(no title)
tw8345 | 1 year ago
As for toyota their new engines and transmissions arent really any better for fuel economy but seem to have reliability issues anyway. I think its more of a problem of too much power as the HP war rages on for more powerful engines.
to11mtm|1 year ago
I mentioned HSD specifically, which refers to a Hybrid Setup where the transmission is typically a setup where in simple form there's a single speed gearbox, two motor/generators (one of which more or less replaces a torque converter to minimize losses) and an electronically controlled clutch for the motor to act in direct drive to, again, minimize losses.
Rav4 Hybrids, Maverick Hybrids, Escape hybrids all have pretty good overall reliability track records as far as the engine/transmission goes (interestingly, some of the Ford models have a 'potential recall' on some VIN ranges but it seems like a supplier issue on the crankshafts... which TBH sounds like it hit other manufacturers e.x. Toyota.)
The 'simple' Hybrid model like this typically involves:
- A boring engine with atkinson-style capable VVT. Ford normally uses a variant of a Mazda design that is well proven, You don't need direct injection or turbos, AFAIK even Toyota follows the same pattern (unless they're doing D4S now... but doubt it based on observations of hybrids in the winter)
- Transmission like noted above
- A battery between 1.3 and 3.0 Killowatt hours (probably closer to 2.0 median tho). For comparison a tesla model 3 starts at ~50Kwh battery, costs for maintenance are overblown on hybrids frequently.
- A mileage above 35MPG for something like a Rav4/Maverick/Escape hybrid. Far more for a Prius sized/profiled vehicle.
- Maybe 1-2 seconds of torque decently above 200 lb-ft of torque in a burst, again on something like a 2.5 liter.
> I think its more of a problem of too much power as the HP war rages on for more powerful engines.
Yeah people miss the point there. Most people really want torque to help get them to a highway driving speed safely enough to deal with the rest of the folks out there and have enough HP to get to necessary evasion speed. (And, a transmission that can keep up with that.) For >90% of my driving, the Hybrid gives me enough 'oomph' compared to my older M/T WRX that, well, the WRX now has a maintenance backlog (FML).
If you can hit >200 pound feet in a compact to midsize (C/D class), frankly, that's enough. The average person on the highway being able to hit 0-60 in <10 seconds is often a liability, because it makes them overconfident.