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?

Tags: Hybrid Cars, Hybrid Vehicles, Comparing Hybrid Cars, Comparing Hybrid Vehicles