The recent arrival of Porsche on our landscape has surely added a dash of variety and colour to our existing float of vehicles on Mauritian roads. However, as long as the question of petrol consumption of these high segment cars does not arise, everything seems alright. The imminent arrival of another beast, the all-American icon, the Hummer which is well-known for its gargantuan appetite for fuel and that has been a subject for debate for environmentalists abroad, will surely turn heads in Mauritius.

Amidst all these changes in the local motor industry catering for high-end customers, another stir, close to an undercover preparation, has been ongoing in most of the big car importers’ gara­ges very recently. Following the worldwide trend to cut down on fuel consumption and dependence on petrol, local car companies are seriously looking at cars that con­sume the minimum pe­trol and run on alternative power.

Hybrid car
Enter the Hybrid car, now pumped up to a star icon in Europe and America. People are already moving away from vehicles that burn holes in their pockets and are opting for more economical and environment-friendly vehicles.

These countries have al­rea­dy felt the need to cut down on their fuel consumption.

Mauritius does not want to lose ground to these countries and it has already got a whiz of the new emerging popular culture as far as cars are concerned. The Minister of Finance, Dr Rama Sithanen has even stated it clearly in his last budget speech that he is reducing by half the taxes on hybrid vehicles. “Excise duties, road tax and registration fees will all be halved for such vehicles. Starting on 1st July 2008, I am also eliminating customs duty on all tyres with energy saving and emission reducing certification.”

The minister could not have made himself clearer on his stand on the concept of a sustainable Mauritius through his statement. Mean­while, major car im­por­ters in Mauritius are already cruising along higher gear to put to fruition the ministers’ initiative.

Dominic Dupont, Director of Iframac and President of the Motor Vehicle Dealers Association pointed out that many local car importers have already sent some of their employees and engineers to Japan, Korea and France to get acquainted with technology regarding hybrid cars. “They will also have to decide on which equipment to be imported into the island for the maintenance of such vehicles,” he said at a car show organised recently by Toyota (Mauritius).

Meanwhile, Pascal Lelong, National Sales and Marketing Manager of Toyota (Mauritius) indicated that his company has already, since May, imported two hybrid Toyota cars, the Toyota Prius, which are presently on trial in Mauritius. He said two cars are being tested by technicians of the ministries of Transport and the Environment to make an exact evaluation of the impact of these cars on the local environment. “This process is important before the mother company validates the sales of these hybrid cars in Mauritius,” he says. So far, he says that the tests are reaping positive results and the project might be concluded shortly.

Lelong added that Toyota has, since the introduction of the Prius, sold one million such cars on the world market and that the company will introduce two new hybrid cars at the US 2009 Detroit Auto Show. The Prius, he added has a lower carbon emission than cars running entirely on fuel and that the great advantage of the Prius is that it shuts down the fuel engine and runs only on battery when the car is stopped in traffic jams or at traffic lights.

He explains that his company will be able to sell some 1000 hybrid cars annually in Mauritius though he said such cars will be costlier than ordinary cars.

“With rising gasoline prices as sure as death and taxes, it's time to get to know hybrid cars,” says a marketing representative from another major car importer.

He explains that the basic problem with automobile petrol engines is that, to let you blithely roar down the highway, they have to be designed for peak power demands. So, for crawling around the city, they're grossly inefficient. For waiting at red lights, they are infinitely inefficient.

He further adds that in response, hybrids use a battery-powered electric motor in low-power situations, and a gas engine in high-power situations, switching back and forth automatically. The gas engine is simply switched off at red lights, and is often designed to operate in a narrow power range when it is switched on, making it more efficient. The battery is recharged by the gas engine. Ge­ne­rators attached to the brakes can also turn some of the braking momentum (normally lost as heat) into electricity for battery charging.

“If you think that getting a good mileage per gallon is non existent, think again,” says the Marketing representative. With the technology being integrated by car manufacturers in their hybrid vehicles, it is now possible. These vehicles have two engines to run your car. One is the gasoline engine and the other is the electric motor. Just imagine a car that has an extension cord that you can plugin to your home electricity outlet to recharge. You do not even have to worry about the cost of your electric bill because the recharging will just be equal to less than a dollar per gallon.

Just imagine a car that has two fuel sources. If one runs out, the car will still be able to run. You do not have to plug in your plug-in hybrid car but if you do, your vehicle becomes an electric vehicle that will be able to run more quietly, cleaner, cheaper and more efficient than conventional gasoline powered cars. You have to consider that the gasoline tanks are there for long driving purposes.

However, when you are only driving locally, you do not need to fill your car with gasoline. All you need to do is plug in your car to your home's electric outlet and once it is fully charged, your car will be ready to go using the electric motor. Imagine the savings that you can get with a plug-in hybrid car.