This is a guest article submission on hybrid vehicles.

The hybrid electric vehicle is powered by two engines including the conventional internal combustion engine and electrical power train system. The power train system increases the fuel economy because it relies on electricity to power the engine rather than gasoline. There are large range hybrid electric vehicles on the market.

Modern hybrid electric vehicle uses the regenerative braking is responsible of converting the kinetic energy into battery replenishing energy. Some hybrid cars generate the electricity by spinning an electrical generator in the internal combustion engine. In this way, the battery can be recharged while the user is driving it on the highway. Many hybrid electric vehicle reduce idle emissions by turning off the internal combustion engine when the car is not moving. However, the engine will be restarted again when needed. In addition, the hybrid electric car will produce less emissions comparing with a same sized vehicle powered by gasoline.

The first hybrid car in the world is the Ferdinand Porsche in 1900. The car was not released into the market and made available to the public. In 1998, Toyota release its first hybrid car Toyota Prius. After two years, the Honda debut its hybrid car Honda Insight in the marketplace. Although it was initially viewed as unnecessary, many people began to see its importance when the gasoline price significantly increases. As a result, automobile manufacturers start to make hybrid cars in the late 2000s.

Hybrid electric car become successfully during the 1990s after Honda Insight and Toyota Prius are released to the market. The hybrid electric cars possess an internal combustion engine so that the wheels can move without having to covert to and from electric energy. In 2004, Toyota Prius receive a high demand so that the company develops a newer model. The new model has a modern design and is less expensive while offering up to forty percent of fuel efficiency. Honda also offers its own hybrid car including Insight, Civic and Accord models.  Audi was the first automobile manufacturer in the Europe to come up with a hybrid vehicle called Audi duo.

Hybrid vehicle can be classified into three categories including parallel hybrids, series hybrids, and series parallel hybrids. In parallel hybrids, the internal combustion engine and electric motor is connected to the mechanical transmission. Parallel hybrids have smaller battery packs because they depend on the regenerating braking. The internal combustion engine in parallel hybrid also plays a role in offering supplementing battery recharging. Parallel hybrid offers a higher efficiency for highway driving compares to urban driving.

Series hybrids are only powered by the electric motor. The internal combustion engine acts as a generator to power the electric motor. In addition, the internal combustion engine also helps to recharge the batteries. Series hybrids have a larger battery pack compare with the parallel hybrid so they are more expensive.

Series parallel hybrids has the ability to operate as a series hybrid when driven in lower speed and as parallel hybrid when driven in high speed therefore they cost much higher.

The Heads Up Display (HUD) has been almost as popular as the flying car, in future depictions in popular media.  We've seen some positive advancements in military applications and some low level tech involving displaying basic information like speed on a Nissan window.  But now GM is hoping to make the giant leap to display technology that allows the driver to view pertinent information, without having to take their eyes off the windshield.

What makes GM's special is that the display technology will display whats going on ahead of the driver, not necessarily just information directly related to the car itself.  Instead of seeing RPMs jumping across the windshield, think driving in foggy conditions where the edges of roads are etched with light across the windshield.  It sounds to me to be the closest thing to assisted night vision as possible.  A possible life saver when road conditions get bad quickly and you can't see 5 ft in front of you.

The lead for GM's research and development team points out that the technology will also be able to identify animals or items in the road.  It would be capable of giving advance warning, displayed directly onto the windshield, so distractions coming from the console or sound alarms won't be necessary.

Unfortunately this brave new technology is not even completed enough to be tested on an actual vehicle.  Right now it only exists in the GM laboratory and will likely remain there for quite some time.  However, to me, it looks like it might be the next GPS system and popular enough that everyone will want it on their car.

At this point I know I'm not the only one a little bit suspicious of the incidents surrounding Prius recall incidents.  Specifically referring to the out of control Prius doing 80 down the freeway in San Diego.  It all kind of smells like Balloon Boy and people looking to taste nano second fame in the wake of Toyota's woes.

In San Diego a guy claimed that he couldn't get his Prius to stop because of a stuck accelerator pedal.  However, analysts are quick to point out that shifting into neutral, standing on the brakes, shutting the car off, or all of the above should have brought the car to a stop.  Slowly but surely the above should have worked and if not there are a lot more problems at stake here than just a stubborn gas pedal.  Of course that doesn't make an interesting news headline, nor damaging enough to the foreign manufacturers name.

Again, I'm not the only one making the Balloon Boy reference, but it's the most fitting.  Perhaps it's even worse, maybe the goal of the media and guilty parties is to damage a name, rather than just a chance to be on TV.  It's a volatile economic market and if we can burn Toyota at the stake it can only make our domestic manufacturers stronger.  We all know underhanded deals go on everyday with big time corporations, maybe this is an operation involving damaging a corporate name.  Toyota presented an opening for criticism and guilty parties took notice and are not exploiting it as much as possible.

Toyota has been spending a metric butt load of money on advertising and claiming to have the fix in place for their accelerator problems.  The recalls have been widely televised, dealers have been compensated, and you can get online without seeing an advertisement featuring a Toyota owner pleased with their cars safety record.  Toyota knows what's going on, they see the writing on the wall, and I suspect it will be a long time before they ever make it back to the top of the sales charts in the US.

It's not a bad thing that domestic car manufacturers retake the top sales figures again, I just hope that it's done without any fancy business.  It's been pointed out that Ford has been making huge gains in quality, leadership, and efficiency for a few years now, which has helped place them where they are.  Let's focus on the good things our country has to offer in the automotive industry and leave Toyota to clean up it's own mess, consumers will still be around when they are done.

This isn't like slapping a fart can on a Honda Civic or attaching an ironing board to the trunk for spoiler down force.  We are talking about modifying and tuning a super car to give it more aggression, we are talking about a professional BF tune of a Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4.  Not that any of us will be rushing out to buy a Lambo or a BF tune anytime soon, but these are some great pics for wet dreams.

BF Performance has been known for their extreme custom kits and modifications of super cars, but this Gallardo tune takes the cake.  Some of the highlights include active switching of All-Wheel-Drive to Rear Wheel drive, full body kit, wing doors, and carbon ceramic brakes.

Pictures below of the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4 BF Performance Tune:

Lamborghini Gallardo CONV SPYDER 2008 LAMBORGHINI GALLARDO 2DR CONV SPYDER    US $41,100.00

Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder E Gear Only 1200 Miles Highly Optioned LIKE NEW WOW    US $60,100.00

Lamborghini Gallardo Lamborghini Gallardo    US $65,100.00

Looking to go green in style and luxury?  If yes, then you better start saving your money now for the in development S-Class hybrid, which will reportedly achieve up to 81 miles per gallon.  It will be a plug-in style hybrid and utilize an SLS AMG e-drive to achieve efficiency greatness.

Amazingly, the S-Class plug-in will reportedly be capable of speeds of up to 68 miles per hour in all electric mode.  However, drivers will be limited to a 20 mile radius in all electric mode.  If your commute only requires you to travel less than 20 miles to and from then it's possible to get infinite miles per gallon, provided you remember to plug the damn thing in at night.

Which brings me to my next point, the Mercedes plug-in hybrid is already being plagued by a low density battery, which translates into looonnnggg charge times.  Who would want to buy a hybrid that takes 2 days to charge?  One of a handful of hurdles keeping the S-Class in development and not being rolled out the manufacturers door.

Ford has stormed into India's small car market with an all new model, called a Figo.  There is already some steep competition going on in India, but Ford has placed the Figo at a price point that industry analysts feel will be competitive.  It may not mean a lot to you now, especially if you don't live in India, but if successful think of what will happen to Ford stock!

70% of all vehicles purchased in India are small cars and Ford had yet to enter that segment.  The Ford Figo hopes to gain some of that market share, primarily owned by GM and Volkswagen.  Hard to believe that Ford can create a car this inexpensive, but the Figo will start stealing business at a measly $7,500 USD.  It begs the question, if they can do it in India, why can't they do it in the US?

Ford Figo Pics

It's so difficult for me to get excited over Kia, despite their success in the US market.  The Korean manufacturer has made huge head way in gaining consumer confidence in the US and hope to capitalize even more on Toyota's latest recall woes.  Of course, the latest Consumer reports for top cars of 2010 doesn't hurt either.

Hyundai-Kia took one of the largest jumps in rankings over 2009, going from #9 to #5 for 2010.  Kia scored 73 out of 100 points, based on rankings of reliability, performance, comfort, and utility.  Quite an honor considering there were 280 vehicles in the survey by Consumer Reports.

If you are looking to buy a Kia, based on Consumer Reports review, they recommend the Avante, Genesis, Santa Fe, and Optima.  Kia has controlled the top pick for compact car over the past 3 years, with the Avante routinely taking the top of the list.

Everyone is capitalizing on looking green, going green, or at the very least just trying not to dump their oil change down the drain.  Manufacturers know that consumers are taking into consideration their environmental impact when purchasing a car, so they intend to exploit desire.  Some just like throwing a green hue on their logo until they can come up with a nice fuel efficient car, Mercedes is going all out with an environmental awareness ad campaign.  Soon enough it'll be in your face, Mercedes is committed to the green movement, with an ad premiere during the upcoming Academy Awards.

The Green advertisement will focus on the all new S400 Hybrid.  Hoping to attract familiar viewers, the ad will be voiced by Jon Hamm, a Golden Globe winner from the TV series Mad Men.  It's called the 'Tree of Innovation' and it's designed to instill a sense of guilt in fat wallet consumers.

On a positive note, it does highlight the fact that Mercedes has been committed to testing and developing energy efficient vehicles.  You don't have to look far till you see the advancements they've made in clean diesel technology and now uber efficient hybrids.  "Engineering for a greener future", is the hook, which most consumer will bite.

The Geneva Motor Show has seen it's fair share of hybrids, but Audi has made a splash with it's reveal of the A8 Hybrid.  In standard trim the A8 is already an impressive vehicle, with big power numbers, and luxury to spare.  The new hybrid should appeal to those looking to stay green and powerful.

Combined, the 2.0 liter motor and electric motor provide over 240 horsepower.  Impressive numbers, especially when you consider that the A8 will be available in v6 versions with similar horsepower and no hybrid power train.

Don't go rushing to your Audi dealers just yet, the Audi A8 should not be available until sometime in 2011.  By then I'm sure we will see plenty other luxury hybrids on the market, including those from Porsche and even Ferrari.  Depending on how deep your pockets are, the sky is the limit on horsepower and luxury in a green wrapper.