Prius Outdoes Hummer in Environmental Damage

[GaryC 7]

The Toyota Prius has become the flagship car for those in our society so environmentally conscious that they are willing to spend a premium to show the world how much they care. Unfortunately for them, their ultimate ‘green car’ is the source of some of the worst pollution in North America; it takes more combined energy per Prius to produce than a Hummer.

Before we delve into the seedy underworld of hybrids, you must first understand how a hybrid works. For this, we will use the most popular hybrid on the market, the Toyota Prius.

The Prius is powered by not one, but two engines: a standard 76 horsepower, 1.5-liter gas engine found in most cars today and a battery- powered engine that deals out 67 horsepower and a whooping 295ft/lbs of torque, below 2000 revolutions per minute. Essentially, the Toyota Synergy Drive system, as it is so called, propels the car from a dead stop to up to 30mph. This is where the largest percent of gas is consumed. As any physics major can tell you, it takes more energy to get an object moving than to keep it moving. The battery is recharged through the braking system, as well as when the gasoline engine takes over anywhere north of 30mph. It seems like a great energy efficient and environmentally sound car, right?

You would be right if you went by the old government EPA estimates, which netted the Prius an incredible 60 miles per gallon in the city and 51 miles per gallon on the highway. Unfortunately for Toyota, the government realized how unrealistic their EPA tests were, which consisted of highway speeds limited to 55mph and acceleration of only 3.3 mph per second. The new tests which affect all 2008 models give a much more realistic rating with highway speeds of 80mph and acceleration of 8mph per second. This has dropped the Prius’s EPA down by 25 percent to an average of 45mpg. This now puts the Toyota within spitting distance of cars like the Chevy Aveo, which costs less then half what the Prius costs.

However, if that was the only issue with the Prius, I wouldn’t be writing this article. It gets much worse.

Building a Toyota Prius causes more environmental damage than a Hummer that is on the road for three times longer than a Prius. As already noted, the Prius is partly driven by a battery which contains nickel. The nickel is mined and smelted at a plant in Sudbury, Ontario. This plant has caused so much environmental damage to the surrounding environment that NASA has used the ‘dead zone’ around the plant to test moon rovers. The area around the plant is devoid of any life for miles.

The plant is the source of all the nickel found in a Prius’ battery and Toyota purchases 1,000 tons annually. Dubbed the Superstack, the plague-factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist’s nightmare.

“The acid rain around Sudbury was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside,” said Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin during an interview with Mail, a British-based newspaper.

All of this would be bad enough in and of itself; however, the journey to make a hybrid doesn’t end there. The nickel produced by this disastrous plant is shipped via massive container ship to the largest nickel refinery in Europe. From there, the nickel hops over to China to produce ‘nickel foam.’ From there, it goes to Japan. Finally, the completed batteries are shipped to the United States, finalizing the around-the-world trip required to produce a single Prius battery. Are these not sounding less and less like environmentally sound cars and more like a farce?

Wait, I haven’t even got to the best part yet.

When you pool together all the combined energy it takes to drive and build a Toyota Prius, the flagship car of energy fanatics, it takes almost 50 percent more energy than a Hummer - the Prius’s arch nemesis.

Through a study by CNW Marketing called “Dust to Dust,” the total combined energy is taken from all the electrical, fuel, transportation, materials (metal, plastic, etc) and hundreds of other factors over the expected lifetime of a vehicle. The Prius costs an average of $3.25 per mile driven over a lifetime of 100,000 miles - the expected lifespan of the Hybrid.

The Hummer, on the other hand, costs a more fiscal $1.95 per mile to put on the road over an expected lifetime of 300,000 miles. That means the Hummer will last three times longer than a Prius and use less combined energy doing it.

So, if you are really an environmentalist - ditch the Prius. Instead, buy one of the most economical cars available - a Toyota Scion xB. The Scion only costs a paltry $0.48 per mile to put on the road. If you are still obsessed over gas mileage - buy a Chevy Aveo and fix that lead foot.

One last fun fact for you: it takes five years to offset the premium price of a Prius. Meaning, you have to wait 60 months to save any money over a non-hybrid car because of lower gas expenses.

http://clubs.ccsu.edu/Recorder/editorial/p....asp?NewsID=188

[Saddle Bronc 124]

It sounds like I could import a Hyundai Terracan (2.9 L, 162 bhp DICOR) or Mahindra Scorpio (2.6 L, 116 bhp DICOR) for cheaper total cost than the Prius.

(and the Terracan and Scorpio are a little smaller than a Hummer--about the size of a Jeep Liberty).

[Ban Hammer 13,110]

another inconvenient truth

[Cassie 8]

Sorry, not going to trade mine in!

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

One last fun fact for you: it takes five years to offset the premium price of a Prius. Meaning, you have to wait 60 months to save any money over a non-hybrid car because of lower gas expenses.

http://clubs.ccsu.edu/Recorder/editorial/p....asp?NewsID=188

Yup. Hybrids are for people with money to burn.

[natty bumppo 289]

You can send the Hummer here ... My wife would love to have one.

(Don't worry it will have a really good home)

[Empress of Groovy 373]

Hi, all

Just to add to the debate...

These links are worth checking out:

The Hummer vs. the Prius

And for a bit more detail:

Prius Versus HUMMER: Exploding the Myth

CNW Marketing Research, based in Bandon, Oregon, produced the report claiming that the Hummer is environmentally superior to the Prius. It looks like they (he?) could use a Webmaster and maybe a marketing department. Check out their/his site, which I think speaks for itself: CNW Research

[Portlander 0]

A hummer getting 300,000 miles? Bullsh!t. Total bullsh!t. Hummers these days are second rate engines that won't get half as far as a Toyota. Who makes up this stuff?

More realistic acceleration of 8 MPH? Thats 0-60 in 7.5 seconds. Thats seriously leadfooted driving!! Also, they "forgot" to mention that inertia is completely overcome by the electric motor. The standing start uses no gas at all in a Prius. Also, the Ni/Ca get recycled, or at least are supposed to be.

The article didn't say a danged thing about biofuels. I am starting to smell the author's agenda.

That being said, I don't wholly disagree. My sister has a 30 year old VW Dasher that today, out of tune, gets better gas milage than a new Prius. The net gen or Prius' are supposed to get 80+ MPG, and thats great and all, but VW had a motor that gets 100+ bank in the 80s that got purchased and shelved by the oil companies. It is entirely possible to get far better gas milage without going electric.

Also, the amount of resources it takes to build the car itself should be taken into consideration. However, just about the whole thing gets recycled.

[natty bumppo 289]

Hi, all

Just to add to the debate...

These links are worth checking out:

The Hummer vs. the Prius

And for a bit more detail:

Prius Versus HUMMER: Exploding the Myth

CNW Marketing Research, based in Bandon, Oregon, produced the report claiming that the Hummer is environmentally superior to the Prius. It looks like they (he?) could use a Webmaster and maybe a marketing department. Check out their/his site, which I think speaks for itself: CNW Research

Don't worry ... send the Hummer. She won't turn it away

[Portlander 0]

Good links, AOS.... The research company is

CNW Marketing Research's Vista del Lago conference center has hosted executive sessions for automotive executives. While some major renovations continue, the Center is accepting Session dates for 2007.

Sessions now include golf outings at one of the country's best golf courses, Bandon Dunes and Pacific Dunes. Click here to go to Bandon Dunes' web site.

sounds Fair and Balanced to me...

I like how the Hummer getting 379,000 miles while the Prius gets 109,000. Propaganda 101

[Saddle Bronc 124]

A hummer getting 300,000 miles? Bullsh!t. Total bullsh!t. Hummers these days are second rate engines that won't get half as far as a Toyota. Who makes up this stuff?

More realistic acceleration of 8 MPH? Thats 0-60 in 7.5 seconds. Thats seriously leadfooted driving!! Also, they "forgot" to mention that inertia is completely overcome by the electric motor. The standing start uses no gas at all in a Prius. Also, the Ni/Ca get recycled, or at least are supposed to be.

Ni/Cd batteries have never been used for automobiles, as they don't produce enough current (cold-crank-amps). These are NiMH (Nickel-metal-hydride).

They were sometimes called Nicad, but never NiCa (which would be inaccurate, as it's the wrong element anyway--the batteries use Cadmium, the same as nuclear-reactor control rods).

[Reba 2]

Building a Toyota Prius causes more environmental damage than a Hummer that is on the road for three times longer than a Prius. As already noted, the Prius is partly driven by a battery which contains nickel. The nickel is mined and smelted at a plant in Sudbury, Ontario. This plant has caused so much environmental damage to the surrounding environment that NASA has used the ‘dead zone’ around the plant to test moon rovers. The area around the plant is devoid of any life for miles.

The plant is the source of all the nickel found in a Prius’ battery and Toyota purchases 1,000 tons annually. Dubbed the Superstack, the plague-factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist’s nightmare.

“The acid rain around Sudbury was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside,” said Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin during an interview with Mail, a British-based newspaper.

ah yes, gotta love propaganda. They way they use out of date information like it happened only yesterday.

Here's some up to date info on Sudbury and the INCO nickle mines for ya:

Inco in Sudbury has made significant investments to improve its environmental performance, including close to $700 million (Cdn. $1 billion) in equipment and technology upgrades to drastically reduce sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions. Since the 1970s, we have reduced annual SO2 emissions by 90 per cent. In 2003, we initiated construction of a Cdn. $ 115 million fluid bed roaster, which was completed in the spring of 2006. This new facility is set to reduce SO2 emissions by an additional 90 kilotonnes by the end of 2006.

Yes, recent (2001) soil test still do show above normal levels of metals, however, that can be said for just about any neighbourhood *anywhere* there's a mine or manufacturing plant producing heavy metals. There are neighbourhoods in Toronto that still have heavy lead content because of old munitions factories and garbage incinerators from the 30s and 40s. As I'm sure there are neighbourhoods with similar problems in the US. Incidently, INCO has been mining nickel in Sudbury since the mid 1800s. 100+ years of mining will tend to show effects, no doubt.

as for the "Dead Zone"

The ore deposits in Sudbury are part of a large geological structure known as the Sudbury Basin, believed to be the remnants of a 1.85-billion year old meteorite impact crater. Sudbury ore contains profitable amounts of many elements, especially transition metals, including platinum. It also contains an unusually high concentration of sulfur. When nickel-copper ore is smelted, this sulfur is released into the environment, where it is toxic to vegetation. Carried aloft, it combines with atmospheric water to form sulfuric acid. This contaminates atmospheric water, resulting in a phenomenon known as acid rain.

As a result, Sudbury was widely, although not entirely accurately, known for many years as a wasteland. In parts of the city, vegetation was devastated, both by acid rain and by logging to provide fuel for early smelting techniques, as well as wood for the reconstruction of Chicago after the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. The resulting erosion exposed bedrock, which was charred in most places to a pitted, dark black appearance. There was not a complete lack of vegetation in the region, however. Paper birch and wild blueberry are notable examples of plants which thrived in the acidic soils, and even during the worst years of the city's environmental damage, not all parts of the city were equally affected.

During the Apollo manned lunar exploration program, NASA astronauts trained in Sudbury, to become familiar with shatter cones, a rare rock formation connected with meteorite impacts. However, the popular misconception that they were visiting Sudbury because it purportedly resembled the lifeless surface of the moon dogged the city for years.

And Sudbury today...

Regreening Program

Regreening is an important and visible part of Inco's significant Environmental Stewardship program. Inco has received international acclaim for our contribution to reclaiming the Sudbury landscape, both on our own property and on public lands through the Vegetation Enhancement Technical Advisory Committee of the City of Greater Sudbury. While the effects of early lumbering and mining practices are still visible, reforestation is gradually returning the area landscape to its natural state. Using both surface and underground greenhouses, Inco grows some 250,000 seedlings each year for reforestation purposes. We have transformed thousands of acres of land affected by air emissions into parkland, bird sanctuaries and wildlife habitat. Today, we are integrating reclamation into the earliest stages of new project development.

So, Hummer, or Prius? Get the facts straight, then decide

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

I stopped reading when they talked about the 300K miles that a hummer will go.

Everyone knows that no American made car will ever last that long.

[homesick_american 1]

I stopped reading when they talked about the 300K miles that a hummer will go.

Everyone knows that no American made car will ever last that long.

My dad's old Chevy K-5 Blazer lasted from 1976 until 1996, when we sold it. It probably graced Dallas's roads for a few more years after that. When he sold it it had about 300,000 miles on it. Then again it only got 8mpg highway.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Hi, all

Just to add to the debate...

These links are worth checking out:

The Hummer vs. the Prius

And for a bit more detail:

Prius Versus HUMMER: Exploding the Myth

CNW Marketing Research, based in Bandon, Oregon, produced the report claiming that the Hummer is environmentally superior to the Prius. It looks like they (he?) could use a Webmaster and maybe a marketing department. Check out their/his site, which I think speaks for itself: CNW Research

Why the comparison was even made is silly.