Comparing hybrid sedans is a little like pitting Rush Limbaugh against Al Gore in a Thunderdome-style death match. The fight itself might put you to sleep, but the results, which speak volumes about the commitment of the combatants, will have everyone taking notice.

Despite the politics, now is a good time to compare hybrids. Environmental factors, ever-increasing fuel costs and the simple need for social responsibility are creating a market ripe for the hybrid. Manufacturers are responding with midsize sedans — the most popular car segment in the largest car market in the world.

We've assembled the three big players in this segment: Nissan's 2007 Altima Hybrid, Saturn's 2007 Aura Green Line and Toyota's 2007 Camry Hybrid. We left out Honda's Accord Hybrid since it's been discontinued for the 2008 model year. We're simply looking for the best car by factoring in fuel economy, performance, price and usability in an all-out slugfest of green.

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So here are the excerpts:


"The Camry and Altima are each certified as Advanced Technology-Partial Zero Emissions Vehicles (AT-PZEV). This means the tailpipe emissions are 90 percent cleaner than the average new vehicle, the fuel system has zero evaporative emissions and the powertrain carries a 15-year/150,000-mile warranty. Meanwhile, the Aura is certified as a Low Emissions Vehicle (LEV)."

- hmm.. not even ULEV? I think Edmunds might've made a mistake???


"Toyota proved it's got the fuel economy game wrapped up, as the Camry produced the best combined mileage of our test group with 43.2 mpg over both loops — 44.5 mpg in the city and 42.6 mpg on the highway. The Altima's fuel economy in the city actually proved marginally better than the Camry's at 47.3 mpg, but its 38.1 mpg on the highway dropped its combined rating to 40.1 mpg .

The Aura wasn't even close. Its combined fuel economy was just 26 mpg, largely as a result of its 18.9 mpg in city driving — where it doesn't benefit from true electric-only propulsion like the Camry and Altima. On the highway loop, the Aura produced 31.5 mpg."

"The Camry again came out on top, producing 32.6 mpg. At 31.5 mpg, the Altima is a close 2nd, while the Aura lags behind at 24.5 mpg."


"The Aura's acceleration and handling didn't win it any points against its competition, either. It was off the pace in acceleration to 60 mph, where it registered an embarrassing 11.0-second time — more than 2.5 seconds behind the 2nd-place Camry. The story is the same in the quarter-mile, where the Aura posts a 17.9-second time at 81.8 mph."

And we thought the Prius was slow!

"The Aura did win points with several features that the Altima and Camry simply don't have. Its mild hybrid system requires fewer batteries, which are traditionally packaged in the trunk of most hybrid sedans. Less intrusion by the batteries means more trunk space than both of the other cars. The Aura also has a 60/40-split folding rear seat, which the Altima didn't have, while the Camry makes a half-hearted attempt with a split-folding design that's partially blocked by batteries. The Aura is also the only car in the group that comes standard with an emergency assistance system (OnStar)."

Finally, something positive. Gotta post that right otherwise someone might think I was skewing the report

"The Camry hits 60 mph in 8.4 seconds and stops the quarter-mile clock in 16.2 seconds at 87.5 mph. Sixty to zero required 134 feet — the shortest stop in this group. And despite a softer ride, the Camry nearly equals the Altima's handling numbers by circling the skid pad at 0.76g and splitting the slalom cones at 61.0 mph."