Are hybrid cars worth the extra cost?
I have been needing me a new car for a while. With the way everything is changing now, I figure a hybrid car would be a logical choice. A hefty tax credit, lower fuel cost, etc. is certainly appealing. Of course, hybrid cars are often more expensive, you have to buy powerful batteries, etc.
This brings me to my question: Are hybrid cars worth the extra cost? If they are, which ones are considered the most cost effective?
No. No they are not worth the cost likes GM’s Hybrid SUV’s the battery will cost $15 grand just to replace and to spend that kind of money screw that! just go with a diesel Volkswagen. average around 50mpg.
Don’t know where you have been hearing that you have to buy batteries, but all hybrid cars sold in the United States have an 8-year / 100,000-mile warranty that covers the hybrid battery. And in CA, CT, NY, NJ, MA, ME, RI and VT, the warranty is automatically extended to 10 years / 150,000 miles.
In Vancouver, Boston, New York City and Winnepeg, they have been using hybrid cars like the Prius and Ford Escape Hybrids as taxis for years. Many have racked up over 200,000 miles with ZERO battery issues.
Right now, the most cost-effective hybrid cars I would say are either the Nissan Altima Hybrid because it qualifies for a $2300 Federal Tax Credit refund, or either the Ford Fusion Hybrid (sedan) or Escape Hybrid (SUV), which qualifies for $1700. The Ford tax credits will be phased out this September though.
I think the hybrids using the Power Split Device system are well worth the money, because they cost LESS to maintain than regular cars. That’s because the PSD system is mechanically very simple, no gear-shifting wear-and-tear, no clutch, no hot-running torque converter, no CVT belts. The PSD transmission in the Toyota Prius for instance has all of 22 moving parts. That’s compared to over 100 moving parts in a regular automatic transmission with a hot-running hydraulic fluid-coupling torque converter. How the PSD transmission works:
The PSD system also gives the car the ability to use electrical regenerative braking (converts a car’s forward momentum into storable electricity). This saves brake pad wear tremendously– The Prius needs no brake pad change until well after 100,000 miles. (Not a typo).
The PSD cars also have no timing belt, no alternator, no starter motor or solenoid to go bad and need replacement.
And because the gasoline engine isn’t running all the time the car is in operation, it experiences less heat stress and the coolant lasts a lot longer– The Prius does not need its radiator fluid changed until after 8 years. (Again, not a typo).
I own a PSD car, and I love the low-maintenance requirements. Call me crazy, but I hate taking my car in to be serviced, having to wait in the lounge for hours, then pay the mechanic. The less I have to do that, the better, which is why I’m never going back to a regular car.