We are all concerned about the environment and doing our part to take care of it. Of all the purchases we make, the purchase that will have the greatest impact on the environment will be the car we decide to buy. Hybrid cars are an affordable and innovative way to help protect our environment and benefit from the increased fuel mileage.

While people were skeptical of hybrids at first, they’ve certainly come around. Major hybrid manufacturers like Toyota can’t make enough to keep up with demand and neither can anyone else.

So let’s take a look at what a hybrid is exactly. We all know they’re more fuel efficient, but why? Well, the hybrid has an electric motor (powered by a battery pack) that helps provide power needed with acceleration. The batteries are charging continuously while you drive.

Energy is conserved when you stop because the engine is shut off automatically. Then, when you apply gas, it automatically restarts which is a pretty nifty trick because it all happens so seamlessly

Hybrids also use a more advanced aerodynamic lightweight body, and combine it with low roll resistant tires that are stiffer and narrower to help reduce drag.

Hybrid sales have been picking up each year. While only 80,000 hybrids sold in 2004, that number more than doubled in 2005 to 200,000. These days manufacturers can’t make enough to keep up with demand.

Recently, we’ve seen several new entries into the hybrid market. Honda and Toyota make by far the most hybrid models, but all American auto manufacturers now offer many hybrids in their vehicle lineups. Europe has been a little slower, opting for diesel instead.

The current king of hybrids lies with the Toyota Prius which has a population over 1 million strong.

Now that consumer support for the hybrids has arrived, auto manufacturers are increasing the pace at which they introduce hybrid models.

If we had a crystal ball that could see into the future, there’s a good chance that what we’d see 20 years down the road would be freeways, highways, and streets that were full of hybrid vehicles. In fact, it’s likely that our gas guzzling vehicles of today are about to go the way of the dinosaur as more hybrid cars make it to market.