The Honda Hybrid: A Serious Competitor In The Hybrid Market

By Author: Peter Jones
Total Articles: 231
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The Honda Civic hybrid was first produced by Honda to compete with the Toyota Prius in 2003. The first generation Honda Hybrid used a unique Honda Civic engine called an IMA system or Integrated Motor Assist. This first generation Honda Civic engine can not run on just the electric motor alone like the Toyota hybrid can. Rather it operates totally differently then the Prius system. The Honda Civic hybrid used an assist only system where the electric engine adds power to the main Honda Civic engine for acceleration and other engine stress. So when the engine needs more power the electric motor provides a powerful boost and thus saving fuel in this manner.

The second generation Honda Civic hybrid electric motor now can be operated in electricity only mode at medium speeds. The second generation Honda Hybrid gets 45 miles per gallon on the highway and 40 mile per gallon in the city. The hybrid Honda Civic engine made major improvements and boosted its power to 20 horsepower in the 1.3 liter engine. In the hybrid Honda Civic engine three of four cylinders can now stop operating during engine deceleration.

The new ...
... hybrid Honda Civic engine uses a revamped IMA system to achieve its leaner burning of fuel with a higher output motor then the first generation system. The new efficient hybrid Honda Civic engine combined with the continuously variable transmission technology achieves remarkable fuel economy.

The continuously variable transmission provides added efficiency to the hybrid Honda Civic Engine by allowing the engine to run at its most efficient revolutions per minute over a range of different vehicle velocities. Older type transmissions only give a small select amount of speed options compared to the newer technology. Honda has combined its new technology, CVT with its latest IMA system to give its latest hybrid fantastic fuel economy.

The brain behind the technology is in the PCU (Power Control Unit). The second generation hybrid Honda Civic engine has a PCU that manages the engine performance telling the engine when to turn off and when to come on. It works in this manner, when the hybrid Honda Civic engine is accelerating and the load is high the electric motor cuts in giving the hybrid Honda Civic engine a boost of power. When the Honda Civic Engine is cruising the PCU tells the engine to run in engine only mode where the engine delivers stable, fuel efficient output. During deceleration The PCU tells the hybrid Honda Civic engine to go into cylinder idle mode where three of the four cylinders are idle. In this mode the electric motor uses the energy dissipated during deceleration to recharge the battery. Finally, at rest the PCU turns off the hybrid Honda Civic engine and the electric motor cuts in.

This new technology in the hybrid Honda Civic engine lead to Honda being recognized has having one of the Greenest Vehicles of 2010 by the American Council for and energy efficient economy. This new technology makes the hybrid Honda Civic engine the second most fuel efficient engine on the planet.

Over all, the second generation hybrid Honda has reduced weight and size of the engine and the power unit making the second generation IMA system more compact and more efficient. The entire IMA system and PCU components, the brains of the car, fit behind the rear seat. This new packaging gives the car more trunk space and ample leg room for the passengers. The second generation Honda hybrid truly has transformed into a vehicle that can compete with the Toyota Prius hybrid and perhaps in the future can out sell the Toyota.

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