Article: The Hybrid Highway

Great article!

i used to have a similar debate with a guy at work... an electric car fanatic. he just couldn't seem to get it through his head that the "where will the extra electricity come from?!" question was the thing that would kill electric cars. (not to mention the overall efficiency, range, etc., etc.)

but keep in mind that this, too, is a religious debate, underpinned by political and economic forces. the point about Archer-Daniels-Midland is not to be dismissed. the Corn Lobby is a formidable force, and if they think they can shove hydrogen down our throats in order to make more money on growing corn, you can bet they will. if it looks like they'll win, just buy a bunch of their stock! it'll help cover some of your expenses if they win.

but the article's arguments are excellent!

 

I have advocated ethanol for a long time. Isn't it better to use our own abundant farmland and employ our own farmers to run our transportation?
Ethanol can come from any source of biomass. This may be corn or sugar beets in the midwest or hybrid poplar tree groves in the east and northwest. Brazil ran it's cars on ethanol for many years, until the program got derailed by cheap gasoline. We moan about the fact that so many American jobs are going overseas and our trade deficits are growing. Here is a chance to put Americans to work and spend our money here to benefit our own people. What better way to assure national security than to become energy independent?

Here's a challenge to Toyota, if they are truly monitoring this site, as they should be - Offer a dual fuel Prius, Ethanol or Gasoline or any combination thereof, to America. Build it here with American workers, American steel and aluminum, and offer it to us as the New American Freedom Machine. You will gain a market share beyond your wildest dreams and the gratitude of a country in need of a new vision.

Please pardon the soapbox oratory, but this is something I strongly believe in and hope I can persuade others to embrace.

 

I agree, we need more ethanol. I was so excited when they built the first E85 pump on the west coast just a mile from my home. I too wish the prius could run on E85 or higher. Better yet if more stations had E10 we would all be using more ethanol. Every car made after '87 (I think) can run E10.


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