No Hybrid? No Problem

The recent increase in gas prices has prompted potential car buyers to rethink their purchasing decisions. Automakers have in turn responded with an effusion of hybrid vehicles. But do all of them represent the best value to the consumer?

Toyota and Honda were the hybrid pioneers in the wilderness of the American car market. In 2003 Honda introduced its now outgoing Honda Insight - a slow selling hybrid electric two-seater with a sticker price of about $20,000. Despite its scarce passenger room and a meager list of options at 61/68 mpg Insight was the most fuel efficient production vehicle to ever hit US showrooms. Toyota picked up where Honda left off by introducing its roomy Prius and the rest, as they say, is history.

But this tour de force technology comes at a cost. No, not a figurative cost, an actual dollar cost premium that makes most hybrids unafordable, often for the very same young, educated, environmentally conscious consumers that drive demand for these vehicles. Selling for about $22,000 MSRP Toyota Prius costs roughly $3,000 more than its conventional counterparts. The Prius gets an impressive 60/51 mpg, and after an available government tax rebate it makes for an attractive buy. Sales data reflects its popularity as the Prius makes up nearly fifty percent of all hybrids on the road today.

However, Toyota Prius alone won't purge us of pollution and our incessant appetite for foreign oil. So what about all the other hybrids? How do they measure up in the effort to save the world? Sadly, not too well. If the secret to ushering in the new age of mobility is to appeal to consumers' economic interests, then the roster of many new hybrids simply doesn't do it.

In addition to Prius, Toyota offers more hybrids than any other automaker. Among them is a hybrid version of Toyota Highlander - a midsize SUV selling for almost $35,000. Its city stats of 32 mpg aren't too bad. But for millions of Americans who do their driving on freeways and interstates Highlander Hybrid is a bad deal. In fact, when powered by a regular petrol 2.4 liter four-cylinder, Highlander gets an EPA rating of 28 mpg. That's one mile per gallon more than its hybrid sibling. This may not be a big difference. However, an approximate $9,000 markup for a well equipped hybrid is.

In 2006 Honda introduced a hybrid powered version of its popular Accord sedan, now selling for a little over $31,000. With a powerful three-liter i-VTEC V6 under the hood, Honda Accord Hybrid boasts an impressive 253hp and posts 27/35 mpg according to EPA. Astoundingly, the entry-level 4-cylinder Accord gets almost identical 26/35 gas mileage figures and starts at only $18,625 MSRP. Needless to say, a savvy consumer will relinquish undue pep and a few bells and whistles for a whopping $12,200 in savings.

A twelve thousand dollar difference between same model cars that have virtually indistinguishable gas mileage specs makes the term "hybrid" almost meaningless. More importantly, $12,200 puts one within several hundred bucks of buying ultra fuel efficient straight petrol cars like 2007 Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris, Scion Xa, Nissan Versa, Hyundai Accent/Kia Rio, and Ford Focus. For example, Toyota Yaris sedan starts at $12,025 MSRP and gets a healthy EPA mark of 34/40 mpg. As such, it beats all midsize and SUV hybrids in highway fuel consumption.

Critics might point out that there is such thing as weight-to-power coefficient, and that heavier, "family-friendly" hybrids like Toyota Highlander, Lexus RX 400h, and Ford Escape are less fuel-efficient because they need more get-up-and-go. But what's often overlooked is that while the new petrol compacts are powered by traditional internal combustion engines, they are also more resourceful than ever and ergonomically smarter. A fourteen and a half thousand dollar Scion Xb comfortably accommodates five adults and is powered by Toyota's renown 1.5L VVT-i four-banger. This boxy techno-generation Scion not only easily beats Lexus 400h SUV in highway mileage, it offers substantially more passenger space in almost every dimension. Oh, one more thing - the Lexus costs about $42,000. For that amount of scratch you can probably bless everyone in your family with a brand new Scion by next Christmas.

Even if facilitated by a hybrid-electric power train, fuel conservation and true environmental impact denote sacrifice in horse power. It means that hybrid powered SUVs and performance vehicles, while marginally reducing fuel consumption, don't go far enough in their noble pursuit. According to hybridcars.com "the litmus test is whether or not hybrids are selling in greater numbers to satisfied customers-on its path to economies of scale and significant reductions in the hybrid premium". True. But until that reduction occurs, light, highly efficient petrol cars will be the de facto choice for those mindful of their planet and their wallets.