With gas over $4 per gallon, on average, across the country, there is now a carpet bagger economy on the Toyota Prius.
Many dealers will still sell a new one at MSRP, but you are likely to wait 10 to 12 weeks before seeing a car. Yes, if you act quickly you can buy a used Prius, but this is where the real price gouging occurs. Case in point, a basic 2007 Prius with no options and 29,000 miles will cost you around $27,000. If you bought a brand-new car identical to this in 2007, it would have cost around $24,000, and Kelly Blue Book, the authority on used car prices, says that this car is worth just under $23k today.
Obviously, there is a new supply-and-demand curve in the market. Nothing illegal mind you; this is capitalism at work, but it just doesn't seem right. Gas may go up to $6 per gallon, or oil may go down to $80 per barrel; no one really knows, and there are bulls and bears forecasting both extremes. Since rationality has given way to speculation and panic, my advice to would-be Prius buyers is:
1. Do the math. A nicely equipped 2007 Honda Civic EX with equal mileage carries a suggested retail price of about $18,300. Assuming 30 miles per gallon for the Civic, and 45 miles per gallon for the Prius, it could take around 13 years to recoup the extra money for the Prius at $5 per gallon (assuming 12,000 miles per year of driving). Now I know that there are a lot of assumptions in this formula, but suffice it to say that when you do the math, the Civic seems like a better deal overall--not to mention that the EX has a Sunroof to boot.
2. Wait. Delaying a Prius purchase could have two benefits. First off, buyers get to see whether the price of gas goes up or down. If it does go down as some predict, the Prius premium is likely to disappear faster than a Lakers fan after the NBA finals. The other advantage to waiting is that the highbrow Prius will finally get some competition moving forward. Honda is rumored to have a 2009 hybrid Fit and brand-new five-passenger hybrid--with better gas mileage than today's Prius--waiting in the wings. Rumor also has it that VW, Hyundai, Ford, and others aren't far behind with high-mileage alternatives of their own. Finally, in 2009 or 2010 Toyota will introduce its own next-generation Prius that may offer plug-in capabilities and better gas mileage as well.
Supply and demand are constant market conditions, but shortages come and go. Is a used Prius really worth a $3,000 to $4,000 premium? The answer to this question can be summed in two sagacious words: caveat emptor!
I already own a hybrid (a Ford Escape) but am toying with the idea of going for the gusto by trading in the old Ford for a gas-sipping Honda Civic or Toyota Prius hybrid. When I bought my Ford, Uncle Sam sweetened the deal by giving me a tax credit of around $2,000, so my expectation was a similar financial incentive if I went for a more economical model. Not so fast! In its infinite wisdom, the federal government created one of the dumber set of guidelines you could ever imagine.
Once a manufacturer (for instance, Ford, Honda, Toyota, etc.) exceeds sales of 60,000 hybrid vehicles, the IRS phases out tax credits over the course of a year. Since Toyota is killing it with the Prius, it passed the 60,000 mark years ago.
So here's the net effect. If you decide to buy a Prius, decrease the United States' dependence on foreign oil, help improve national security, and do your part to reduce carbon emissions, you get nothing in return because the federal government came up with some lame-brain quota system based on manufacturers and brands of cars. Ridiculous!
I know I'm out on a limb, but I firmly believe that with gas at over $4 per gallon in many areas, the federal government should be reducing the speed limit, pushing states to eliminate tolls, and absolutely persuading taxpayers to buy cars with higher mpg. Given the energy goals we hear everyday from the presidential candidates, the cap on hybrid tax credits is just plain stupid.
Honda is upping its production of gas-electric hybrid cars, but has no immediate plans to develop the kind of hybrid that would recharge from an electrical outlet, the company announced Tuesday.
Honda CEO Takeo Fukui also publicly criticized General Motors for its pursuit of the Chevy Volt at a press conference on Tuesday in Japan.
If that kind of high-performance battery power is possible then carmakers would be better served making a completely electric vehicle from an environmental standpoint, said Fukui, according to the The Wall Street Journal (subscription required).
Honda is scheduled to release several environmentally friendly vehicles at the 2007 Tokyo auto show this week. Among them may be a hybrid sports car and a diesel-engine car that gets 60 mpg.
GM has been touring its Chevy Volt, a plug-in hybrid electric car that it plans to make available to consumers by 2010, across the U.S. since its debut at the Detroit auto show. The Volt could possibly run off lithium-ion battery power alone for about 40 miles, according to GM.
Many critics have raised questions as to whether that battery type, more commonly used in laptops, could be cost effective and energy efficient for car use. GM has said it's developing the necessary technology to make a lithium-ion battery hybrid successful and plans to test out the Volt as soon as spring 2008.
The news follows statements made Monday by Toyota that it's taking its time to develop a plug-in hybrid to address questions of cost, efficiency and consumer interest.
FedEx's diesel-electric hybrid van.
(Credit: FedEx)FedEx Europe subsidiary FedEx Express plans to add 10 diesel-electric hybrid vans to its fleet, the company announced Monday.
The vehicles, made by Fiat Group company Iveco, will be used in routes around Turin, Italy, where the company has a manufacturing plant.
"FedEx is making smart strategic investments in projects that will help drive the commercial development of new technologies for industry. We expect these hybrid-electric vehicles to perform with increased fuel efficiency and decreased emissions, making them ideal for city and urban environments," Robert W. Elliott, president of FedEx Express, said in a statement.
A sample van and the hardware used to make the diesel-electric hybrid possible will be on display at the European Road Transport Show in Amsterdam October 25 through November 3.
FedEx already has 95 hybrid-electric vehicles worldwide that have traveled more than 1 million miles, according to a company statement. The vehicles are operated in the United States, Canada and Japan. Italy's addition brings the hybrid fleet to more than 100.
Attempts to power hybrid cars with solar panels have been around for a few years. But now a company called Solar Electrical Vehicles is producing commercially available after-market panels for hybrids, starting with the Toyota Prius.
Get the sun to juice your hybrid car.
(Credit: Solar Electrical Systems)The fiberglass, molded panels fit on top of 2004-2007 Prius models. They are attached using an epoxy glue. Unlike previous attempts, these panels fit the curve of the roof.
To maximize your sun power and driving range, you need a larger battery installed than what comes standard with the Prius, according to company founder Greg Johanson, who says that battery storage is the most challenging aspect for solar-powered cars.
In terms of distance, the panels will get you up to 20 miles a day, depending on the size of the battery. They can improve fuel efficiency by up to 29 percent. The standard-equipped Prius battery, recharged by the sun, will take you about two miles at under 35 miles per hour.
Johansen said that because of tax credits, getting a 1 kilowatt solar electrical system on your home to charge your car can make better financial sense than getting a solar roof on your car. But that doesn't taking into account the cool factor.
"It is way cooler driving down the freeway and have people pulling up alongside and giving you a big thumbs up. It's hope for the future," he says.
Next up on their production plans is the hybrid Toyota Highlander and other SUVs.
Toyota's FT-HS hybrid concept
(Credit: CNET Networks)Few people can deny that Toyota's early adoption of hybrid technology has been a stroke of PR genius, giving the world's largest car maker and the producer of such Leviathans as the Sequoia and the Tundra plenty of positive press as well as a green image wherever it goes. (Last year, I even heard Bob Lutz, GM's chairman and product development guru, pay grudging homage to the strategy.)
But here is a headline that deserves its column-inches. According to Motor Authority, Toyota's VP of powertrain development Masatami Takimoto has said that by 2020 hybrids would become the company's standard drivetrain, and that hybrids would account for "100 percent" of the automaker's new cars. Takimoto also said that Toyota expected to improve the profitability of hybrids to bring their price margins up to the same level as gasoline-only cars by 2010. Due to expensive components such as batteries and electric motors, hybrids are currently more expensive to produce and less profitable than regular gasoline-engine cars.
While an all-hybrid fleet by 2020 sounds like an ambitious target, it's not beyond the realms of possibility: After all, Chrysler recently announced that its Hemi V-8 engine is getting a hybrid makeover for 2008. Looks like the green revolution is at the gates.
Via Motor Authority
Our CNET editors have pulled together useful information on green technologies. The emphasis is on things available to the consumer right now, and many can save you energy and money.
Our Living With Technology report has reviews of hybrid cars and energy-saving products for your home. Also there's a section on Earth-friendly downloads that can be useful. And editor Michael Kanellos produced a video to show some things you can do at home to save money on energy.
Nothing lasts forever, so we even have a guide on how get rid of tech gear when the time comes.
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