Come to think of it , maybe every HSG equiped vehicle would, regardless of the merits of the Suit itself , qualify for inclusion .
This would be based on reported
Real World MPG observations and measurements .
In the case of the prius , this for several reasons , is very difficult to measure accurately . Can't trust the onboard calculator - always reads at or high - and usually high at that.
Worth noting , even using this onboard miscalculator, prius owners in extreme duty cycles have reported on prius forums
11.5mpg - and less .
From an old article on a VW Forum where it has been/is available in its entirety -
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=2117870&page=1
2006 Lexus RX 400h:
The Hybrid Emperor's New Clothes
The New York Times
By Jeff Sabatini
July 31, 2005
CHICAGO -- One question lingers after driving the 2006 Lexus RX 400h: How did it come to this, that Toyota is now selling a hybrid gas-electric vehicle with
no tangible fuel economy benefits?
In my test-driving, the Lexus hybrid, which is based on the gasoline-only RX 330,
did not achieve better mileage than the 2005 RX 330 that I drove for comparison.
My hybrid tester's window sticker did boast a federal mileage rating of
31 miles per gallon in the city and
27 on the highway, compared with just 18 and 24 for the RX without the hybrid drivetrain. But the government's testing procedure has a habit -
one that seems to be exaggerated with hybrids - of rendering fuel economy numbers as relevant to the real world as national energy policies have been to actually reducing dependence on foreign oil.
Speaking of which, isn't that what hybrids are all about: conservation, improved fuel economy, weaning the nation off its oil habit? Perhaps not any longer.
The hybrid version of the Lexus sport utility wagon follows in the tracks of the 2005 Honda Accord Hybrid
( probably more ways than one ) by offering more horsepower than the conventional version of the same vehicle, a markedly different approach than that of economy-focused hybrids like Toyota's own Prius or Honda's Civic Hybrid. In this case we're talking 268 horsepower for the RX 400h, versus 230 for the gasoline-only RX 330.
True, Toyota is not marketing the RX 400h as being environmentally friendly, focusing instead on its performance and typical Lexus luxuriousness. While this may provide the company some absolution, the
RX 400h's failure to deliver, in my experience, even a nominal improvement in gas mileage still seems like a sin of omission. It has been fundamental to the understanding and acceptance of hybrids that they offer better fuel economy than vehicles powered by conventional gasoline engines. Toyota itself helped to establish that
impression
with its Prius.
A hybrid's improved economy is primarily accomplished in city driving, - "
" -My first seat time in the Lexus hybrid came over a weekend in which I drove the 200 miles from Chicago to Grand Rapids, Mich. I spent a lot of time on the freeway, but I also traveled some back roads and slogged through a couple of stop-and-go city stints. By the time I returned to Chicago, I had put 531 miles on the odometer and calculated my fuel economy at
20.9 m.p.g. - "
Notice - didn't use the onboard computer .
