Hybrid Car the Pros and Term Paper

Cons of Owning Hybrid Cars:

There are several cons to owning a hybrid car and they include the following:

Lack of freeway cruising speeds in the majority of the hybrid models. The engines are not designed for consistently high speeds over 80 mph or above for example.

The best selling hybrids have on average $5,000 prices above their invoices due to their high levels of popularity. With this significantly higher price, the savings from fuel economy are erased for many consumers.

In general it takes years to attain the cost savings that hybrid cars promise.

The increased cost for hybrid vehicles typically isn't paid for with the savings on fuel.

The highest mileage hybrid cars are some of the most dangerous to be in an accident in.

Hybrid trucks and SUVs are more expensive to purchase and operate than gasoline trucks according to Fueleconomy.gov (2006).

Pros of Owning Gas Cars

The following are the major pros to owning a gasoline-powered vehicle:

Pervasive availability of repair centers and service centers globally. As the gasoline engine is over 100 years old and there are revenue opportunities for service providers, the service network is vast in its coverage of vehicle types.

Low cost of ownership due to the increasingly high levels of quality being built into vehicles.

Dropping prices of automobiles as gas prices rise to make autos more affordable as a basic form of transportation.

In general, the crash test ratings for gasoline cars, especially those with 4-star crash tests, are by far safer than hybrid cars.

More pervasive financing options and easier to purchase than hybrid cars.

In many metro areas, the only method of transportation and the ability to quickly get from locations vs. waiting for mass transportation.

Cons of Owning Gas Cars

There are just as many cons for owning a gas car, and they are as follows:

Pollution of the air and water. Internal combustion engines produce many different toxic byproducts and create smog in the major metro areas of the world including Los Angeles, London, and increasingly Beijing.

Costs of gasoline influence the cost of ownership. Gas prices drive up the cost of ownership and make it more expensive to own a gasoline-powered vehicle.

Costs of repairs for cars that don't have a large installed base of vehicles can cost an exorbitant amount of money to fix.

Engines often wear out within 60,000 miles or less and the cost of replacing them or acquiring a new car can make the costs of transportation just as high as getting a hybrid car.

Summary

With hybrid cars delivering higher gas mileage and a corresponding higher price, it doesn't make economic sense to own one, yet the benefits of HOV lanes and the tax benefits make hybrid vehicles more attractive to specifically groups of consumers.

References

Fueleconomy.gov (2006) - Review of Hybrid Trucks and MPG estimates http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/hybrid_sbs_Trucks.shtml

Greenhybrid.com (2006) - Comprehensive database that includes actual MPG ratings for hybrid cars relative to stated ratings from Mftrs. http://www.greenhybrid.com/

Strategic Vision (2006) - MTAB Analysis of NVAS Database of Fuel Type of key…