The price of a hybrid vehicle at this point is about $4,000 more than the total combustion counterpart. You qualify for a $2,000 low emission vehicle tax credit, however.

What would it take for you to change from combustion to hybrid?

For me it is simple... Price.

The batteries are nickel medal hydride and the pack costs about 1/3 the price of the vehicle, but are built to last a lot longer than the estimated life of the car. So, that is not a concern.

Maybe the 3,000 mile long extention cord will have an effect on me.

While I lived in Scottsdale, AZ a few years ago, the state had a program that subsidized the cost to convert your car to use Propane gas. The subsidy was SO much that it was actually paying for the cost of the conversion and somewhere around half the price of the car - it was an incentive to get people to actually DO the conversion since there were only 3 propane stations in the Phoenix area.

Anyways, I knew at least 10 people that did this, and half of them bought 3, 4 and in one case 7 cars. One woman bought 7 Chevy Denalis for a little over $20K each. Resold them and made a killing. Now I wouldn't do this myself, some people figured it was 'the right thing to do'.

Did the state government reach their objective? Actually yes, and then some. Too much. They went into the hole about $450 Million last I heard, and had to terminate the program..

A program with the right intentions, but with too little thought and too much incentive.

As the technology is more widely accepted and becomes more efficient, the cost will go down. In 10 years, they will probably not make non-hybrid cars anymore.

When you take into account that fuel is about $1.55 a gallon at the cheap places, It doesn't take long to make up the $1,000 difference when you can figure on getting close to 20 mpg better mileage than a fuel efficient gasoline car.

How 'bout a hydrogen powered car?

Well, we're not gonna run out of hydrogen any time soon, but the stuff persists in attaching itself to other atoms; free hydrogen is even less common than free beer. Right now, you'll expend more energy breaking up hydrogen compounds than you'll save by using them in the first place. I don't see this happening without a couple of major breakthroughs and hyper-expensive fossil fuels ($100-plus per barrel).

mranderson....no need for an extension cord. Hybrids run off of a small gasoline-powered engine, that generates electricity to fill batteries that power the electric motor.

I think the true answer to our energy prblems lies in the big fiery ball in the sky.....the problem lies in a power cell capable of maintaining a stable charge, but with big oil being in bed with the gov't research funds are limited.

I'd do it but I already get 38mpg's. Now if we can get the Americans to make better cars.

Amen! Unfortunately, GM, Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep, and Fod/Lincoln/Mercury/Jag aren't on my list, at least for now! I'll stick with my 12 year old Nissan!

Hybrid vehicle is a good choice and you will satisfy with the gas mileage. Especially, gas price is getting increase now. I am feeling that gas price is kind of expensive to me. As far as I know, most expensive part in the vehicles the battery or engine.


The price may roughly almost same with car engine's price. Thus, you need to take care about the expensive part and you will have one more thing to check for your car.

the vehicle has special battery, so you may feel the vehicle is kind of heavier than regular cars.
I heard that the battery is also hard to fix it if it is broken. However, most companies provide good warranties for their batteries like 60000-mile battery warranty.

Who knows? Distribution of hybrid vehicles may make one new job, skill and tools in car repair center. The battery repair specialist and his tools.

At work, I have been thrown into the experimental hybrid vehicles program, the more I find out about them I will pass it along, what I can anyway. I beleive right now, were about ten years off yet on really seeing them in any great numbers on the roads, but I can see where that may be all you will be able to buy one day.