Hybrid cars take hold in US

[pkjohna]

The United States - land of the brave and home of the SUV, sport utility vehicle.

The large trucks have been the darlings of Detroit for much of the past decade

But now the gas-guzzling gargantuans are being challenged by fuel-efficient, environmentally friendly hybrids like the Toyota Prius and hybrid versions of popular models from Honda.

The hybrids could one day help to reduce the United States' output of greenhouse gasses, but despite the buzz surrounding them, they still make up a relatively small percentage of auto sales.

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[mikepaul]

I hope the tax-backlash against hybrids doesn't interfere with sales.

Any day now, somebody will segregate hybrids to separate pumps with extra fuel taxes applied so they can "pay their fair share"...

[DaveinOlyWA]

although the picture isnt as rosy as it should be, it still hints at the growing movement of the hybrid. the guy who said he would never buy another regular car after his Prius probably has a more common view than most realize for i feel the same way. barring a complete colapse of design or reliability, i consider myself to already be in line for the next generation Prius.

[kidtwist]

although the picture isnt as rosy as it should be, it still hints at the growing movement of the hybrid. the guy who said he would never buy another regular car after his Prius probably has a more common view than most realize for i feel the same way.

Me too. I've only driven a Prius for 10 minutes and it'll be eight months before I'm able to buy one. But I've done some research on them and they make so much sense that I can no longer imagine wanting to buy a car that wastes gas and spews out smog while sitting a stoplight.

[TonyPSchaefer]

My wife's Buick is not two years old and I catch myself saying from time to time, "we've really got to get you a Prius of your own." Bear in mind that we are onlg-term car owners. I traded in my '98 Regal for Priapus with 105k miles and hated getting rid of it "so soon."

But now that I have Priapus, I can't imagine going back. **shudder**

[pkjohna]

the guy who said he would never buy another regular car after his Prius

I cannot tell a lie...I am "that guy". The reporter tagged me from the Prius Meetup site (I'm the local "organizer"). It's interesting what he chose to quote but at least I got a lunch out of the deal.

[skruse]

A major fallacy in popular economics is up front costs. Economists rarely consider long-term or "out back" costs (often referred to as "externalities.")

States and air quality districts need to tax on emissions, not distance driven or fuel economy. This way, those who emit the most, pay the most. People can still make an individual decision to drive land yachts, and pay accordingly.

"Fair" does not mean "equal." "Fair" means "to each their own needs." Those who choose vehicles with higher emissions and lower fuel economy will pay their fair share. Many forget the Prius is design to minimize emissions and good fuel economy is a byproduct.

I pay my "fair share" because I pay the costs up front and emit far less for distance traveled. I chose the "soft path" or as Amory Lovins (Rocky Mountain Institute) reminds us, "To double your profit, double your effiicency." In this sense, taxes assigned to driving a vehicle become a voluntary tax.

[richard schumacher]

Simply making all passenger vehicles subject to the same emissions standards would accomplish that. It would be a nightmare to measure total emissions (rate times distance) from each vehicle. Once uniform emissions standards apply then the gas tax becomes a reasonable surrogate measure of emissions.

Indexing the gas tax with inflation would also help. Texas is now considering this.

[Bob Allen]

The only serious contender in competition with the Prius, in my estimation, is the Jetta TDI on bio-diesel. My partner makes his own fuel, which is totally cool. The only drawback to the TDI is the lousy reliabilty records of VW. Even so, they are poised to cash in on the diesel revolution in the US once we get the cleaner diesel fuel. The TDI is becoming the darling of the renewable fuel eommunity. Once VW gets its act together and improves the reliabiltity, the Jetta TDI will be a truly hot car.