Even the wildest cars are nothing next to what people believe about them.

How many car myths do you believe? We all have our superstitions and beliefs, of course, but some are more widespread than others. These are the car myths you should let go of, to make your life that much easier.

"Electric Cars Are Rolling Bombs!"
Back in 2012, Chevrolet debuted the Chevy Volt and promptly was put on the receiving end of a brutal news cycle that insisted the Volt had unstable batteries that caused the car to explode. Like any myth, this one does have a kernel of truth, in the sense that in 2012, a Volt did catch on fire and it went viral on social media. But the NHTSA investigated it and said they didn't see any increased fire risk compared to gasoline powered vehicles. While there is a risk of the battery being compromised, that involves a very severe, dangerous crash that cracks open or otherwise damages the battery… and if you're in any car, a wreck like that is a problem no matter what.

"Warm Your Engine!"
Back in the day, when we used carburetors to adjust the fuel-air mixture, this was true. Carbs needed time to adjust to colder temperatures, or your car really would stall. But these days, almost every new car comes with fuel injection instead of a carburetor. So unless you're driving a NASCAR stock car of recent vintage (yes, they really did use carburetors in NASCAR until very recently), you don't have to worry about "warming up" your car.

Strange car? Stranger myths!

"Hybrids Don't Actually Get Better Mileage"
The root of truth in this rumor is important to remember: How much money you save with a hybrid depends heavily both on how long you drive it and how often you drive it. The original Prius needed to be on the road for a decade in order to meet the green standards that were touted in its ads. It doesn't help that, to prove that how you drive is as important as what you drive, Top Gear took a Prius up against a BMW M3 and found the Prius had the worse mileage. But again, they're missing the point: Unless you do nothing but drive your hybrid around a track, the hybrid gets you more miles for your gallon.

"Gas Is Super Explosive!"
Don't get us wrong, there is a fire risk from gasoline, but the Hollywood trope of tossing a match in a car tank, or a cell phone spark touching off a big boom, is a screenwriter's fantasy. What most people don't understand is that it's not the gasoline itself that's the problem. It's the fumes. If the air around you is 1.4% gasoline fumes, it would be a terrible time to flick that lighter. But if your lighter fell in a pool of gasoline, it'd just go out, or the fumes on the surface would ignite, keeping the gas itself from burning.

"Your Airbag Will Kill You!"
This one comes about because people don't understand the purpose of airbags. They're not big, fancy pillows. They're giant hard surfaces that hold you in place for a split second. If an airbag goes off in your face, broken noses and even broken wrists aren't uncommon. The safety is relative, and it makes sense; would you rather be pressed hard against a wall for a second, or slam teeth-first into your steering wheel at sixty miles an hour?

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