I got a bit bored this evening, so I figured that with all the mileage charting being done, we ought to be able to see just how much money we're saving on gas so far.

Methodology:
- Take the known values of lifetime mileage and gas pump fills.
- Assign a rough estimate of the lifetime $/gal you've paid
- Take some other car (like my old Sable), assign a rough estimate of it's lifetime mpg

Do the math:
(lifetime odo / crummy car mpg * $gal) - (lifetime odo / HCH mpg * $gal)

So for me, at about 26k miles, 53mpg, and $2.70/gal, versus my old Sable's 25mpg, I've saved just shy of $1500 so far. How about you folks?

 

The "other" car I used to drive: 1996 Jaguar XJ6. It required Premium fuel, which makes my comparison even MORE favorable.

I also used the arbitrary (but probably a decent average for me, too) per gallon cost of $2.70 for Regular, with 30 cents extra for Premium.

24K miles / 18.0 MPG * $3.00 (Premium) = $4000 (if still driving 1996 Jaguar XJ6)
24K miles / 46.4 MPG * $2.70 (Regular) = $1397 (driving 2006 Honda HCH2)

Savings = $2603 (in 18 months)

Insurance and maintenance costs are lower, too.

 

My other "car" was a bike. So the hybrid is costing me money.

Bike: $0
HCH: Lots of money.

It's funny how the example show a normalized gas price and mileage but the cars are not normalized.

 

For me it's not so much the car, but the driving style.

I drove like a terrible person for 27 years with no thought of fuel economy. I was one of "Those" people we see- tailgating in the Left lane going 85MPH: jamming on the brake only to floor it, then braking again. Swerving around other "idiots" to gain another car length as if some Indy 500 race.

I moved 50 miles from work in 2002 and my 'ol Dodge Spirit (24EPA rating) 4 cylinder sedan only did 13- 16MPG and I was filling 16 gallons twice a week.
I tried to conserve fuel- but with lack of any knowledge just found it incredibly boring.

Gas cost $1.24 when I bought my '04 HCH- in fear it might reach $2.00/g in a few years. I was so impressed about the technology and wanted to see just how far I could go on a tank.
I did a lot of testing, a lot of web research and averaged about 66MPG for the 1st 2 years, doing most every fuel saving trick in the book. My personal record was in 2006 when I managed 1,003 miles for 74.9MPG (Calculated) on a single tank

My commute had changed into a terrible drive (2-3hrs to go 50 miles). I'm less interested in managing fuel economy these days but still do the basics and average around 55MPG this winter. (Sometimes very cold, but no snow/ice)

I've driven my HCH for over 110,000 miles with zero problems and if compared to my previous cars have saved many thousands of dollars, and hope to save many more over the next 5 or so years.

Today I see other drivers carrying on my old style and realize their ignorance, as a reminder of my own past. I just pray they don't have loved ones waiting for them at home- (and for that matter) a home which may become someone else's in a lawsuit , only to arrive 5 minutes earlier. Chances are they could take their family on a vacation with the money they could have saved by driving more responsibly.

-Steve

 

I'm not sure I follow what you mean by 'the cars are not normalized." Since everyone here had different cars prior to their HCH, as well as different driving patterns, it seems reasonable to compare personal savings versus their previous car, rather than to attempt coming up with some sort of "If you buy an HCH, you will save $xx", the way car insurance commercials like to do.

 

It is weird how a car can change a persons lifestyle! is it not Steve. It did mine as well. H

 

I calculated that I spent $152 less on gas the first month. I went from a Ranger, 2wd (open rear end so technically it was 1wd; unless it was wet or icy then it was 0wd), 3.0L V-6. So average $150/mo less on gas and it's been about 6 months....$900 bucks more or less.
FWIW - I made the trip from Austin to Dallas this weekend. The Yakima rack was on, I haven't checked the air pressure in months, the a/c was set to "auto" and I drove 70-80 miles per hour the majority of the way and still averaged 43.8 mpg. On the way back I used the cruise control and it dropped to 42.1 mpg.

 

I mean that you would save with any car that got better mpg than prior. Since everybody had a different car prior to a hybrid (assume this to be the case) the savings are all over the map. I notice that most people quote the same gas prices and distances compared to previous car. So if price of fuel is being "normalized" along with distance traveled. Why not normalize the car as well?

If not, then I saved nothing, it is all cost in my case.

 

I would say that the savings should be calculated on the same vehicle, less the hybrid.

For me, the savings isn't going to be quite as good as some of the others. I drove a 2003 Civic, which got me anywhere between 27-33 MPG on my average commute. Now I'm around 15 MPG higher than that on my average commute. That MPG in a car that did well to begin with, isn't a big change in cost. However, savings kick in with maintenance, the environment, and the fact that I'm driving a brand new car for the first time in my life and don't have to worry about repairs for atleast 5 or 6 years (that will come before the 100K mile mark). Does estimated savings take into account the safer driving that most hybriders have come to adopt?

My overall savings in cost for fuel, not as great, but the big picture makes it worthwhile. I'm using less gas (oil) and have fewer oil changes (less oil again) and get to brag about the MPG, Oil Changes, and the fact that it's a hybrid and has all sorts of gadgets going every which direction all the time :-)

 

Ahh, ok. I look at it as being a comparative measure. I see no reason not to go about "normalizing" gas prices and distances traveled, since I am not going to change my daily driving habits just because I bought a hybrid. My daily commute is still 29 miles round-trip, I'll still take a 240mi round-trip to see friends and family in roughly once a month, and the price of gasoline doesn't care whether I'm driving a 60mpg scooter or a 10mpg Hummer. Using the cars we previously owned is a good basis of comparison since it's something each of us is personally familiar with, though I suppose you could also make an equally valid argument for comparing against the other cars we were considering besides the HCH.