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Old 06-23-2009, 12:48 AM   #10 (permalink)
ebacherville
Veggiedynamics
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Alexandria, MN
Posts: 684

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One note on hybrids.. the battery packs on these are something I have hope for and fear..

The HOpe , in a few years youll be able to get larger capacity packs made with newer technologies that provide more power etc.. making your mpg get better..

The fear, these packs aren't cheap.. the cost of a MAJOR mechanical problem.. like a engine failure.. if in 5 years it fails. ill have one hell of a repair cost.. even though the gas engine has many more miles of life in it.. IM in MN and know what the weather can do to batteries up here.. we go from 100 degrees with 95%+ humidity to -50 and bone dry up here..

The batteries in these hybrids, they have a life span.. they will not outlast the engine.. but could be down the road a easy way to increase there mpg or even add plug in hybrid capabilities.

The big unknown here is fuel prices, if gas goes to $6 a hybrid may make up the added 15-20mpg in the initial purchace but at $4 a gallon the car would need 250k on it to make up that added increase, and thats doesn't include the cost of new battery packs ect.

Again thats always the gamble.. However I know I can get better than the EPA rated milage just by driving like a sane person.. every road we drive on is 55mph and not alot of city driving, I see getting over 40 mpg out of any of the subcompacts easily, add a few areo mods and some added air in the tires and we should be in the near hybrid area, for little cost. Sure I could get 60 mpg in a Insight.. but the balance between investment and gains is far lower at that figure than 20mpg to 40mpg.. Even at gas at a insane $10 a gallon it would take 2 years to make up the added $10,000 of a hybrid. At the highs of last year.. at 4 a gallon.. were talking 100,000 miles worth of gas.. 5 years at 20k miles a year... at todays prices of 2.60 a gallon were talking 7-8 years.. to pay for that extra 10k to get a hybrid... Hybrids are nice but unless your driving 30-40k a year.. they still don't add up.. if you are putting loads of miles on or in a "fleet" situation yeah they make sense. Or if you only drive in the city and do loads of miles like a Taxi.. yeah they make sence there too..

Every ones situation is different but for us its all country roads, all low speed (55mph) and not a ton of miles.. we usually do 12-15k a year, and I used 20k a year as a heavily used car for us, my new colorado pickup is 4 years old and has 21k on it.. (and totally paid for) but we don't commute daily in it all the time, the CRX gets the nod most f the time unless I need to haul some big stuff..

I just don't see the hybrid making sense for us unless gas goes to some really outrageous numbers.. if thats the case.. I'll drive at 40 instead of 55.. get some better mpg's, thats should not be a issue as every one else will be not diving as they cant afford to put gas in there 23 mpg average american cars.
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