Drive to a Safer Future

Leaves rumbling on the surface as a machine approaches and as it passes aggressively the leaves flutter up in the air. Then the car company says some wise statement on how the hybrid is the next best thing. This would be a typical car commercial to show how the hybrid is good for the environment as well still able to perform its tasks. This is what I used to think until I did research to find the truth. The truth is hybrid cars aren’t as good as everyone thought, and gas cars are still the better choice until we find solutions to make the hybrid better, through research and modification.


As gas flows through the car and burns to make the engine run, it releases carbon dioxide which penetrates the protective ozone layer in the Earths atmosphere and slowly disintegrates it, allowing more harmful Ultra-Violet sun rays to reach Earth and unleash harm upon people’s bodies. Usually the invisible ozone layer beyond our skies would stop most of these rays but now we are witnessing an increase in the amount of Ultra-Violet rays that the Earth’s surface is receiving. Over time, this will raise the average temperature of the world. They say this could cause major problems as the ice caps melt and the water levels rise. Also, according to the Environmental Protection Agency of The United States, (EPA), these Ultra-violet rays can cause tremendous harmful effects such as skin cancer, cataracts, suppression of the immune system and, premature aging of the skin. This is because the Ultra-Violet rays penetrate the skin and alter the DNA causing these diseases.


In the past decade, the race has been in full swing toward developing electric vehicles or a hybrid vehicle that uses less or no gas at all, this way we can reduce the harmful exhaust fumes, one car at a time. A hybrid consists of a traditional combustion engine and a battery powered motor, using both to power the car, using less gas and with higher miles per gallon. Hybrids have become increasingly commonplace in our society because of how successful and useful they are in less extensive vehicles and machines, but unfortunately the hybrid car also has negative effects on the environment. The hybrid has a big, chemically toxic battery that is very hard to dispose of and that degenerates faster than traditional car batteries. It lasts only about 80,000 miles before a replacement that is expensive harmful to the environment is needed. Normal gas cars have smaller batteries used for the electricity in the car and can last the whole life of the car and are still cheap to fix or replace. Because the hybrid has a larger toxic battery and still has carbon dioxide emissions, it is still as much as a threat to the environment as a conventional gas-powered car. On the other hand, fully electric cars use only lithium ion batteries to power the car, simply plug it in to your house to charge when your power run low. The electric car is still relatively rare in America but the Chevy Volt, Nissan Leaf, and the whole Tesla Company have started building cars that can be used and charged in our homes, and many people are eager to buy them. Unfortunately these cars have even larger batteries, compared to both gas-powered and hybrid vehicles, that can cost up to $30,000 when a replacement is needed. Replacement can range from 5-10 years depending on how you treat the battery. So it would be more expensive and all the batteries would be disposed in a way that would harm the environment. It’s really a no win situation because you’re harming the environment as well as spending thousands of dollars. In this economy we also need to save money and that means finding a car worth the money.


The average price of a new car powered only by gas is about $25,000-30,000, but this seemingly high price is deceiving because of the large amount of gas cars on the market on both ends of the spectrum. The average cost to purchase a new hybrid based car is $19,000-25,000. Electric cars are extremely difficult to put an average price on because they can range from $31,000 to a whopping $110,000. That’s because electric cars are either really high end such as the Tesla Roadster or middle class cars such as the Nissan Leaf or the Chevy Volt. Now we want to save money as well as save the environment.


We begin to think, “How we will affect the environment with our new array of toys?” The gas affects the ozone by creating Carbon dioxide when burned allowing more Ultra-Violet rays to hit the earth and harm our bodies and raise temperatures. With gas prices averaging around $3.20 for each gallon, so filling up a car with a 15 gallon gas tank it would take approximately $48. When you fill up your gas tank once a week you will end up paying around $2,496 a year. On the other hand, the hybrid car, receives approximately double the miles per gallon it would be half the price so like $1200 a year, saving half the money. Lastly, the electric car would pay approximately $0.75 for every gallon a normal gas car would need. This adds up to about $600 a year, which is obviously the cheapest of all the choices available with the least affect on our environment.


While looking at cars economically and environmentally, consumers want to find the best choice. Gas cars produce carbon dioxide emissions that affect the environment, and that even though non-traditional cars such as the hybrid and electric cars use less gas they have batteries that are hard to recycle, toxic, and are non-biodegradable. The hybrid has the worst of both worlds with carbon dioxide emissions and a large toxic battery. Although gas-powered cars have received a bad reputation lately, they are still the better choice, because we are accustomed to them and making the switch to hybrid and electric would devastate landfills and our Earth when their batteries were thrown away. The other types of cars are still great and should be viewed as a step in the right direction but for now they have to find ways to resolve their issues with the toxic batteries. These cars are hope for the future, hope to engineer transportation that won’t affect our home, but until they can fully accomplish that, traditional cars remain the economic and environmental choice.