2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid photo gallery
Tuesday April 29, 2008
Looking for a vehicle that'll haul the kids, the tent and the campin' gear--and not break the bank when you fill up at the pump? Then perhaps one of the newest hybrids will fit the bill. Featured in today's photo album: Toyota's 2008 Highlander Hybrid. It's got 4WD, it's got 3 rows of seating and it's got a hybrid powertrain. But does it got what you want and need? Go ahead and get a good look at the ins-and-outs of the newly redesigned 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. And for all the details from our test drive week, check out our review of the 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. Want a second review opinion? Head on over to SUV Guide Jason Fogelson's 2008 Highlander Hybrid review for his take on this set of wheels.
photo - © Adrian Gable
Comments
When will we see a muscle car with alternative fuels will we ever. I love ford mustangs but the mustang parts makes the car not very fuel efficent do think they will ever make one?
Brian,
If you’re talking about classic Muscle Cars from the ’60s and ’70s, then I think we’ve got what we’ve got. Those were designed and engineered to run on high octane gasoline, and retrofitting them to use alt fuels such as ethanol/methanol would be expensive and the resulting performance probably less than satisfying.
However, for modern performance “muscle” cars, I think it’s only a matter of time. High compression/cylinder pressure engines designed exclusively for alcohol fuel can take advantage of its tremendous octane (105) and deliver the thrilling horsepower locked-up in this fuel. In addition, there is a term (”Muscle Hybrid”) you may hear bandied about when researching alt fuels. In fact, it’s one we’ve used to describe at least two hybrid cars that we’ve reviewed here at Hybrid Cars and Alt Fuels. The 2007 Honda Accord Hybrid and the 2008 Lexus LS 600h L both are performance cars that mate high horsepower electric motors to their engines to gain performance while still delivering great fuel mileage.
And let’s not forget about plain ole electricity as a performance “fuel.” All-electric sports cars, such as the Tesla Roadster, deliver incredible performance without burning a drop of fuel. In my opinion, electric motor driven cars have tremendous promise as future performance machines. Once the energy storage devices (namely batteries and/or super capacitors) are fully mature, the sky is the limit. Pound for pound and size for size, electric motors run circles around internal combustion engines when it comes to producing torque and horsepower–especially low RPM grunt. Now all we need to figure out is how to make them emit that satisfying rumble of a big block V-8.
Thanks for writing.
–Scott