When the Prius first came out, I did some calculating to determine if the fuel savings would make up for the increased price over other cars. At that time, for me, it didn't (although the cost of gas was much lower and the Prius was still attractive for its reduced emissions).
With the addition of the Camry hybrid, it's time to revisit those calculations.
Assuming 10,000 miles a year driving (which is about average, maybe a little low) and using EPA city mileage estimates yields the following:
| Car | City EPA mileage | Gallons of fuel per year (assuming 10,000 miles driven) | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corolla | 32 | 313 | $14,105 |
| Prius | 60 | 167 | $21,725 |
| Camry I4 | 24 | 417 | $18,270 |
| Camry V6 | 22 | 455 | $23,040 |
| Camry Hybrid | 40 | 250 | $25,900 |
Now, there are a lot of missing variables (the Camry hybrid is going to be nicer than the base model I4 Camry, etc.), but this is enough for a basic comparison.
| Cars | Price Premium | 5 year savings at $2/gallon | 5 year savings at $3/gallon | 5 year savings at $4/gallon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prius vs Corolla | $7,260 | $1,460 | $2,190 | $2,920 |
| Hybrid Camry vs I4 Camry | $7,630 | $1,670 | $2,505 | $3,340 |
| Hybrid Camry vs V6 Camry | $2,860 | $2,050 | $3,075 | $4,100 |
One additional thing to factor in would be that the extra capital cost for the hybrid gives you lower operating costs (which may have increased utility that compensates for the opportunity cost of paying more for the car upfront).
Additionally, the above does not factor in the environmental impact of the hybrid vehicles or any potential tax incentives that may exist for purchasing a hybrid vehicle.
It would be nice if someday the enviromentally friendly cars were actually cheaper than the others. Do you see this happening someday?
In a certain sense, they already are (as the smaller, more environmentally friendly cars are much cheaper than the large SUVs).
I can't think of a compelling reason why a gasoline-electric (or diesel-electric) hybrid couldn't become more cost effective if/when they sell in even greater volumes. They are more complicated and have more parts than a non-hybrid vehicle, so they will probably command a price premium for a while. (They also have the issue of having batteries, which eventually will wear out and have potential safe disposal issues).
Hydrogen powered vehicles aren't much of a solution either, as they just shift the pollution and fuel consumption to the hydrogen generation and distribution network.
So my RSS reader tells me that there is an unexpected atom version....
I had some invalid html in my table (oops for typos!).
I just checked and the XHTML and ATOM validators say I validate now.
If your RSS reader is giving you an error still, it's probably a bug in the reader.