While gas prices have come down significantly since this summer, the state of the economy still has most Americans concerned when it comes to buying a new car. One option becoming increasingly popular is the purchase of a hybrid vehicle.
Hybrids appeal to people for many reasons, from gas mileage improvement to the incentives that make it easier to obtain affordable car insurance, but it’s important to think very carefully about which hybrid you buy, know how they work, and why they excel.
Different Hybrids, Different Results
While there’s a perception that all hybrids offer better gas mileage, this isn’t entirely true. Some models are actually designed, not to maximize fuel efficiency, but to increase performance in other areas. For example, there are hybrid sports cars and SUVs that combine their gas engines and electric motors to increase power. While this does use less gas than another car with a larger engine, it often uses more gas than the same car with the same engine, but no electric motor. The 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid, for example, is rated at 32 MPG, and the 2008 Lexus GS 450h only nets 23 MPG (combined).
Mileage Still Matters
Despite this, gas mileage remains the top reason that most people want a hybrid vehicle. Why are hybrids so much more fuel efficient than their standard-power train brethren? It’s because of the electric motor which is powered by batteries which are, in turn, recharged every time the brakes are used. For hybrid vehicles designed for fuel efficiency and not performance, the numbers are attractive: 42 MPG combined for the 2008 Honda Civic Hybrid, and 46 MPG for the same model year Toyota Prius.
Incentives?
But what about those incentives? While they’re becoming less common as hybrid technology becomes more popular, some hybrid models still qualify you for a federal tax incentive, and many states also offer perks to hybrid drivers, including state tax incentives, parking discounts, the ability to use carpool lanes without penalty, and toll discounts. Alone, this may not add up to much, but if you add it to the money saved on gas, the fact that hybrids often cost more to purchase than their gas-only siblings is easily offset.
Insurance Savings
Hybrids are also a benefit when it comes to saving money on insurance, something we all need, especially since recent numbers indicate that insurance premiums in the United States have increased by more than 3% in the last quarter, and about that in the previous quarter as well. Many auto insurance companies offer discounts of up to 10% for hybrid cars, though this is dependent on the type of hybrid you own.
Still, saving money on gas, insurance, and taxes make the purchase of a hybrid ever more tempting. In fact, as of October, 2008, the Honda Civic Hybrid has supplanted the Ford F-150 as the most frequently purchased automobile in the United States.
Tags: affordable car insurance, auto insurance companies, buying a new car, electric motor, gas mileage, hybrid technology, hybrid vehicle, insurance premiums, insurance savings, maximize fuel efficiency, saving money on gas, saving money on insurance
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