Are Hybrid Cars Worth The Money?
23 August 2006A new study says so - it claims that when you combine tax credits and current high gas prices, you can find hybrids that are actually cheaper over time than a regular car, despite the initial cost. Here’s what the study found:
The consumer-focused automotive Web site said that, assuming vehicles were driven 15,000 miles per year and gas was priced at $3 per gallon, owners of the Toyota Prius and Ford Motor Co.’s Escape Hybrid would break even within three years.
Buyers of the Saturn Vue Green Line from General Motors Corp., the Toyota Camry and the Civic Hybrid from Honda Motor Co. would break-even within six years, Edmunds.com said.
So great, right? Go out and buy a hybrid? Nope, it’s never as good as it sounds. First of all, the tax credits are going away:
But federal tax credits for hybrid buyers are being phased out on the most popular models.
Under a provision of the tax code, buyers of a Toyota hybrid after Sept. 30 will only qualify for half of the tax credit for which they would have previously qualified.
Tax incentives will also be cut on other hybrids after auto makers sell 60,000 of the vehicles — a sales threshold Toyota has reached.
Then there’s the assumption that you’ll drive 15,000 miles a year - many people won’t, and if you don’t you won’t use much gas - meaning the hybrid isn’t cost efficient in terms of fuel savings. Finally, gas prices have a notorious way of jumping up and down. You can’t guarantee that they’ll stay at these levels for 6 years - and if they don’t, that hybrid suddenly becomes a lot more expensive compared to a regular car.
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