Hybrids entice visitors to campus show
by Paul Branch
reporter

“We are only limited by our imagination,” Jeff Parks, said at the National AFV Day Odyssey, hosted by Tarrant County College April 2.

Parks, coordinator of applied automotive technology at TCC, and Dan Lee, Toyota’s regional trainer, introduced moe than 70 people to hybrid vehicles and alternative fuels.

Parks said the cars have “unexplainable” technology. The cars, reasonably priced around $19,500, are equipped with the latest technology and have become increasingly popular since they were first introduced in the United States.

Toyota first started making the cars in Japan 10 years ago and since then has continued to improve on the practicality of the cars and the availability of the vehicles, Parks said.

Now Honda and GM have started to make the cars, and next year Ford will come out with its first one.

Most of the cars are pre-equipped with air conditioning, heating and sound systems.

Since the cars run partially on gas and electricity, Parks said they get nearly twice as many miles per gallon as other cars, running at about 45-50 miles per gallon in city driving.

“ At an idle, the cars are virtually silent because the gas engine does not even turn on until you press the accelerator,” he said.

In reverse, it is also propelled by only an electric motor also making it silent.

The engine is not on until the driver accelerates. The electric motor puts the car into motion, and the gas engine only sustains the momentum. This technology gives it the ability to get even better mileage in town than on the open road.

Lee gave a presentation on the many different features that the cars now have and will have in the future.

The cars are available right now with a feature like the Smart Key, which senses when the driver is near the car and allows the owner to open the locked car without having to push any buttons, just pull on the handle.

“ GM’s pickup will have a 120-volt outlet so that when you are on the job sight, you can hook up things such as an electric saw or other power tools,” Lee said.

According to Lee, one day manufacturers hope to equip the cars with the capability to plug into one’s house so that if the electricity goes off, the owner can power his house with his car.

The NAFTC reported it was pleased with the out turn out of people this year that came to visit and happy they could educate people about the new opportunities of AFVs.

The National Alterative Fuels Training Consortium and its sponsors reached thousands of people across the United States to teach them about the new cutting edge technology in cars that will make roads safer and the air cleaner.

The NAFTC is partnered with the Dennis Weaver International Hydrogen Drive 2004 and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Transportation and Air Quality, and sponsored locally by Tarrant County College and North Central Texas Council of Governments

Last Updated: 4/14/2004
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