Question

China is going green. In order to reduce air pollution and oil-shortages, car makers have announced their plans to develop hybrid(混合燃料) cars for the Chinese market. Toyota’s hybrid car Prius will be ready to drive in China this week. Let’s have a look at the new car.

Any vehicle is a hybrid when it combines two or more sources of power. Hybrid cars have special engines, which are smaller than traditional gasoline engine. They run at 99 percent of their power when the car is going at a steady speed. A specially designed battery motor provides extra power for running up hills or when extra speed-up is needed.

Step into a Prius, and turn on the engine. The first thing you notice is how much quieter it is than a traditional car. At this point, the car’s gasoline engine is at rest. The electric motor will provide power until the car reaches about 24 kilometers per hour. If you stay at a low speed, you are effectively driving an electric car, with no gasoline being used, and no waste gas gives off.

The computer makes the decision about when to use a gas engine, when to go electric, and when to use a combination of the two. If you go over 24 kilometers per hour, when you step on the gas, you are actually telling the computer how fast you want to go.

The electronic motor recharges automatically using a set of batteries. When driving at a high speed, the gasoline engine not only powers the car, but also charges the batteries.

Any time you use the brake, the electric motor will work like a generator(发电机) and produce electricity to recharge the batteries. As a result, the car’s batteries will last for around 200, 000 miles.

1.Which of the following pictures can show how the power system of Prius works correctly?

   (W----wheel of the car, E:M----electric motor, G.E----gasoline engine, C----computer, B----batteries)

2.What is the most important characteristic of hybrid cars?

   A. They are powered by both a rechargeable battery and gasoline.

   B. They have smaller engines than traditional gasoline ones.

   C. They use only 99 percent of their power to run up hills.

   D. They are much quieter than traditional cars.

3.We can know from the report that ____.

   A. the batteries can be recharged at any time you want

   B. using the brake suggests that the gasoline engine should work

   C. the gasoline engine charges the batteries as well as powering the car

   D. the car’s batteries will last for around 200,000 miles without being recharged

4.The author writes this passage mainly to ________.

   A. announce plans to develop hybrid cars for the Chinese market

   B. let people know how to save their gasoline when driving a car

   C. teach people how to drive a hybrid car

   D. introduce a new kind of “green” car

Answer 1

BACD