Did you know that the Toyota Prius emits 90% fewer harmful pollutants than a comparable conventional engine in its class.

1. Hybrids are definitely environmentally friendly.
2. Cost more than conventional vehicles in its class (upto $6000). So if you think you are going to save money on gas forget it.
3. Tax breaks are available, but beware after an automaker has sold 60,000 cars in that class, thats the end of that.
4. Even thought more hybrids are coming out, be careful because you may end up paying way too much for a car that gives you the same mileage a conventional car does (see my Mazda 3 and Honda Accord Hybrid comaprison).
5. After the warranty runs out people are scared that the battery, which is essentially the heart and soul of a gas-electric hybrid will die out the next day and that there are not enough mechanics who specialized in hybrid car repairs and hybrid drivers have to depend on the dealerships. Well Macomb County Community College in Michigan has set up a course to train hybrid mechanics (previous post) and with regard to the car battery, well, I have not read of too many complains, but yes replacing that baby is expensive, so its a risk one has to take.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 11th, 2006 at 2:02 am and is filed under Hybrids. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.