Free «My Favorite Car is Toyota Highlander Hybrid Base» Essay Sample

I have saved the sufficient sum of money to buy a new car. Since I enjoy small game hunting as well as wildfowling and am worried about an increase in a cost of gasoline as well as air pollution, I have chosen Toyota Highlander Hybrid Base 4dr SUV. It is produced according to HSD technology (“The most advanced hybrid powertrain”). This model can be converted to a plug-in hybrid car by means of installing special battery packs (“Frequently Asked Questions”).

HSD technology assumes using a gasoline engine along with an electric motor for power. The car produced according to this technology uses one or both these power supplies. The choice is dictated by “the driving conditions.” As it is shown on Figure 1.1, at low speed and “on light acceleration” energy is provided to the vehicle solely by the electric motor. Figure 1.2 illustrates that “during normal driving, the vehicle is powered mainly by the gasoline engine” (“Hybrid Vehicle Dismantling Manual”, 1). According to Figure 1.3, “during full acceleration, such as climbing a hill, both the gasoline engine and the electric motor power the vehicle” (“Hybrid Vehicle Dismantling Manual”, 1). As it is shown on Figure 1.4, “deceleration, such as braking,” is performed in this vehicle partly by transforming the kinetic energy from the front wheels to electricity that recharges the battery pack. Finally, according to Figure 1.4, “while the vehicle is stopped, the gasoline engine and electric motor are off, however, the vehicle remains on and operational” (“Hybrid Vehicle Dismantling Manual”, 1). As a result, we have the reduction of up to 40% in the fuel consumption (“Toyota launches green strategic plan for China”). In addition, this technology provides the reduction of about 55% in CO2 release into the atmosphere (“The simplest way to cut car emissions”).

Contrary to a plug-in hybrid, the car constructed according to HSD does not require any

battery pack recharge “from an external electric power source” (“Hybrid Vehicle Dismantling Manual”, 1). However, Toyota Highlander Hybrid can be converted into a plug-in hybrid car by installing a plug-in conversion system (“Frequently Asked Questions”). It allows driving at high way speeds solely in electric mode. Having this system installed, one gallon of fuel is enough for more than 100 miles of travel (“Plug In with Plug-In Supply Conversions”). While with ordinary Toyota Highlander Hybrid, one gallon of fuel is enough to travel only 28 miles (“HIGHLANDER12”). As for emission, test results for the plug-in conversion system are not satisfactory. Corrections have been made to its software to remedy the situation. Its effectiveness is going to be tested in the near future (“Test Results”).

I would like to buy a car for small game hunting and wildfowling. Therefore, I need a car equipped with four wheel drive. In addition, it has to provide “at least four person capacity” and “space for rifles or shotguns and associated gear,” that is easily accessible from inside of the vehicle. All SUVs satisfy these requirements. Since I am going to do a lot of driving on narrow dirty roads, I need mid-sized or small SUVs. On the other hand, small SUVs provide not enough storage space (Hawks). It should be noted that Japanese cars are well-known for their quality. Hence, a mid-sized Japanese SUV is a good choice (Hawks). Being worried about an increase in a cost of gasoline as well as air pollution, I have preferred Toyota Highlander Hybrid. There are two models of this make: Toyota Highlander Hybrid Base 4dr SUV and Toyota Highlander Hybrid Limited 4dr SUV. I have chosen the first one due to its lower price that is 38, 715 USD (“2012 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Base — Price With Options”). This vehicle is shown on Figure 2 and described here.

Thus, I would like to buy a car of high quality that is convenient for small game hunting and wildfowling. It is worth noting that Toyota Highlander Hybrid is constructed according to HSD technology that assumes using a gasoline engine along with an electric motor for power. The choice of the power supply is

dictated by “the driving conditions” (“Hybrid Vehicle Dismantling Manual”, 1). This technology reduces the CO2 release into the atmosphere to about 45% of that of an ordinary Toyota Highlander (“The simplest way to cut car emissions”). Moreover, it guarantees the gasoline consumption reduce of about 40 %. The gasoline consumption can be further reduced by installing the plug-in conversion system (“Plug In with Plug-In Supply Conversions”). However, the emission performance of this system has not been acceptable yet (“Test Results”).

Without any doubts, my choice will be Toyota Highlander Hybrid.