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Wednesday, August 17, 2005

Are Hybrid Vechicles Worth it?

First off, let me say that I am not talking about the economy car hybrids like the Toyota Prius and the Honda Civic. What I am talking about is the new hybrid versions of bigger vehicles.

Sarah Breckenridge of Smart Money wrote an excellent article in which she took four vehicles (Ford Escape, Honda Accord, Toyota Highlander, and Lexus RX) and compared the hybrid version of those vehicles with the standard version. I wanted to see how much a person could save (or not save) by buying the hybrid version over the standard version. Keep in mind that my numbers do not reflect maintenance costs or tax beneifts of hybrid ownership. I also made the assumption that the vehicles are driven 15,000 per year divided evenly between city driving and highway driving.

Ford Escape Hybrid

City
MPG

Gallons
Used

Price
Per
Gallon

Ann.
Cost

City

33

227

$2.40

$545

Highway

29

259

$2.40

$622

Totals

486

$2.40

$1,166

Cost Per Mile

$.0777

Ford Escape XLT

City
MPG

Gallons
Used

Price
Per
Gallon

Ann.
Cost

City

22

341

$2.40

$818

Highway

25

300

$2.40

$720

Totals

641

$2.40

$1,538

Cost Per Mile

$.1025




Honda Accord Hybrid

City
MPG

Gallons
Used

Price
Per
Gallon

Ann.
Cost

City

29

259

$2.40

$622

Highway

37

203

$2.40

$487

Totals

462

$2.40

$1,107

Cost Per Mile

$.0738

Honda Accord

City
MPG

Gallons
Used

Price
Per
Gallon

Ann.
Cost

City

21

357

$2.40

$857

Highway

30

250

$2.40

$600

Totals

607

$2.40

$1,457

Cost Per Mile

$.0971




Toyota Higlander Hybrid

City
MPG

Gallons
Used

Price
Per
Gallon

Ann.
Cost

City

31

242

$2.40

$581

Highway

27

278

$2.40

$667

Totals

520

$2.40

$1,248

Cost Per Mile

$.0831

Toyota Highlander

City
MPG

Gallons
Used

Price
Per
Gallon

Ann.
Cost

City

19

395

$2.40

$948

Highway

25

300

$2.40

$720

Totals

695

$2.40

$1,668

Cost Per Mile

$.1112




Lexus RX 400h

City
MPG

Gallons
Used

Price
Per
Gallon

Ann.
Cost

City

31

242

$2.40

$581

Highway

27

278

$2.40

$667

Totals

520

$2.40

$1,248

Cost Per Mile

$.0831

Lexus RX 330

City
MPG

Gallons
Used

Price
Per
Gallon

Ann.
Cost

City

18

417

$2.40

$1,001

Highway

24

313

$2.40

$750

Totals

730

$2.40

$1,752

Cost Per Mile

$.0971



It is important to note that the hybrid models are $4,000 to $5,000 higher in price, which is definitely something to consider. Based on my gas price of $2.40 per gallon, these hybrids won't pay for themselves for a number of years.

Questions? Comments? Did I miss something?

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