Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with hybrid

Help me find a Prius doctor in Brooklyn?

thejoshu — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 08:53:44 -0800

Friends, Romans, Crooklynites: I heard the first terrifying sound from my 2005 Prius this morning, and it reminded me that I've been meaning to ask you for mechanic recommendations. I drove out to SF over the summer, and before I drove back I had my car looked at at Art's Automotive in Berkeley. I had a great experience, and I refuse to go back to the level of "care" I was formerly accustomed to here. I know the likelihood of a hybrid-friendly repair shop is slimmer here in the Big Easty, but I wonder if you might be able to refer me to a mechanic in Brooklyn (or thereabouts) with whom I can entrust my Prius. I am sorry that I just called New York the Big Easty.

Honda Civic Hybrid battery problems

empath — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 08:43:51 -0800

2004 Honda Civic Hybrid won't start, but battery isn't dead. I ran down the battery a few weeks ago from leaving the lights on, and had to get a jump and ever since then, it seems like it's been harder and harder to get it to start.

Today (even though I didn't leave the lights on or anything) it wouldn't start at all, but there's definitely juice left in the battery, the horn honks (but somewhat weakly) and and lights work when i turn them on and it makes a clicking sound when i turn the key.

I looked at the battery terminals and the positive one looks like it has a bunch of gunk on it. I'm going to try cleaning that when I get off from work (advice for that is useful to), but aside from that, what else should I look at?

Should I just replace the battery? I can walk to and from work, so it's not really urgent that I get it fixed immediately.

Just want to emphasize that this is a hybrid car, in case that makes a difference.

Not just any boat, but at Shel-Ca-yak-atemer-noe

DetonatedManiac — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 13:11:14 -0800

WaterSportFilter: I want to buy a small versatile Kayak like watercraft. I have different (competing?) things I'd like it to do (Paddle AND Row; single and tandem riders) can I get all of this into one boat? Are there available modifications? What should I get? I got a chance to use "hybrid, open top ocean kayak / canoe" at the coast a few weeks ago. It was amazing. I want to get one but I know very little about kayaks and similar craft.

What I would like to use it for:

1)Exploring various waterways: Lakes, Coastlines, Rivers--NOT whitewater.
2)Fishing.
3)Exercise (see below)
4)Eventually it may be an extra tender when I get a larger Sailboat.

As two added twists I have these additional requirements:

First - I will often use this boat by myself, but it MUST be able to accept a second paddler/passenger,

Second - This is more wishful thinking I believe, but, while I like paddling most of the time just fine, I'd really like to have a modular retrofit or add-on or something (??) so I can use the craft as something like a recreational shell rowing setup as well. Mostly for the exercise (I hear that rowings gives a good full body workout) and because it seems more elegant. But to be clear, I don't intend to race or anything, and it is OK if the "performance" of this aspect of the boat is compromised.

I expect that last requirement forces me to buy a completely separate boat, in which case I can do without it, but if possible I'd like to get all of this in one packager (or maybe with a little custom fabrication on my part?).

Thoughts, recommendations?

Please help me find the make/model I want, so I can focus on the next steps. Thanks!

iamkimiam — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 13:56:05 -0800

I need to buy a new, used or certified used car real quickly. I could use some help deciding on a make and model that meets some specific criteria. I have ~$4000 I could put down on either a brand new or certified used car (not to exceed $25k). I could manage about $6000 for a direct-from-seller used car.

I want something fuel efficient and/or hybrid, but I am not currently not keen on buying a hybrid from a individual seller (hybrids are more expensive and if I am going to invest in one for environmental and economic reasons, I would prefer the extra up-front cost to count toward the public financial record of support of this type of innovation – an individual seller has already paid for the car and I might as well buy a fuel-efficient used car for less from them).
It'd be great if I could put >$4k down on a car that is also less than ~$12k. That's a most comfortable loan amount for me.
The newer the better.
I would prefer a hybrid.
Must be able to transport bikes and surfboards (shortboards inside with seats folded down) and longboards (at least three) up top. Cars like Prius's are NOT designed for this...curved roof and significant drag make it not practical.
The smaller the better. I like finding parking and not being a big bohemoth on the road.
Good track record, reliable. I tend to sell cars when I suspect they are going to start causing problems a year or two down the road, and so I don't want to take on something with a short life span, known problems, or high repair cost.

I currently have a Mazda Protege5 wagon, which is a pretty great all around car, minus the fact that mine is almost done for, its no longer made, and the gas mileage is 'meh'. I used to have a Mini Cooper, but that thing was too small.

Any suggestions, both car-wise and perspective-wise?

New England Car Needed

billtron — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 06:07:51 -0800

I'm moving to the Upper Valley of New Hampshire in a month and need to buy a car for the first time. Help me choose the right one. We've narrowed it down basically to two general options: something resembling a 2 year old Subaru Outback and something resembling a new Prius. Our choice will depend on the availability of options, incentives at the time of purchase, and the necessity of getting an all-wheel drive vehicle for the harsh winters versus the fuel efficiency of getting a hybrid for our monthly trips to NYC. What, o great metahivemind, do you suggest we do?

I found this Civic in a Parking Lot in 90 degrees today. Can I eat it?

TomMelee — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 20:15:00 -0800

05 Civic Hybrid, has you experiences? I realize my question will probably get lost by posting it at night. Oh well, I work all day tomorrow, so here goes.

We're currently driving the car that eats mother nature. We need another one. We don't have a lot of cash, and my new job will require a fair amount of reimbursed travel. 50.5 cents per mile to be exact.

Today we were poking around car lots and found a Big Honda Dealership with some pretty decent deals. We were shown an 05 Civic Hybrid...but here's the kicker, it's a STICK! Never even heard of such an animal before.

Anyway, it's an 05, about 85,000 miles. The quoted price (while not set in stone) was $8,500-8,900. The previous owner bought it at this dealership and had all maintenance done there. Miles are commuter miles, she worked in a different town and drove home on weekends. Or So The Story Goes.

This seems like a crazy price, as 05 skivvies around here often go for 8-10k on their own if not higher. They had several late-model-low-price cars, my dad bought an 03 camry there last week for ~$7,000.

Anyone have any anecdotes? Advice? Caveats? Things I should know?

I'm thinking gas mileage plus a fairly reliable vehicle is a pretty good win. Fairly sure we're also in line for tax credits, and possibly for "Cash for Junkers" too, but maybe not.

Largest hybrid corn companies?

tnygard — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 12:40:01 -0800

Hi all, does anyone know which companies are the largest producers of hybrid corn seed in the US or world-wide? I am looking for a list of perhaps the top ten, along with the proportion of the market they make up. Thanks for your ideas.

How do I disconnect a malfunctioning car alarm on a 2002 Prius?

Slinga — Wed, 06 May 2009 11:20:15 -0800

How do I disconnect a malfunctioning car alarm on a 2002 Prius? My mom's Prius has a built-in alarm, and it just randomly turned itself on yesterday and went off for four hours and drained the battery. It has done this in the garage by itself, so I know that it's the alarm's problem, not outside forces. She'd like to disconnect the alarm, but the dealership wants over a hundred dollars to do it. Anyone have any idea how to?

How to get rid of quirks when using 2 EyeTV Hybrid tuners at once?

Napoleonic Terrier — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 18:17:33 -0800

How to get rid of quirks when using *2* EyeTV Hybrid tuners at once? The Elgato website mentions that it is possible to connect multiple EyeTV Hyrbid tuners to a Mac, but that there may be quirks. I just connected the second Hybrid tuner today to the latest, greatest Mac Mini. Everything works great---except a channel change button push on the EyeTV remote or Apple remote is treated like a double push, skipping a channel.

Not all buttons on the remote appear to suffer this problem, but the channel change and volume change buttons do. The problem goes away when one of the two tuners is disconnected.

Has anybody encountered this and found a fix?---I'd rather not switch to using a iPod Touch as the remote just yet. Thanks!

LOST FRIENDS BIKE NEED TO REPLACE BEFORE FRIEND FINDS OUT (5OO)

defmute — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 15:47:47 -0800

BIKEFILTER: I lost my friend's bike and need to replace it before he finds out. My friend is like 6 feet talls and he likes to ride very relaxed. The bike he had was a hybrid but i don't really remember anything else about it. I knew that it felt pretty tall when i (5'9") rode and lost it. Anyway, I want to get him a replacement with a budget of 500 hundred dollars. What yall thinks?

License to thrill? Personalized plates ideas, please.

cocoagirl — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 14:39:51 -0800

Woohoo, I'm converting my Prius to a plug-in! Now I want a personalized license plate to go with it. Some constraints:
- Must start with two letters
- Maximum six characters (no punctuation), minimum of two
- If numbers are used, they have to come at the end of the plate, and not be sandwiched by letters

It can be geeky, cheeky, electricky, eco-y, or whatever (well, at least some connection to it being a plug in/electric car).

Hybrid HOV stickers

nat — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 10:28:36 -0800

Selling a hybrid: What to ask for carpool-lane stickers? I'm trying to sell my five-year-old hybrid car in California. California has a (possibly misguided, but let's not get into that) law that allowed a fixed number of hybrids to get stickers which let them drive in the carpool lane. This number was reached a while ago, so the stickers can only be obtained by buying a used car that already has them.

These HOV stickers seem to increase the sale value of a car, based on a comparison of bluebook prices to craigslist/autotrader ads, by up to 3k.

However, I think it decreases the market. Only a long commuter is going to be willing to pay so much extra for the stickers. Even just among my friends I've had plenty of people mention that they'd be interested in the car, except for those.

As it is now, I have had a craiglist ad up for a week, but I have had no serious replies. Should I consider not asking for a premium for the stickers? (after all I think the law is a little silly anyhow...but I am just out of school so 3k is a lot of money to me.) Or have I just not been patient enough, or have I not been posting in the right places?

I have read such earlier posts as this one, but of course my question is more specific.

Why are hybrid vehicles so scarce?

middleclasstool — Sat, 31 May 2008 09:45:18 -0800

Why are hybrid vehicles so hard to find? My wife and I are new car shopping and have set a limit of ~30mpg as the minimum for fuel efficiency. Thing is, it's hard to find a non-hybrid that gets that unless it's small, and we've got one baby with a rear-facing seat and another planned for next year, so we'd like some extra leg room to accommodate them.

Enter the Ford Escape Hybrid. 34/30 mpg, the only hybrid SUV that gets mileage that good and is decently priced, appears to have decent room, and could actually be used to haul some stuff from time to time, which is a plus. We love the idea, want to test drive one.

Except nobody has them. I've checked dealers in Little Rock, Memphis, Nashville, Tulsa, and even Dallas. No dealer websites show them in inventory. My wife called a local dealer to ask about this, and was informed that they couldn't even order one for us if we wanted. They are literally nearly impossible to find in the US. Some cursory Googling tells us that other hybrid vehicles ain't much better.

So here's the question: why? Especially in a market where US automakers are struggling, if there's demand that high for your product, why are you not making more of them? The economics of this evades me -- what does creating artificial scarcity do for them financially, when they could just flat-out sell more cars? Is it artificial scarcity, or are they just seeing a bigger run on their vehicles than they anticipated? If it's the latter, why not ramp up production pronto?

What Proof for Colorado Hybrid Tax Credit?

cschneid — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 21:46:44 -0800

What proof do I need to claim the Colorado Alternative Fuel Vehicle Credit on my taxes? I've done my taxes, and have a Prius I'm claiming, but it is totally unclear as to what if any proof they want with my return.

The FYI describing it has two sections. The first is for individuals, and the second is for Government and Charitable organizations. The Gov and Charities section has some forms listed, but they don't seem to match up with individual returns.

Then while searching, I ran across this (about.com, a great source!) that mentions how you must file a paper return in order to attach an invoice to the return. But of course, I don't trust my taxes to about.com.

Does anybody have the publication/law that describes what sort of proof Colorado is looking for?

Hybrid reliability and reapirs?

mac-way — Sat, 24 Nov 2007 09:28:52 -0800

I'm looking to purchase a hybrid car (Toyota or Honda) in the $10,000 range (~2002, 2003), I'm wondering about reliability and repair bills. Are they in-line with other non-hybrid cars of this range?

Hybrid TV Tuner (ATSC/NTSC)

apple — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 00:03:37 -0800

How can I get both, ATSC and NTSC on a USB tv tuner, with options to switch between both of them? I plan on buying a TV tuner for my Vista Media Center PC and I want it to play both ATSC (off the air HDTV) and NTSC (my basic cable - no cable box). I bought a Dell Vostro 200 Slim model, so regular PCI tuners won't fit. The only low profile TV tuner I found was a Hauppauge WINTV-PCR 150MCE-LP , but it only had a NTSC tuner. So basically I'm left with only USB tuners and I came across this: Hauppauge winTV HVR 950 . Since my basic cable does not give me HD content on the major networks (ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, etc...) I want to have an HD antenna that hooks up to my TV as well as the cable. I want to be able to switch between the two through Vista Media Center. Is this possible with a splitter? a switcher? How exactly should i set it up?

So Basically I want something like this: WinTV-HVR 1600 (which is separate inputs for NTSC and ATSC) on a USB device since I can't fit a regular PCI card.

Best alternative to road bikes for long distance rides?

queue_strategy — Sat, 26 May 2007 11:23:37 -0800

Best alternative to road bikes for long distance rides? I very much want to do a century bike ride in August. I've been riding a Trek 7200 hybrid for several years and can comfortably do 50 miles at a time on it. However, it is too heavy and inefficient to think about using for a a 100 miler -- so I obtained a Specialized Roubaix. However, I cannot get used to the road riding position and suffer intensely after only 20-30 miles. I'm ready to abandon the road bike and explore high end hybrids or other alternatives.
Just to provide other relevant info, I'm 6'3" and 205 lbs.
Anyone else out there who experienced severe issues trying to transition to a road bike? Is there a more comfortable style for long distances other than road bikes?

New Commute: What Is the Fastest and Cheapest Possible?

JLobster — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 14:18:57 -0800

I live in Berkeley, CA and have a great job offer in...yeesh...Palo Alto, so a commute is in my future. I need help in reducing that commute as much as possible. Some ideas: * If I get a hybrid, are those carpool lane stickers still available? It will help on time and money. * What GPS units will realistically help my commute based on traffic conditions? * What else can you think of? More details in the extended explanation... I have a new job offer and am doing some calculations. Since my wife and I only have one car (I used to walk to and from BART), a new car will have to be purchased for my Berkeley to Palo Alto commute.

For the car, I have settled on a small car, late model (I want as much repair-free longevity as possible). I like the Prius because it is a hybrid (lower carbon footprint) and is a 4D hatchback. Given all my other factors, it is a little more expensive, but not by too much given the tax credit and possible savings on tolls. The other reason I want it is to save on commute time by using the carpool lanes (I would hit two on my I-880 to 92 to I-280 regular route). I have seen that the CA legislature has added more carpool lane stickers. Have they run out on those yet? If they have, one impetus has been removed to buy the hybrid, as I would not save time and I would also be paying about $84 in tolls/month.

I have also decided on a new Prius instead of a used, as the used ones seem to be fetching higher than new MSRP. My understanding was that there was no waiting list for the 2007 Prius at this time. Am I wrong?

If you don't think a hybrid is worth it, what is? I like the 4D hatchback form factor, but I haven't found one that is both economical (in fuel and cost) and reliable long term. Most of my research is from Consumer Reports and Edmunds, but they offer no easy way of searching on those criteria. I prefer buying used, but late model (2005 on up). I have excluded the super mini cars due to safety concerns.

GPS: I want to save money by not getting the built-in factory GPS (about $2000 on its own! This includes all the Toyotas and Hondas I was looking at) and get one with traffic conditions built in. This way, if my main route is super clogged, I want something that will relatively accurately calculate the shortest route time-wise. I already have a Palm Treo 650 so I was going to try out TomTom Nav 6 (only $150 for software--I already have a BT GPS). Does anyone have any other suggestions? Live traffic is my most important criterion. Cost is second.

Does anyone else have any suggestions for reducing my commute time? I am already working out if I can change my work hours to off-commute, but that is not guaranteed. Work from home is out at this point, too.

Thanks in advance, internet my friend.

Driving off the fat of the land.

kaseijin — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 10:41:42 -0800

Biodiesel or hybrid? I need a new car, and of course there's I'm interested in hearing opinions, facts, pros, cons, conjectures, slander, and testimonials regarding both biodiesel and hybrid technology.

Which is better for the enviornment? Which is more efficient? Which is cheaper? Cleaner?

Also, which cars are available? I want something with a bit of personality as well as some reasonable get-up-and-go, and most of the hybrids I see are boring sedans. On the other hand, most diesels I see are trucks. What are my options?

The mystery of the tax credit

Lyn Never — Fri, 20 Oct 2006 08:53:53 -0800

How do tax credits work? My husband and I both bought Priuses early this year (well before the 60,000 mark), and we get tax credits of $3,150 for each car. Which is awesome, but... My car was a planned purchase, and it was timed to get this year's tax credit to offset an expected financial transaction that was supposed to come with some hefty taxes. Except, it actually doesn't - I've paid taxes for years on that stuff already, and there's no hit at the end. So there's nothing there to offset with the credit after all.

Also, we rent our house and so do not traditionally itemize our taxes, and generally come in just about even on our taxes every year. I had meant for both of us to calculate the dollar amount by which we should reduce our withholding on our paychecks to come even with the credits, and then we went though some pay changes, so I waited, and by the time the dust settled I forgot to do it and now we've got two months, which isn't a whole lot of taxes to not pay.

My research about tax credits has taught me a lot about UK and Canadian taxes, and not so much about the US. I am assuming that the government is not going to pay us all this money if we don't have something to apply the credit to, but I really can't tell that for sure.

We didn't buy the cars to make money, but if I can make some use out of the tax credits, that would certainly be the smarter thing to do. Can anyone tell me something non-speculative (unlike all the news articles about the hybrid tax credits) about how tax credits are supposed to work, or find me resources worded for the layperson that might help me get my ducks in a row before I start looking for a tax preparer? I don't even know if anyone knows - at the beginning of the year, there was a definite "oh, somebody'll figure it out by April '07, I'm sure" vibe surrounding the whole thing.

I will assume on all answers that YANACPA.

Should I haggle for a new hybrid?

ontic — Thu, 21 Sep 2006 10:30:58 -0800

I've found a new Prius that I might be able to buy before the tax rebate gets chopped in half. Since it's a new, popular car, am I going to be paying full price no matter what or should I try my meager haggling skills? If the latter, what should I aim for and how should I go about it given the "next guy will pay full price" line I'll inevitably encounter? I can't imagine a question like this hasn't been asked before, but searching didn't turn it up. Perhaps I am an incompetent searcher.

A blog/message board hybrid?

mrkohrea — Tue, 05 Sep 2006 14:26:28 -0800

Which software acts like a blog/message board hybrid? So one problem that I see with blogs is that comments on old blog posts don't get read by site browsers. I think the problem would easily be solved by blog software that has a button like "view new comments" or something like that. (No RSS solutions please.)

I guess another alternative would be to have a message board with only one authorized author. But then the message board would need a plugin to make it look more bloglike.

Any suggested blog software with appropriate plugin? Or message board with appropriate plugin? Or whatever you might call it that somebody else has already thought of?

It seems to me that I can't be the first person who has thought of this, but I guess the assumption is that old blog posts quickly lose their time relevance.

Importing a Toyota hybrid minivan from Japan to US?

ericbop — Mon, 24 Jul 2006 10:19:00 -0800

We love our Prius. We reproduced. Hybrid SUVs are lame. Is there any way to import this from Japan? To elaborate,

-from whom (us, japan, third party) can we buy the new version?
-is there any shot of this being legal/drivable in the US, since it's pretty close to the American Sienna?
-I saw an '02 model for sale from an Japanese export car dealer. Is there any difference in my chances if I buy used?
-OK, the steering wheel is on the wrong side. Is it legal to drive a car in the US with a right-handed steering column, or are there places that can switch the steering column to the left-hand side? (please excuse me if this idea is ridiculously laughable)

Is the townie bike a goodie bike?

GrumpyMonkey — Wed, 12 Jul 2006 10:23:55 -0800

My wife would like a new bike. She really loves the Electra bikes (she really wants the Petro Zillia but found the Townie 21 much more comfortable). We went to a different bike shop and the guy there explained that she would not enjoy those bikes on long rides and would not be able to keep up with people on hybrids over the long haul. Does anyone have any experience with these bikes and are they good for more than just going to the grocery store? Will she be able to keep up on longer rides (road/bike path)?

Diesel that meets CA's "clean air vehicle" requirements?

scarabic — Fri, 12 May 2006 13:35:41 -0800

I would like to purchase a high-mileage / low-emissions vehicle which I can drive (alone) in the carpool lanes around the Bay Area. Hybrids present one option, though I'd rather be in a diesel VW Golf, running biodiesel. I need help figuring out the requirements listed here to see if a diesel Golf meets them. And does anyone know if filling it with biodiesel changes anything? What other vehicle options are there?