Check out this guy's article at WomanMotorist.com: http://www.womanmotorist.com/index.p...601/event=view.

It seems that unless a hybrid can drive you to Jupiter on a drop of gas, it just isn't worth it.... Sad that the author never even discusses the "real world" MPG to compare to the EPA estimates.

 

I posted a comment providing a different point of view to the article you mentioned.

 

I have to agree with some of what is said in the article, everybody thinks that just because a hybrid gets better gas mileage than the average car, you should be in awe. But the truth is that unless a hybrid can beat the equivalent non-hybrid car by a factor of 3 or more, it's not that impressive. Yes I own a hybrid so spare me that I don't know what I'm talking about angle. The technology is there to make my numbers look pitiful and until I see those impressive numbers, a hybrid is just a gimic.

 

The hybrid is far from a gimic. While all of us would love to see PHEV at a reasonable price, it will take a while, as will hybrids with inexpensive Lithium batteries. In the meantime, as early adopters of the technology, we can help with our comments to the auto industry in improving and refineing what is available today.

We also can be happy that we are using less oil and reducing pollution.

With the tax credit we can even save money.

No, hybrids are not gimmics when purchased from Toyota or Honda, even as diesel vehicles are not gimmics.

 

In this, as in many things, I am a centrist, and can see value in both sides of this argument (so if you want a rant, stop reading HERE).

Yes, hybrids are priced with a premium, and this probably will make their market penetration slower than otherwise. But the companies that developed this technology have an investment to recoup, and wide market acceptance is not assured.

Yes, hybrids don't offer a jaw-dropping increase in MPG. The technology is evolutionary, not revolutionary. That has been the nature of progress in the auto industry worldwide since its inception. But hybrid technology is the best commercially availabe and socially viable personal transportation technology we have at the moment, IMHO.

Each of us will come to our own conclusion as to whether the price we paid/pay for, and the non-priced benefits (using less gas, emitting less pollutants in the air, being socially responsible) of, owning a hybrid add up to a win for us.

Back in the day (well into last century) I drove a Buick 442 that got 8 MPG...but gas was $0.30 a gallon, the Arab oil embargo had not occurred, terrorism from the Middle East was unheard of and no one talked about the ozone hole over Antartica. I felt good about driving then, 'cause I could beat just about any car on the road off the line (OK, maybe not the GTO).

Now, after the Clean Air Act, 9-11, the wars in Afganistan and Iraq, and $3.00/gal gas, I drive a mid-size sedan that gets 40+ MPG. My last car (an SUV) was getting 18.5 MPG longterm. Now that I switched to a hybrid, I feel good about driving again for...well, you all know the reasons.

I don't see hybrid technology as a gimmick. Would I like the same car with the capability for 100 MPG? Sure! But right now, I am embracing the best of the new technologies that is consistent with my professional and personal needs for transportation "on demand."

When something better comes along, I'll probably embrace that too. BRING IT ON!!!

 

But the truth is that unless a hybrid can beat the equivalent non-hybrid car by a factor of 3 or more, it's not that impressive.

The "truth"? Why the factor of 3? What's the significance of that and what's wrong with a factor of say 50% (or 1 1/2)?

 

It is a known fact that to convert the masses to a new technology (not just autmobiles) it must be at least 3x better. "Better" encompasses things like price, efficiency, reliability, ease of service. Not just MPG.
TVs
Audio/Video Media
Computer Processors
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It is a known fact

Must just be me that did not know that "fact"? Whey the heck didn't someone tell me before I wasted my money on this gimick?

 

I must have been asleep in class the day that one was taught.

Or maybe it's a Gen X/Y/Z thing.

Schmidtj, care to share some background on your comment about this known fact, so that I too can know it (intellectually, not Biblically...). Thanks!

 

Ya, Now they tell us after we all spend the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$!!!!!!!!!!