cdelena

Sorry, there is no magic at work here.. it certainly does increase alternator load when drawing current to charge the battery. I could not find the math but most of us with experience in old cars saw it first hand when turning on the lights at a low idle could kill an engine. Here is a quote from one of the vendors in the business..

'When the SOC is sufficient, the alternator output voltage can be lowered to end the charging regime and set to a point which maintains the charge level. This decreased load on the alternator lowers the mechanical load on the engine helping result in improved fuel economy (up to 0.5 mpg).'

Lice Locket

The hybrid engine's magnet is NOT the same as the magnet for the gas engine, and the car's 12 V battery is NOT recharged by the same mechanism that recharges the giant battery used for the electromagnet. If the lights dim, it has to be related to the 12 V battery, since that's what sends power to the headlights. And I really doubt any car could get WORSE mileage because of a hybrid system.

cdelena

[QUOTE=Lice Locket,Mar 20 2005, 02:58 PM] The hybrid engine's magnet is NOT the same as the magnet for the gas engine, and the car's 12 V battery is NOT recharged by the same mechanism that recharges the giant battery used for the electromagnet.

b0mbrman

Uh...did you even look at the article? It was an independent study, not a survey of owners