Would you buy a hybrid?

[barryh]

I don't see any benefit fuel wise vs the costly repairs they can incur. I was involved in the 900 series Tahoe/Yukon/Escalades when we offered the Hybrid. I learned so much from that project! I still get excited when I see one still on the road today! My shop actually had one come in because nobody else including their local dealership had anyone fluent in these. A customer told them about us and we got the truck and it was a 2009 and had 227lk miles. I was proud of that...it finally needed a new battery which was $3300 plus install. Not bad for the age and use. BUT a newer more advanced Hybrid has much more complexity and battery costs etc. So again - No I would not even consider one.

While I can see the benefit for the new car purchaser, I think we can take it as a given that the battery isn't going to last the life of the vehicle and therefore it going to be a very bad purchase for some used buyer down the line where the improved mpg does not begin to compensate for the battery replacement cost. I was reading that even mild hybrids have a 48V battery as the starter battery and that can also cost $3000 to replace. The car manufacturers haven't the slightest interest in making hybrid batteries simple and cheap to replace and for the likes of Mercedes it can be $10,000.

I'm actually looking to replace my car soon and as a low annual mile user I'm not that bothered about the last few MPG but I am concerned about simplicity and maintenance costs so hybrids and in particular a Mercedes hybrid is ruled out for me.

 

[CharBaby]

We bought our first hybrid('23 VENZA) and we're loving it thus far.
Smooth, quiet, comfortable, great ride while handling decent and in the mid-upper 40s mpg.

 

[SC Maintenance]

Hard pass when we bought our RAV4 and glad we did. Has had more problems - the big one being the high voltage cable that corrodes and costs thousands to replace. People like to point out they extended the warranty to 8 years on the part. Yippee /sarc. Their design change was to put a drain on the connector. Truly you can’t make this up. Now if you live in the desert it likely won’t rust but still.

The ROI is forever. It’s only a few mpg on the same car and most of that is for city driving. In the highway it’s minimal.

As for driving a hybrid there really isn’t any difference. I just don’t see the long term advantage. Your trading pre paid gas for more parts to fix. Maybe when gas goes to $10 /gallon.

 

[CheezWhiz]

I'm still not sold on fuel injection.

 

[Astro_Guy]

Our first hybrid was the 2010 Prius in my signature. This has been hands down the most reliable car we've ever owned. Thanks to regenerative braking the original brake pads wen 100 K miles before replacement. This car was passed down to my son who still drives it with over 200K on the clock. It can still deliver over 50 MPG when driven appropriately. The hybrid battery is still going strong after 14 years. Honestly I don't know where some of you come up with the notion of added maintenance costs for a hybrid. In my experience it's been the opposite.

Our second hybrid was the 2017 Prius V which now has about 49K miles. Maintenance has consisted of oil changes and wiper blades. This had been our road trip vehicle until last summer when we started using my PHEV for that duty.

Which brings me to the Ford C-Max Energi PHEV. Unlike the two Toyotas this PHEV is capable of driving upwards of 25 miles or at highway speeds of up to 80 MPH without any assistance from the ICE. It's been a real game changer for me. It's road manners are much better than the Toyotas largely because of its EV characteristics. This vehicle has achieved 126 MPG over the course of 16K miles. Thus far maintenance has been limited to an oil change, air filter change and wiper blades. It will outperform either Prius in terms of MPG if it's fed a full battery charge every 200 miles. Lately we've been staying at B&Bs with free EV charging which allows us to start the day with a full battery.

The bottom line for me is that I would never consider a pure ICE vehicle again. The advantages of better fuel economy and lower maintenance costs have convinced me of this.

 

[Snagglefoot]

So far none of the posts dealt with the cost and gas mileage of a hybrid model vs the cost and gas mileage of same model in a non hybrid version. Would anyone like to offer that up? The auto makers don’t want you to pay close attention to that.

 

[SC Maintenance]

So far none of the posts dealt with the cost and gas mileage of a hybrid model vs the cost and gas mileage of same model in a non hybrid version. Would anyone like to offer that up? The auto makers don’t want you to pay close attention to that.

Commenting only on my Rav4, the hybrids typically sell at or above MSRP vs the ice is typically discounted. So using street prices there was no positive ROI when I bought. But gas is cheap in South Carolina.

It’s an easy ROI to calculate - just make sure to use real purchase price numbers. Also take into account the time value of money. If it takes 10 years to break even that’s a lot of up front money not earning interest, or a lot more finance cost if your not paying cash.

 

[SC Maintenance]

Please delete

 

[Just a civilian pilot]

No.

I do 90% highway driving.

I would never get my money back on fuel savings.

 

[OVERKILL]

Yes, wife and I seriously considered an X5 XDrive 45e PHEV last year, since we do a lot of in town driving and that could be done on full electric.

 

[Mechanician]

I think the CRV hybrid is an easier choice, when the ICE alternative is considered.
NA 2.0 Atkinson cycle vs 1.5 TGDI. The Hybrid has more torque and horsepower.

 

[wemay]

I owned an Ionic (54 mpg) and never should have gotten rid of it. So yes, i definitely would.

 

[Hermann]

So far none of the posts dealt with the cost and gas mileage of a hybrid model vs the cost and gas mileage of same model in a non hybrid version. Would anyone like to offer that up? The auto makers don’t want you to pay close attention to that.

No.

I do 90% highway driving.

I would never get my money back on fuel savings.

You might be surprized. See below

first pic 60mph state numbered highways

second pic 70-75 mph rural interstate with slight tailwind <5 mph

 

[Astro_Guy]

So far none of the posts dealt with the cost and gas mileage of a hybrid model vs the cost and gas mileage of same model in a non hybrid version. Would anyone like to offer that up? The auto makers don’t want you to pay close attention to that.

I honestly don't think it matters in the long run because the available pure ICE choices are going to become more limited. Granted there are large swaths of rural North America where a pure ICE vehicle makes more sense, but then again, the vast majority of us don't live in those places. It's a shame our leadership can't figure out a way to grant the people who do an exception such that they are not forced to buy a hybrid in a use case with very limited benefit.

 

[wings&wheels]

I have the mild hybrid Range Rover HSE p400. I certainly appreciate the mileage although it is roughly equal to my previous one which was a diesel. I was also slightly concerned about reliability, Land Rover and hybrid are a bit of a daunting combination, but the vehicle has been excellent so far (fingers crossed, knocking on wood, rabbit's foot....).

 

[Just a civilian pilot]

You might be surprized. See below

first pic 60mph state numbered highways
View attachment 229405
second pic 70-75 mph rural interstate with slight tailwind <5 mph
View attachment 229407

I am if it’s saying your achieving 42 MPG ( with a tailwind ) but I still beat it with my ICE.

I drive, round trip to work ( 380 KMS highway ), and consume 19 litres total ( 47 MPG ).

Yes, I am driving a high social status Honda FIT ( very roomy to be honest ) , but I just want an economical, reliable , cheap long distance work commuter car.

It’s a bit loud, but not as loud as a B737 max apparently ( I keep the doors and windows closed ).

Sure, if I bought a Toyota Corolla hybrid ( very nice car ) for commuting, it would cost a lot of money and I would never get my money back.

It’s ICE or EV but not interested in EV yet ( charge times on vacation road trips ….planning ).

I also don’t want a nice car that will get stolen at Montreal airport. Lots get stolen there.

Low status = hopefully higher piece of mind car will still be there. Hopefully.

 

[Hermann]

Glad you like your Fit.

 

[Just a civilian pilot]

Glad you like your Fit.

Thanks.

It does the job despite high status first officers laughing at me trying to get me to buy a Tesla even though they ( no matter how hard they try to rationalize the economics ) will never, ever come close to saving money getting rid of their ICE ( they don’t drive much at all ).

That just makes me determined to never buy one ( Tesla cult ).

What vehicle do you drive.

 

[oil pan 4]

Asian Hybrids lose value faster than almost anything, the only thing that drops value faster than an Asian hybrid is probably a teala.
I say buy a lease turn in. At 3 years old a hybrid lease turn in is close to the same price of a 3 year old gas powered car.

 

[Just a civilian pilot]

Asian Hybrids lose value faster than almost anything, the only thing that drops value faster than an Asian hybrid is probably a teala.
I say buy a lease turn in. At 3 years old a hybrid lease turn in is close to the same price of a 3 year old gas powered car.

I admit, I am not very knowledgeable about hybrids ( who makes the best ) , but my bias would be to buy Toyota if I was looking for one.

I don’t get rid ( I used to when young, foolish, and made a lot less money ) of my cars, I keep them as long as I can. I don’t worry about resale value but it’s a smart thing to consider for those who might not keep it.