Not sure, although the
> torque from the electric motor combined with the output of the gasoline
> engine ought to make it a good hill climer (just not a good as a 5-cylinder
> turbo!)  However, unless you do a fair amount of stop-and-go city driving,
> don't look for incredible fuel savings... between regenerative braking and
> shutting of the gasoline engine when not needed, city driving is where the
> hybrid really shines.
> 
> Varon
> 1995 S6--snow car
> 1999 Saab 9-5 SportWagon--rain car
> 1996 Mazda MX-5 Miata--sun car
> --
> Internal Virus Database is out-of-date.
> Checked by AVG Anti-Virus.
> Version: 7.0.308 / Virus Database: 266.9.5 - Release Date: 4/7/2005
> 
> _______________________________________________
> S-CAR-List mailing list
> S-CAR-List at audifans.com
> http://www.audifans.com/mailman/listinfo/s-car-list
>