Hot hybrid cars: green and surprisingly mean.

Pitting three environmentally correct hybrid cars against each other on a drag strip sounds a lot like gratuitous blood sport.
Certainly, parked in the bays normally reserved for rocket-propelled machines with names such as Sidewinder and Fabulous
Freight Train, the sombre-looking Toyota Prius, Honda Civic Hybrid and Lexus GS 450h looked like Christians waiting to
enter the Colosseum.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Toyota Pious will now be fed to the lions.

Apart from the obvious satisfaction of seeing some po-faced hybrids thrashed over a quarter of a mile, there was a serious
purpose to the test – to find out just how quick three bestselling eco-friendly cars are.

This information, strangely, is not readily available. Hybrids are sold on their fuel economy and their low pollution levels,
but seldom is performance a selling point. This is not because their performance is dismal. It’s because in popular perception
cars can’t be both fuel-efficient and fast. Marketing men want to emphasise the former so they will play down the latter.

In the interests of science, therefore, and in an attempt to secure a place in Guinness World Records (there had previously
been no speed record for hybrid cars) we gathered Britain’s three bestselling hybrids together. The idea was to push them to
their limits then compare their times against each other and against those of conventional counterparts.

Hybrids capture the energy that is normally wasted during braking, store it in a battery and use it to power an electric motor.
This drives the car at low speeds and gives it an extra kick during acceleration.

From the scant information available, the Prius and the Civic should perform respectably on a quarter-mile sprint.
The Civic Hybrid is equipped with a 1.4 litre gasoline engine (the manufacturer does not quote separate figures for
gasoline engine and electric power) but, with the electric motor, produces up to 113bhp and goes more like a
traditional 1.8 litre gasoline.

The Prius’s 1.5 litre gasoline engine produces about 77bhp but add to that up to 67bhp from the electric motor and
its performance should resemble that of a 2 litre.

Under the hood of the Lexus GS 450h, the best-performing hybrid on sale in Britain (on paper at least), is a 3.5 litre V6
engine producing 292bhp; the electric hybrid motor adds a further 197bhp. This means that although the Lexus weighs
more than either a BMW 540i or Jaguar XF 4.2 and has a smaller gasoline engine than either, it should be quicker than
both to 62mph from a standing start.

Power is only half the story.

What gasoline-electric hybrids also have is masses of torque. Unlike combustion engines, electric motors do not have to
build up revs to produce maximum power. In engineering parlance, they have a flat torque curve, which means all their
potential power is available as soon as you open the throttle (or, to be correct, turn on the power).

The extra torque should give the hybrids an edge in performance that should more than compensate for the extra weight
they carry in the form of batteries and electric motors. We had high hopes that our quest to find the fastest production
hybrid-powered car over 440 yards would show that hybrids are no slouches.

At this year’s Geneva motor show the American car maker Fisker showed off the Karma – a sports-bodied gasoline-electric
hybrid that it claims will be capable of 0-60mph in less than 6sec.

Porsche intends to offer the upcoming four-seater Panamera with hybrid power. When Porsche starts talking hybrid
technology it’s a sure sign the performance benefits are about to be exploited as vigorously as the environmental ones.

Vital statistics

Model Lexus GS 450h SE

Engine 3456cc, six cylinders. Power 292bhp. Electric motor power 197bhp. Torque 368 lb ft.
Transmission Electronic CVT auto

Fuel 35.8mpg (combined) Acceleration 0-62mph: 5.9sec Top speed 155mph Quarter-mile time 14.20sec

List price $90,000.

Model Toyota Prius T Spirit 1.5 VVT-i

Engine 1487cc, four cylinders. Power 77bhp. Electric motor power 67bhp. Torque 295 lb ft.
Transmission CVT auto

Fuel 45.7mpg (combined). Acceleration 0-62mph: 10.9sec. Top speed 106mph. Quarter-mile time 17.92sec

Model Honda Civic Hybrid 1.4 EMA Ex

Engine 998cc, three cylinders. Power 113bhp. Transmission CVT auto. Fuel 61.4mpg (combined)

Acceleration 0-62mph: 12.1sec. Top speed 115mph. Quarter-mile time 18.31sec

List price $29,605

Toyota Prius vs Honda Civic Hybrid

Dawe: Toyota Prius
Off the line, the Prius feels pretty nimble, acceleration is linear and the CVT gearbox holds sustained revs with no
changes of gear. I edge ahead of the Honda and stay there. I’m not sure of my time when I turn at the end of the straight
but I’ve won and that’s all I care about.

My best time of 17.92sec is respectable and on all the runs I’m achieving a final speed of nearly 80mph.
By my reckoning the Prius is nearly as quick as a 2 litre Ford Contour.

How does the Prius stack up against a conventional counterpart? Well, it does 0-62mph in 10.9sec with an official mpg
of 45.7 (combined). An Audi A4 1.8 TFSi does 0-60mph in 10.5sec with an official mpg of 39.8 (combined). I have to admit,
I’m impressed. There may be lots of unflattering names you could call the Prius, but slowcoach isn’t one. I’m still not convinced
by the jelly-mould shape and the drab interior. It’s the automotive equivalent of a hair shirt, but it does give me a warm glow
of moral superiority.

Dawe: Toyota Prius
For about 15 minutes, my Prius is the official holder of a world record for the fastest hybrid over a
quarter of a mile. However, my victory is short-lived because Nicholas has brought up the big gun – the Lexus GS 450h.

Lining up next to it, my confidence evaporates. The Lexus has an engine more than twice as big as mine and goodness
knows what’s lurking in those batteries.

As the lights change I think I’ve left the Prius in reverse by mistake. The Lexus explodes down the track, leaving my Prius
in its wake. Suddenly I feel as though I’m driving an invalid carriage. I reluctantly line up for runs two and three.
What’s the point? My Prius is history, with the ink on my world record certificate barely dry.

Rufford: Honda Civic Hybrid
Even as Jason wheelspins off the start line in the Prius, I know I’ve lost. The Honda is
fitted with a nanny traction control system that “manages” the torque and refuses to let me burn rubber.
Why?
Surely the advantage of an electric-powered car is that all the power is available immediately? I know this because I
was once beaten at the traffic lights by a milk truck, even though I was in a Maserati GT.

Jason may have started faster but he’s not pulling away from me. As we reach the end of the quarter mile I’m convinced
I’ve gained ground. My best time is 18.31sec. After three runs, the timing device confirms that the Toyota and Honda are,
on average, less than half a second apart.

How does the Honda stack up against a conventional counterpart? The Honda does 0-62mph in 12.1sec with an official
mpg of 61.4 (combined). A Mercedes-Benz B 170 does 0-62mph in 11.3sec with an official mpg of 41.5 (combined).
And unlike the Honda the basic Merc does not come with leather or mags.

Rufford: Lexus GS 450h
I expected the Lexus to be quick, but not this quick. In a straight-line sprint, it ranks among the fastest cars I’ve driven.
In my rear-view mirror, Jason’s Prius seems to shrink like a cartoon dot.

The timing board at the end of the straight clocks my best result over a quarter mile as 14.19sec with a top speed of
more than 100mph.

The invigilators at the drag strip check their records to find comparable timings. A Ferrari 348TB managed 14.3sec;
a Ferrari Testarossa, 14.2sec; a Lamborghini Countach S, 14.1sec. So the Lexus can hold its own even among some
of the most prestigious supercars on the planet. It may be green but it’s no wimp, and it’s now the official world record
holder for the fastest hybrid.