There is a saying that sometimes you have to spend to save. But when it comes to a hybrid car, are there really any savings? Hybrids made their way into the consumer scene about a decade ago with the Toyota Prius. The Prius advertisements claim to save the environment as well as your wallet. Since then, a number of other hybrids by Honda, Lexus and even Porsche have been released. This may indicate that they are as wonderful as they are advertised, right? Wrong.
MILES PER GALLON
A hybrid car usually consists of two motors: gas and electric. This combination is suppose to help gas mileage considerably when compared to a traditional combustion engine. Some car makers state that their cars can produce fuel economy upwards of 50 miles per gallon on the highway. Others have matched electric motors with V8s and performance applications that have gas mileage under 30 MPG. But hold on a second.
The idea is that you pay less at the gas pump and fill up less, thus reducing the money you put into your gas tank. However, there is one small detail, you just spent $26,000 on a car when your previous car was already paid for. How are you saving money?
If your car, like mine, is already paid for and has a measly 27 MPG on the freeway, how is a $26,000 Prius going to save you money when the difference in gas mileage is only 24 MPG?
If you do some basic math, the cost of a Prius will be more than my car over a 10 year span. Using the specifications for combined city/highway driving at 15,000 miles a year and cost of fuel at $3.11 a gallon listed on www.fueleconomy.gov, it will cost me roughly $20,290 over a 10 year period to fill up my $1,000 ‘83 Volvo 240. That’s a lot of money. The cost of gas for a Prius will cost $9,330 over the same time period. My total cost will be $21,290, including car. However, a Prius will cost you $35,330 with the car added. That’s quite a bit more and I didn’t even bother adding tax and licensing for a new vehicle. Yes, I’m aware of inflation and maintenance, but that will affect both cars.
Where is your savings now?
THE ENVIRONMENT
Oh right, the environment.
Supposedly, hybrids are saving the environment. Their improved gas mileage will reduce emissions so much that the green house effect will be a thing of the past. However, the environmental impact involved in the manufacturing of hybrid vehicle parts, specifically the battery, doesn’t involve sunshine and rainbows.
Current hybrid vehicles use a nickel hydride battery. Nickel mining by itself is nasty business that harms the environment. The production of this battery type requires its raw materials to be shipped around the world to be refined and made into a battery, which requires even more energy. The batteries, as well as the motor in hybrids, also include some rare earth metals such as Lanthanum, that are extremely environmentally hazardous to mine. A common byproduct involved in the refining process of Lanthanum is Thorium, a radioactive element. Thorium is carcinogenic, not only through radioactive decay (radiation), but exposure increases risk of cancer. As Thorium undergoes radioactive decay it creates Radon gas, another element that is harmful to humans.
CONSIDER THIS
It is more environmentally friendly and cheaper (since you probably won’t own a hybrid long enough to begin saving money) to continue driving currently existing cars that get reasonable gas mileage. By buying a hybrid you are increasing demand for many carcinogenic substances, processes and energy expenditure that will never be recouped by “good gas mileage.” Another point to note is that any batteries ability to hold a charge gradually declines with use and time. This means batteries won’t work as well the longer they’ve been in service and will need recharging more frequently which will bring down your gas mileage.
Even if you did manage to keep a hybrid long enough to begin saving money, the batteries probably won’t survive the thousands of charge cycles in its lifetime and would necessitate full on replacement. Keep in mind, when the batteries don’t hold a charge anymore you’re back to a regular gas only car.
It’s just too bad that they don’t sell the diesel cars here in the United States that are available in Europe. Those are capable of 70+ MPG on diesel without the use of hazardous hybrid technology.