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by: GrayRollins
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We are all concerned about the environment and doing our part to take care of it. Of all the purchases we make, the purchase that will have the greatest impact on the environment will be the car we decide to buy. Hybrid cars are an affordable and innovative way to help protect our environment and benefit from the increased fuel mileage.

Even a few short years ago consumers were leery of buying and driving a hybrid. Today that's all changed. Manufacturers like Toyota, Saturn, and Honda can't make enough of them.

So let's take a look at what a hybrid is exactly. We all know they're more fuel efficient, but why? Well, the hybrid has an electric motor (powered by a battery pack) that helps provide power needed with acceleration. The batteries are charging continuously while you drive.

Most "full" hybrids come with a feature called regenerative braking. That means when you slow down that energy is used to charge the batteries.

Another fuel saving innovation is the fact that many hybrid vehicles are simply lighter. They tend to be more aerodynamic and use lighter materials in construction.

In 2004, out of the 17 million vehicles sold there were around 80,000 hybrid vehicles sold. By 2005 that number had increased by 1.2% to 200,000, and now manufacturers can't keep up with the demand for these vehicles.

Nearly all Japanese and American auto manufacturers offer vehicles with hybrid systems. European manufacturers have been a little slower to embrace hybrid vehicles, and have been opting to make more fuel efficient diesel vehicles instead. (as long as it saves me money on gas, I really don't care what they do.)

Right now the top hybrid on the planet would be the Toyota Prius. There are currently over 1,000,000 Prius' on the road right now.

Now that consumer support for the hybrids has arrived, auto manufacturers are increasing the pace at which they introduce hybrid models.

If we had a crystal ball that could see into the future, there's a good chance that what we'd see 20 years down the road would be freeways, highways, and streets that were full of hybrid vehicles. In fact, it's likely that our gas guzzling vehicles of today are about to go the way of the dinosaur as more hybrid cars make it to market.

About the Author

Gray Rollins is a featured writer for FuelSavingZone. You can get all kinds of free gas saving tips and learn about the best gas cards by visiting his site.

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