Looking For Fuel Economy? Try the Toyota Camry and Highlander Hybrids

With the US economy falling flat, hybrid cars are becoming very popular as they are fuel efficient and help save a lot of money on fuel. Toyota, the leading hybrid car manufacturer in the market today, offers a large variety of fuel efficient hybrid cars. If you are planning to buy a hybrid car for your family and looking for fuel economy as well, the Toyota Camry and Highlander Hybrids are the best options for you.

Toyota had introduced its Camry Hybrid in the market as the first car to guarantee comfortable driving and fuel economy simultaneously. This model soon became popular as a safe choice and paved the way for other environmentally-friendly vehicles. In other words, it was a 'greener' alternative to the conventional cars. Today, the latest version of this Hybrid Car features a gasoline-powered engine capable of producing nearly 45 horsepower, an electric motor that guarantees a maximum of 45 horsepower, and a battery pack.

Apart from fuel efficiency, other features that made Camry Sedan and other Toyota Hybrids popular with car lovers include safety issues, such as an increased control over the vehicle, and a seat uniquely designed to prevent whiplash injuries; LED tail lamps and hybrid badges; and alluring exterior and interior of the car. Other additional features, such as the tire pressure monitoring system and the dual climate control, also contribute to the fuel economy process. In order to achieve the long-time desired fuel economy, this latest version of Camry Hybrid is fitted with a specially-designed system for storing energy.

If you have a large family, you can try the new Toyota SUV hybrid vehicle - the Toyota Highlander Hybrid. This car model has features a gas-powered engine, three electric motors and a top-of-the-line transmission system. It allows efficient handling and guarantees great fuel efficiency. Owing to its internal combustion engine, it can reach remarkable speeds, and can work solely on electric power as well. Being large and spacious, it is best suited to big families. Together with other Toyota hybrids, the Toyota Camry and Highlander Hybrids offer a green solution for driving and should certainly be opted for.

Five Tips For Raising Your Car's Fuel Economy

The price of gas, still low by last year's standards, has slowly started to tick back up. With summer fast approaching, now is a good time to start implementing methods for getting better mileage. Here are five which are relatively easy to do.

1. Properly inflate your tires

Statistically, 23% of cars have at least one tire that's under-inflated by 20% or more. According to the Department of Energy, cars with under-inflated tires lose 1% of their fuel efficiency for every 3 PSI beneath their recommended tire pressure. That means one out of every four cars is wasting 3% of the gas put into it. All total, that little bit of waste accounted for 1.2 billion gallons of gas in 2005.

2. Regularly Change Your Oil and Filters

Clean oil and fresh filters are important in making your car run more smoothly. Regularly maintaining both your oil and filters helps to keep your car running more efficiently by preventing buildup. Buildup, as we all know, forces your car to work harder to achieve the same results, and harder work means more gas used.

3. Drive Calmer

Your car's fuel efficiency suffers most at two distinct points – rapid acceleration and hard breaking. Rapid acceleration forces your engine to work at higher revolution rate, which takes more gas than a slower, gradual acceleration to speed. Breaking quickly forces your car to rapidly change gears, which also leads to high engine revolutions. By breaking and accelerating at a slower rate, your engine operates in a smoother, steadier fashion which in turn leads to a more fuel efficient driving experience.

4. Avoid Left Turns

When international package shipper, UPS, was looking for ways to reduce the fuel costs for their fleet of delivery trucks, one of the first things they did was remove as many left handed turns from delivery routes as possible. The notion, which sounds simple and foolish, turned out to be a winner. Left hand turns frequently involve a car or truck idling. An idle vehicle is not only burning gas while sitting still, but also must break to stop and accelerate out of the idle position – all three of which are large fuel economy culprits.

5. Clean Out Your Car

The phrase "lean and mean" evokes images of horses and prize fighters and stands on the belief that by cutting out unnecessary weight, both horses and boxers will be faster and more efficient in their respective fields. The same logic applies to your car. By cleaning out the items accumulating in your back seats and trunk, you can significantly lighten the load you put on your car. The heavier the load, the more work your car has to do, and overworking a car is a surefire means of decreasing fuel economy. Clearing the junk from your trunk can reduce excess weight and make your car leaner and meaner. Taken by themselves, each of these measures can result in a fuel efficiency increase of a few percent. But, when these relatively simple measures are combined, drivers can find their cars with an increased fuel efficiency of 25% or more. With a percentage that large, the savings is rather obvious.

Fuel Efficiency of Hybrid Cars

Hybrid cars are talk of the town nowadays. The hybrid technology has taken over the conventional gasoline cars setting up the competition high. Automobile companies are trying to create a wider market and demand for the hybrid cars. And if the reports are to be believed, hybrid cars are giving a better return on investment (ROI).

There had been a constant attempt to lure a wider group of consumers by making the hybrid car more powerful and universally appealing. However in this attempt, the fuel efficiency of the vehicle has witnessed a steep decline. These cars are seen as a good alternative for ever increasing fuel prices and also to keep a check on the pollution level. Irrespective of such hyped promises, the newer models of hybrid cars failed to save much of the gasoline and give mileage as per the consumer expectation.

Currently the new hybrid cars give an average mileage of 31.4 mpg in city and 45 mpg on highways. This turned out to be quite a disappointment for the consumers. However the mileage may vary in different model of hybrids. One of the obvious reasons for low mileage is the heavy design of all such hybrid cars. A heavy body may add up in the style of a vehicle but not in the mileage. Simple science theory tells us that the heavier an object is the more fuel it requires for propulsion.

Hybrid cars are quickly catching up as future cars because the enthusiastic consumers are willing to taste the relatively new technology. Powered on both gasoline and electric motor, the manufacturers are bound to find a balance between the performance and mileage. Along with an enhanced style and speed, ways to design a better fuel efficiency will be an added benefit. On the other hand, it is expected that these environmentally friendly cars may deliver a better mileage in future. Moreover getting a better mileage also depends a lot on the driving habit.