Here's how my drive of the Honda Accord Hybrid went
As soon as I took the wheel, I was impressed by the level of luxury and the high-quality interior. The leather on the seats is of a good quality, the controls are all easy to read, everything's well done. I won't go into more
detail on this because it's not my specialty. Others do better job at it than me. But what I can mention, its how hybrid vehicles drive, as I can attest to be one of the rare people that know them well.
As usual, sitting behind the wheel, I started looking for the indications on the fuel economy, the charge level, the moment when the system is charging the batteries and when it is replacing or assisting the traditional engine. In order for people that aren't familiar with these indicators understand what I'm talking about, I will try to describe as best as I can.
The fuel consumption indicator
This display indicates clearly the consumption of your vehicle. In general, there is 2 parts to this indicator. The first part displays your fuel consumption in real time. So, when you accelerate, you can see the consumption increase and when you're cruising or slowing down, you can
see your consumption stabilize or decrease. This mileage indicator is an ESSENTIAL tool for any person that wants to learn to drive more efficiently. There is however, a cumulative consumption indicator that allows you to find out your fuel economy after a certain distance. This way, if you reset the counter to zero before going on a trip, you'll be able to see how many litres per 100 km you've achieved during that stretch.
About that consumption indicator: in the beginning of the '80s, numerous vehicle models of every category were equipped with the package, following the gas crisis in the 70s, to help drivers modify their way of driving in order to consume less fuel. But that device disappeared at the end of the '80s. For a few years now, different pressure groups have asked that this be installed on every new car sold in North America to help increase fuel economy. The answer from the manufacturers: a definite no. Too complicated, they said. I can only qualify this lack of collaboration from the main automotive manufacturers as irresponsible. As a matter of fact, if my parents' 1980 Buick Century had such a device, why should it now be so complicated, considering the phenomenal progress in electronics in the last quarter-century?
The charge level indicator:
This indicator has a very simple goal. Its task is to display the charge level in the battery of the hybrid system. We must fully understand that on a hybrid vehicle, there are two battery systems. The first battery is the same type found under the hood of any traditional vehicle, and the second one is hidden and powers the electric motor. So, the charge level indicator does not display the status of the traditional battery, but only the charge level of the battery that powers the electric motor.
As soon as I took the wheel, I was impressed by the level of luxury and the high-quality interior. The leather on the seats is of a good quality, the controls are all easy to read, everything's well done. I won't go into more
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| 2005 Honda Accord Hybrid (Photo: Honda) |
As usual, sitting behind the wheel, I started looking for the indications on the fuel economy, the charge level, the moment when the system is charging the batteries and when it is replacing or assisting the traditional engine. In order for people that aren't familiar with these indicators understand what I'm talking about, I will try to describe as best as I can.
The fuel consumption indicator
This display indicates clearly the consumption of your vehicle. In general, there is 2 parts to this indicator. The first part displays your fuel consumption in real time. So, when you accelerate, you can see the consumption increase and when you're cruising or slowing down, you can
 |
| 2005 Honda Accord Hybrid (Photo: Honda) |
About that consumption indicator: in the beginning of the '80s, numerous vehicle models of every category were equipped with the package, following the gas crisis in the 70s, to help drivers modify their way of driving in order to consume less fuel. But that device disappeared at the end of the '80s. For a few years now, different pressure groups have asked that this be installed on every new car sold in North America to help increase fuel economy. The answer from the manufacturers: a definite no. Too complicated, they said. I can only qualify this lack of collaboration from the main automotive manufacturers as irresponsible. As a matter of fact, if my parents' 1980 Buick Century had such a device, why should it now be so complicated, considering the phenomenal progress in electronics in the last quarter-century?
The charge level indicator:
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| 2005 Honda Accord Hybrid (Photo: Honda) |