Comments on Hybrid Cars: Hybrid Car Price Wars Coming Soon

A Matrix hybrid sounds good to me!

2006-05-24T13:55:00.000-07:00

A Matrix hybrid sounds good to me!

good article ... but a little premature. With the...

2006-05-20T18:55:00.000-07:00

good article ... but a little premature. With the 3rd generation Toyota Hybrid Drive reportedly coming 2008, I think/hope that will be the year of some real price wars and more choices getting underway.

For now (May/June 2006), the Prius only has one significant sedan competitor and that's the 2006 civic hybrid.

Even though I much prefer the look of the 2006 civic, the Prius has more storage capacity with its hatchback design, plus a stronger electric motor that enables better economy in stop and go driving.

I think I'm likely typical of many would-be Hybrid purchasers who haven't jumped in yet. Wanting the Prius's storage and bigger electric motor/fuel economy, but also wanting the better civic looks and cheaper price.

I want a MATRIX HYBRID (are you listening Toyota?) - lots of storage space (almost doubles as a station wagon) and those awesome flat fold down rear seats + 3rd generation 80 MPG ver 3 Hybrid Drive :) :)

I don't think you can fairly make such a compariso...

2006-05-09T16:57:00.000-07:00

I don't think you can fairly make such a comparison at this time, Roland.

CNW tried doing such a study, but they have yet to make the results public.

Nonetheless, until production reaches critical mass, any new development will always take more energy because the supply chains simply don't exist. Any emerging technology will initially always use more energy.

Better technology produces better results. Hybrid technology functions more efficiently than conventional vehicle technology. More important, the potential of hybrid technology has only just been tapped.

Ultimately, the best of hybrids is computer driven. To say hybrids don't make sense is to say computers don't make sens.

I can't help but wonder what the true efficiency o...

2006-05-06T17:00:00.000-07:00

I can't help but wonder what the true efficiency of a hybrid car really is. Factors would include the added energy for building the vehicle and components and the added energy to safely dispose of the components at the end of the life cycle versus that for a comparable conventional vehivle. I haven't found an analysis like that anywhere. Alternative fuels pose the a problem since their cost of production, energy cost, is mush higher than conventional fuels.

I'd like to see the government get more involved. ...

2005-10-10T10:32:00.000-07:00

I'd like to see the government get more involved. Instead of giving billions to create new refineries and to help oil companies find more oil, why not invest in a massive fleet of hybrids, such as bio-diesel hybrid vehicles?

It could help American automakers invest in fuel economy and reduce foreign oil dependency - instead of making a bunch of already filthy rich oil tycoons even richer.

That's an investment. More oil refineries are just a band-aide.

It is kind of frustrating that the U.S. automakers...

2005-10-10T05:00:00.000-07:00

It is kind of frustrating that the U.S. automakers are once again way behind in this new field.What would it take to open up their eyes?Gasoline at $6.00 a gallon.Competition can only help this new technology.