Hybrid car

[Devonisheaven]

My Old Ford Ranger pick up does 0 to 60 in 3 minutes! My 263bhp PHEV is a bit quicker though. 👍

 

[otherclive]

Our hybrid has something called Blue earth or similar name tyres. They are supposed to be environmentally friendly, but we find them to be quite noisy and we are not the only ones. Others with the same type of car have switched to Michelin Cross Climate and have said they are a lot quieter.

I swopped the Dunlop Grandtek which were down to 3mm for Goodyear vectors gen3 all seasons which are quiet.

 

[RogerL]

Our hybrid has something called Blue earth or similar name tyres. They are supposed to be environmentally friendly, but we find them to be quite noisy and we are not the only ones. Others with the same type of car have switched to Michelin Cross Climate and have said they are a lot quieter.

I've heard that Michelin CrossClimate are quieter and ride better than competitors but don't last as long.

 

[Oscarmax]

I just drive my PHEV normally

 

[otherclive]

I've heard that Michelin CrossClimate are quieter and ride better than competitors but don't last as long.

It’s always a judgement thing when buying tyres. For mine Michelin x climate and Goodyear vector all seasons were both B at 71db for noise. But the Goodyears have a better fuel rating A compared to B for Michelins , whereas Goodyears have C for wet and Michelins have B. Both makes are now XL reinforced and classed as “ EV ready”. But rather than the obligatory three criteria now labelled on tyres I tend to make my selection based on mainstream reviews carried out by the German reviewers. They test tyres over a wider range of criteria than just the three lab based criteria on the labels.

 

[RogerL]

It’s always a judgement thing when buying tyres. For mine Michelin x climate and Goodyear vector all seasons were both B at 71db for noise. But the Goodyears have a better fuel rating A compared to B for Michelins , whereas Goodyears have C for wet and Michelins have B. Both makes are now XL reinforced and classed as “ EV ready”. But rather than the obligatory three criteria now labelled on tyres I tend to make my selection based on mainstream reviews carried out by the German reviewers. They test tyres over a wider range of criteria than just the three lab based criteria on the labels.

XL tyres are a mixed bag - the tougher sidewalls give them the higher load rating and more puncture resistance but a worse ride and more noise - that's comparing them with their regular (non-XL) versions. Of course if a specific car requires XLs then it applies to all the choices.

The problem with the mandatory labelling is that one tyre may be marginally above the band threshold and another marginally below it, so no real difference for practical purposes.

 

[Beachball]

I just drive my PHEV normally

At present my Hybrid just in eco mode

 

[Devonisheaven]

At present my Hybrid just in eco mode

Mine is rarely out of Eco mode, it’s quick enough as it is.

 

[Buckman]

I've heard that Michelin CrossClimate are quieter and ride better than competitors but don't last as long.

A lot also depends on the vehicle and driving style. I had the Cross Climate fitted on a previous Jeep GC and found that road holding in the wet ws very good. They were also noticeably quieter than the Continentals previous fitted. When traded in the Jeep after about 20k miles, the tyres were still very good for another 10-12K miles.

 

[Dustydog]

It’s always a judgement thing when buying tyres. For mine Michelin x climate and Goodyear vector all seasons were both B at 71db for noise. But the Goodyears have a better fuel rating A compared to B for Michelins , whereas Goodyears have C for wet and Michelins have B. Both makes are now XL reinforced and classed as “ EV ready”. But rather than the obligatory three criteria now labelled on tyres I tend to make my selection based on mainstream reviews carried out by the German reviewers. They test tyres over a wider range of criteria than just the three lab based criteria on the labels.

Which site do you use?
I use https://www.tyrereviews.com/Tyres_For/Volkswagen/Touareg.htm
Which gives Goodyear F1 Eagle Asymmetrics the top choice. I use them and have no issues.

Be interesting to see what your Euro site says?

 

[otherclive]

Which site do you use?
I use https://www.tyrereviews.com/Tyres_For/Volkswagen/Touareg.htm
Which gives Goodyear F1 Eagle Asymmetrics the top choice. I use them and have no issues.

Be interesting to see what your Euro site says?

I look at the German tyre test reports as they are very comprehensive in the scope of tests. Although sites such as Tyre Reviews and Autoexpress are now doing their own. The Goodyear Eagles aren’t much use to me when looking for All Seasons. The German tests rationalise into categories such as Winter, Summer or All Seasons, and car type such as SUV/Family car. I use Autobild, Auto Zeitung and ADAC. It’s a variable feast as one year Michelin will top the table next year it can be Goodyear or Continental as new tyre models are released. So at the end of the day I have to make a choice on what’s best for me. In reality I doubt that I ever get near the tyres limits anyway 😂 I see your link is to owners reviews which I tend not to use given owners aren’t that objective and probably don’t go anywhere near its limits. Plus the scope of performance criteria is much reduced.

 

[ProfJohnL]

How can you measure that actually true mpg on a hybrid car i.e. if the car stayed in petrol or diesel mode without switching to EV mode? Most hybrids kick into EV mode when the the load is low thus distorting the actual mpg figure.

Getting back to the original question. How the car records its efficiency information will probably vary from mode to model, but it might need some digging through the myriad or data screens most modern cars have.

I can only report on my VW Passat GTE which is a PHEV. I have discovered some pages where it records the percentage of the distance travelled where only the electric motor has been used. With that information (and if I can be bothered to work it out) I could determine the split between EV and ICE powered driving miles, and thus work out the actual mpg of the ICE drive system. However I cant turn the Hybrid function off (not that I would want to anyway) so even the ICE milage will still have the benefit of the cars hybrid technology of it recouping the energy released when braking, and using when accelerating.

If you dig through the data your car records, you might find some way of extracting and calculating the ICE only milage, but realistically is it something you really need to know? It's important for the manufacturer to know as they need that sort of information whilst developing the vehicle. Whilst it is interest to know just for information, but its not of any practical use to the ordinary driver, as its not as if you can totally control how the car uses its hybrid technology.

Just as a comparison, would you need to know how on your car a turbocharged engine in a car would perform if the turbo was not working? Or the difference Fuel injection makes.

These are issues that may play a part when you make your choice of vehicle be for you buy, but they are not something the ordinary driver would expect to be able to set up and measure on the car they have bought, Surely what's important is what the consumption/cost is for your whole journey.

 

[Buckman]

Thanks. Basically if the car never had the big heavy lump of a battery in it, would it be almost as economical on mpg? Our 3.0ltr diesel Jeep never had a hybrid battery and solo on a long run I could achieve almost the same mpg as our current 2.5ltr car with the hybrid battery. I guess we will never know?

 

[otherclive]

Thanks. Basically if the car never had the big heavy lump of a battery in it, would it be almost as economical on mpg? Our 3.0ltr diesel Jeep never had a hybrid battery and solo on a long run I could achieve almost the same mpg as our current 2.5ltr car with the hybrid battery. I guess we will never know?

But isn’t the Lexus better on mixed driving, and a lot better in urban areas? Motorways aren’t great for hybrids but PHEVS seem to do a lot better. A hybrid battery in a car like mine is about the same as carrying a teenager. So doesn’t make that much difference to overall fuel consumption.

 

[Buckman]

But isn’t the Lexus better on mixed driving, and a lot better in urban areas? Motorways aren’t great for hybrids but PHEVS seem to do a lot better. A hybrid battery in a car like mine is about the same as carrying a teenager. So doesn’t make that much difference to overall fuel consumption.

Good point. The Jeep was great on motorway driving, but consumption dropped to about 30mpg around town, but then again not much town driving with it as the Corolla was cheaper and easier to use in a town environment. I guess our big issue is that we do not do much town driving in the Lexus preferring to use the smaller car.

 

[Dustydog]

guess our big issue is that we do not do much town driving in the Lexus preferring to use the smaller car.

I hope you haven’t bought the wrong car for your needs 🤪🤪😉

 

[Buckman]

I hope you haven’t bought the wrong car for your needs 🤪🤪😉

No quite happy with it as more comfortable for long trips of which we hope to do many in the next year or two.