CTC Review: 2008 Saturn Vue Hybrid

[CD_Editor]

Day 1:

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Just when gas prices seem to be at an all-time high across the country, my vehicle this week is the stylish new Saturn Vue SUV, but not just any Vue: a hybrid version and GM's answer to Ford's Escape Hybrid.  Starting at only     
$30,790, the Saturn Vue Hybrid is less expensive than Ford's Escape but only available in a front wheel drive variant.  More...

[sailor723]

They lost my interest right at "only available in front wheel drive "

[redmoose]

"They lost my interest right at "only available in front wheel drive "

Totally agree. If you don't need 4WD/ AWD you don't need an SUV.

[JF]

ADVANCED HYBRID TECHNOLOGY!!! (and a 4-speed automatic we had left over from 1982).  

[Cortina]

I rather a diesel. 

Prius Outdoes Hummer in Environmental Damage.

http://clubs.ccsu.edu/recorder/editorial/editorial_item.asp?NewsID=188

The plant is the source of all the nickel found in a Prius’ battery and Toyota purchases 1,000 tons annually. Dubbed the Superstack, the plague-factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist’s nightmare.

“The acid rain around Sudbury was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside,” said Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin during an interview with Mail, a British-based newspaper.

All of this would be bad enough in and of itself; however, the journey to make a hybrid doesn’t end there. The nickel produced by this disastrous plant is shipped via massive container ship to the largest nickel refinery in Europe. From there, the nickel hops over to China to produce ‘nickel foam.’ From there, it goes to Japan. Finally, the completed batteries are shipped to the United States, finalizing the around-the-world trip required to produce a single Prius battery. Are these not sounding less and less like environmentally sound cars and more like a farce?

Wait, I haven’t even got to the best part yet.

When you pool together all the combined energy it takes to drive and build a Toyota Prius, the flagship car of energy fanatics, it takes almost 50 percent more energy than a Hummer - the Prius’s arch nemesis

 

[jcon]

I rather a diesel. 

Prius Outdoes Hummer in Environmental Damage.

http://clubs.ccsu.edu/recorder/editorial/editorial_item.asp?NewsID=188

The plant is the source of all the nickel found in a Prius’ battery and Toyota purchases 1,000 tons annually. Dubbed the Superstack, the plague-factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist’s nightmare.

“The acid rain around Sudbury was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside,” said Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin during an interview with Mail, a British-based newspaper.

All of this would be bad enough in and of itself; however, the journey to make a hybrid doesn’t end there. The nickel produced by this disastrous plant is shipped via massive container ship to the largest nickel refinery in Europe. From there, the nickel hops over to China to produce ‘nickel foam.’ From there, it goes to Japan. Finally, the completed batteries are shipped to the United States, finalizing the around-the-world trip required to produce a single Prius battery. Are these not sounding less and less like environmentally sound cars and more like a farce?

Wait, I haven’t even got to the best part yet.

When you pool together all the combined energy it takes to drive and build a Toyota Prius, the flagship car of energy fanatics, it takes almost 50 percent more energy than a Hummer - the Prius’s arch nemesis

 

BS! That is such faulty information and has been dis-proven  over and over again!

[dasiuyan]

I rather a diesel. 

Prius Outdoes Hummer in Environmental Damage.

http://clubs.ccsu.edu/recorder/editorial/editorial_item.asp?NewsID=188

The plant is the source of all the nickel found in a Prius’ battery and Toyota purchases 1,000 tons annually. Dubbed the Superstack, the plague-factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist’s nightmare.

“The acid rain around Sudbury was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside,” said Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin during an interview with Mail, a British-based newspaper.

All of this would be bad enough in and of itself; however, the journey to make a hybrid doesn’t end there. The nickel produced by this disastrous plant is shipped via massive container ship to the largest nickel refinery in Europe. From there, the nickel hops over to China to produce ‘nickel foam.’ From there, it goes to Japan. Finally, the completed batteries are shipped to the United States, finalizing the around-the-world trip required to produce a single Prius battery. Are these not sounding less and less like environmentally sound cars and more like a farce?

Wait, I haven’t even got to the best part yet.

When you pool together all the combined energy it takes to drive and build a Toyota Prius, the flagship car of energy fanatics, it takes almost 50 percent more energy than a Hummer - the Prius’s arch nemesis

 

BS! That is such faulty information and has been dis-proven  over and over again!

I am not saying you are wrong or something like that... but do you have any proof that what Cortina quote is BS or false?

[No-Brainer]

So wrong, about the Hummer vs Prius. Plus, these stats are only for building the vehicles.

[Demosthenes X]

I am not saying you are wrong or something like that... but do you have any proof that what Cortina quote is BS or false?

I don't know about that, but their methodology is certainly flawed:

The Prius costs an average of $3.25 per mile driven over a lifetime of 100,000 miles - the expected lifespan of the Hybrid.

The Hummer, on the other hand, costs a more fiscal $1.95 per mile to put on the road over an expected lifetime of 300,000 miles. That means the Hummer will last three times longer than a Prius and use less combined energy doing it.

Who decided the "expected lifespan" of the Prius is only 100 000 miles?  If you play with those "expected values", you can make the study say anything you want.  I could claim the Space Shuttle is cheaper to run than a Jazz Scooter if the Shuttle has an "expected lifespan" of ten thousand years and the Scooter has an "expected lifespan" of a day...

[mmret]

Prius Outdoes Hummer in Environmental Damage.

http://clubs.ccsu.edu/recorder/editorial/editorial_item.asp?NewsID=188

The plant is the source of all the nickel found in a Prius’ battery and Toyota purchases 1,000 tons annually. Dubbed the Superstack, the plague-factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist’s nightmare.

“The acid rain around Sudbury was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside,” said Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin during an interview with Mail, a British-based newspaper.

All of this would be bad enough in and of itself; however, the journey to make a hybrid doesn’t end there. The nickel produced by this disastrous plant is shipped via massive container ship to the largest nickel refinery in Europe. From there, the nickel hops over to China to produce ‘nickel foam.’ From there, it goes to Japan. Finally, the completed batteries are shipped to the United States, finalizing the around-the-world trip required to produce a single Prius battery. Are these not sounding less and less like environmentally sound cars and more like a farce?

Wait, I haven’t even got to the best part yet.

When you pool together all the combined energy it takes to drive and build a Toyota Prius, the flagship car of energy fanatics, it takes almost 50 percent more energy than a Hummer - the Prius’s arch nemesis

 

\

I grew up there!

There certainly were no mudslides, and we had plenty of trees actually.

[sailor723]

Wasn't it Disraeli who said..."There are lies,damn lies and statistics"?

[safristi]

  Disraeli never had a Hummer.........

[Demosthenes X]

Wasn't it Disraeli who said..."There are lies,damn lies and statistics"?

Didn't you know, 67% of all statistics are made up!  14% of people know that.

[msantos]

I am not saying you are wrong or something like that... but do you have any proof that what Cortina quote is BS or false?

This has indeed been dis-proven before so many times its becoming nauseating... except for hybrid detractors - of course .

Art Spinella and his CNW outfit have literally become the village idiots in a world of peer reviewed and credible research.  Their Dust-to-Dust report has been refuted by so many organizations (MIT, Toyota, National Argonne Labs, and almost all academia) that simply quoting it is akin to being considered a flat earther. 

MSantos

[jcon]

I am not saying you are wrong or something like that... but do you have any proof that what Cortina quote is BS or false?

Who decided the "expected lifespan" of the Prius is only 100 000 miles?  If you play with those "expected values", you can make the study say anything you want.  I could claim the Space Shuttle is cheaper to run than a Jazz Scooter if the Shuttle has an "expected lifespan" of ten thousand years and the Scooter has an "expected lifespan" of a day...

and that's just to start.

Google is your friend on this one. These 'facts' have been discussed to death on here already, plus all over the internet.

You don't have to know very much to know the methodology is flawed.

I personally think Hybrids are not the 'answer' or magic bullet and I do believe we should be concerned about what goes into the batteries. However this line of 'Hummer is better for the environment than a Prius' is a joke. I wonder who would benefit from it?

[Cargeek]

Quote
Prius Outdoes Hummer in Environmental Damage.

The plant is the source of all the nickel found in a Prius? battery and Toyota purchases 1,000 tons annually. Dubbed the Superstack, the plague-factory has spread sulfur dioxide across northern Ontario, becoming every environmentalist?s nightmare.

?The acid rain around Sudbury was so bad it destroyed all the plants and the soil slid down off the hillside,? said Canadian Greenpeace energy-coordinator David Martin during an interview with Mail, a British-based newspaper.

All of this would be bad enough in and of itself; however, the journey to make a hybrid doesn?t end there. The nickel produced by this disastrous plant is shipped via massive container ship to the largest nickel refinery in Europe. From there, the nickel hops over to China to produce ?nickel foam.? From there, it goes to Japan. Finally, the completed batteries are shipped to the United States, finalizing the around-the-world trip required to produce a single Prius battery. Are these not sounding less and less like environmentally sound cars and more like a farce?

Wait, I haven?t even got to the best part yet.

When you pool together all the combined energy it takes to drive and build a Toyota Prius, the flagship car of energy fanatics, it takes almost 50 percent more energy than a Hummer - the Prius?s arch nemesis

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I live in Sudbury. Probably one of the best kept secrets when it comes to excellent outdoor life - great fishing and we actually get seasons this far North.

Trees may be small but getting bigger all the time.   ; )

CNW should visit locations they write about so that they provide factual information.

[sirAQUAMAN64]

The VUE looks fantastic in so many colours, but that has to be my favourite - is it Sea Mist Green? And with those Hybrid wheels, actually think the Green Line looks better than the Red Line!

I've yet to scope out a cloth VUE (material appears a tad canvas-y) but REALLY like the leather they use when so equipped. It has a thick texture and creamy colour which could be at home in something Euro Scandanavian. Regardless of look and feel, do agree the seat bottom cushions are far too short and small to be comfortable for taller drivers, and their position is bus-elevated as though you're towering over the controls/instruments/dash in the rest of the interior. Also, seems a tad small inside to me overall which is disappointing when you compare to other vehicles like B-Class or Tiguan which are more compact (and lighter!).

Overall, really like the VUE and with some tweaks (seat positioning, some small quality niggles with fit & finish) it'd be a model I'd buy. I, too, don't quite understand why it's offered in FWD-only (US states might be fine with that, but where there's real winter AWD in an SUV is almost a requirement). Further, the upcoming Green Line 2-Mode Hybrid will also be FWD, so still no choice. Bummer. Doesn't mean I'm not looking forward to it though, as the benefit from the 3.6L 2-Mode in both power and economy boost is bound to be more significant than this mild BAS hybrid.

[jww]

Having a true European vehicle here in NA that doesn't cost an arm and a leg (ok - other than the City Golf and Jetta, that is) is a very good thing, imo.

While I am not a fan of hybrids for several reasons - some valid, others more personal preference, I still like the way this car is packaged and would consider it if I were in the market for a vehicle of this size and scope. GM have done an excellent job with the leverage of Opel/Vauxhall this time around - unlike the Opel Mantra of the 70s, which was a nifty little car, but didn't get good grades here in NA.

[Nimbus]

With not having an AWD version all is not lost. Most AWD, 4wd systems revert to FWD as soon as the vehicle is moving. With traction control on many vehicles included with AWD or 4wd the need may even be less due to a reduction in the effect of a time honoured method of flooring it when slippery. I would recommend snow tires so that a person can stop, go, and merge more safely and quickly than an AWD or 4wd system. Plus save on the gas (FWD gets better gas mileage with the Escape getting 50 mpg for Fwd vs 42 mpg for 4wd a 20% improvement) which is the whole purpose of a hybrid in the first place. I know that a snow tired FWD compared to a regular tire AWD or 4wd will be more secure during snowy or icy weather due to better grip. Beyond that what does a person need?

These SUV's are really just a car replacement and not used in the same fashion as a big SUV.

[Cortina]

The seats are unbelievably firm. Perhaps some may like this; I do like my seats firm, but not this firm.

HeHe. Thats always been the norm in a Euroland Vauxhall/Opel.