Hybrid Car

Economic Impact and Foreign hybrid car Use

Hybrid cars make sense: they use less petrol and produce less emissions, saving precious fossil fuels and reducing their impact on the environment.

But if Australians plan to buy them to save money, they could be disappointed.

The models currently on sale on the local market, and those set to be sold here in the next few years, all sell at a premium price.

And, even with petrol prices skyrocketing, when compared with small, conventionally powered vehicles, they still lag behind in total running costs.

The cheapest hybrid available in Australia sells for more than $35,000.

Compare that with a smaller, four-cylinder car, which retails for well under $20,000, the savings in petrol costs need to be significant for the sums to add up.

At present they’re not, with a hybrid likely to return a fuel economy figure of between four and five litres per 100 kilometres compared with about six or seven litres for its smaller rival.

At current petrol prices that would mean a saving in petrol costs of about $6,500 over the 200,000km life of an average car.

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High Gas Prices Make Hybrid Cars a Reasonable Venture

Across the nation and around the world, Gas Prices continue to rise. Well over the $4.00 mark with expectations of reaching $5.00 a gallon in the near future driving a hybrid car is now a responsible fuel efficiency and money saving idea.

The Toyota Prius hybrid car sells for an average $22,939 while a comparable gas powered Camry sell for $19,231. However the Toyota Prius Hybrid is more fuel efficient and consumes less gasoline. With Gas prices well over the $4-a-gallon mark you travel farther on a gallon of gas then non hybrid cars. You can save a significant amount at the gas pumps.

So, which is the better deal: The more expensive car that is cheaper to operate, or the less-expensive car that drinks more gasoline?

It’s the Toyota Prius - but only if the buyer keeps the car for longer than three years, according to Edmunds.com, a Web site with resources for car buyers. In the Prius vs. Camry example, it takes three years for the hybrid’s fuel savings to pay back the premium paid to buy the Prius instead of a comparable gas-powered car.

The Prius example comes from the latest study released by Edmunds that determines the length of time it takes to recoup the premium paid on costlier Hybrids. The findings: The rising price of gas is making Hybrids more financially attractive by reducing the amount of time required for fuel savings to pay back the so-called hybrid premium on many models.

In addition to the Prius, analysts found that the Nissan Altima, General Motors Yukon, Toyota Camry and the Mercury Mariner were among hybrid vehicles that offered relatively quick paybacks.