Hybrid Car Pollution

How much do hybrid cars pollute compared to conventional gas only powered cars? This article will focus on the carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction and fuel savings realized by 2010 hybrid vehicles. CO2 reductions are a function of reduced fuel use. Every gallon of gasoline or diesel burned in the internal combustion engine (ICE) produces water, a host of complex hydrocarbon compounds, and about 20 pounds of CO2. So, the less gas you burn, the less CO2 you make. Hybrids get better fuel economy than their pure ICE counterparts, use less gas, and produce less CO2.

Below is a list (pardon the formatting) of hybrids, gas savings in percent, and CO2 savings in percent. The savings are the percent less from the hybrids as compared to their gasoline only powered counterparts. Except the Prius: the Toyota Prius was compared to the Toyota Corolla using the same (1.8L) engine. Vehicle.....................................Gas.......CO2 Toyota Prius...............................38%.....42% Ford Fusion Hybrid FWD..............31%.....36% Honda Civic Hybrid......................28%.....31% Lexus HS 250h...........................28%.....30% Lexus RX 450h............................28%.....30% Lexus GS 450h............................13%.....13% Nissan Altima Hybrid.....................19%.....21% Ford Escape Hybrid FWD..............23%.....26% Mazda Tribute Hybrid 2WD............23%.....26% Lincoln MKZ FWD Hybrid...............31%.....36% Mercury Mariner Hybrid FWD..........25%.....29% Mercury Milan Hybrid FWD..............31%.....36% Toyota Camry Hybrid.....................18%.....24% Ford Escape Hybrid 4WD................19%.....24% Mazda Tribute Hybrid 4WD.............19%.....21% Mercury Mariner Hybrid 4WD..........19%.....24% Toyota Highlander Hybrid 4WD......23%.....26% Chevrolet Malibu Hybrid...................8%.....11% Saturn Vue Hybrid........................21%.....20% Chevy Silverado Hybrid 2WD...........16%.....23% GMC Sierra 15 Hybrid 2WD.............16%.....23% Cadillac Escalade Hybrid 2WD..........35%.....27% Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid 2WD..........30%.....23% GMC Yukon 1500 Hybrid 2WD.........16%.....23% Chevy Silverado 15 Hybrid 4WD......16%.....19% GMC Sierra 15 Hybrid 4WD.............16%.....19% Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid 4WD..........30%.....19% Mercedes Benz S400 Hybrid...........16%.....15% BMW ActiveHybrid X6......................11%.....6% Average........................................21%.....23% The Prius shows the most savings over it's gasoline counterpart. The Prius is rated the most fuel efficient vehicle in the US. It shows the largest reduction in carbon (CO2) output as well. The car emits 42% less CO2 than its gas powered counterpart. The Chevy Malibu shows the least carbon reduction followed by the BMW X6. The Malibu is a bit of a surprise, but is available in an E85 version that emits less CO2 than the regular gas version. As you can see, the average CO2 reduction for all of these vehicles is 23%. This is certainly an improvement over standard vehicles. However, this analysis did not take into account the numbers of each vehicle sold. For example, since the Prius is way out in front in terms of sales figures, the 23% average would very likely be skewed upward to around say 30% (just a, estimate) of so total average reduction. Finally, you need to consider that if people think they are polluting less, they might feel it is OK to drive more. More driving = more gas burned. Also, as demand for cars grows in China for example, more cars = more pollution. More cars sold is seen as a po