Hybrids not so cost saving; concern for consumers?

The price of gas and America’s dependence on oil continues to be a hot topic for consumers. Many take these issues into consideration when deciding what vehicle to purchase. And the popularity of hybrids is growing.

However, studies are starting to indicate that hybrids may not be the best choice “in terms of vehicle lifetime energy usage and the cost to society over the full lifetime of a car or truck.” CNW Marketing Research Inc. spent two years gathering data on the energy necessary to plan, build, sell, drive, use and dispose of a vehicle from initial concept to scrappage. Costs include: plant to dealer fuel costs; employee driving distances; and electricity usage per pound of material used. In order for the data to make sense to the average consumer, it was translated into a “dollars per mile” figure or Energy Cost per mile driven.

The most “energy expensive” vehicle sold in the United States in calendar year 2005 was the Maybach, at $11.58 per mile. The least expensive was the Scion xB, at $0.48 per mile. Although neither of these numbers is particularly surprising, the results for hybrid vehicles were quite surprising. The Honda Accord Hybrid has an Energy Cost per mile of $3.29, while the conventional Accord has a cost of $2.18. When looking at the total lifetime of the vehicle, the Accord Hybrid requires about 50% more energy than the conventional Accord.

The industry average of all vehicles sold in the United States in 2005 was $2.28 per mile. The Hummer H3, considered by many to be harmful to the environment, has a cost of $1.949 per mile. This number is lower than all currently offered hybrids, as well as the Honda Civic. Hybrids cost more than non-hybrids because of the manufacture, replacement and disposal of batteries, electric motors (in addition to the conventional engine), lighter weight materials, and complexity of the power package.

Results like this are important for the automotive industry. If the concern is the cost of gas and our dependency on foreign oil, then hybrids might be a valid option for consumers. But if the concern is the overall impact on the environment, conventional automobiles, and even SUVs, might in fact have a less negative impact on our environment. Art Spinella, president of CNW Marketing Research Inc., says “We hope to see a dialog begin that puts educated and aware consumers into energy policy decisions. We undertook this research to see if perceptions (about energy efficiency) were true in the real world.” For more information, contact Art Spinella of CNW Marketing Research Inc., 541/347-4718 or Mailroom@cnwmr.com.

Source: “Hybrids Consume More Energy in Lifetime than Chevrolet’s Tahoe SUV,” CNW Marketing Research Inc.

THIS MATTERS TO YOU BECAUSE…

* Consumers usually purchase hybrids for two basic reasons: to save money on gas and to show their concern for the environment. Research has shown that the added costs of hybrids compared to their gas-only equivalent actually outweighs the monetary savings from using less gas, based on current gas prices.

* If consumers become more aware of the fact that hybrids could use more energy than traditional gas-powered vehicles, which contradicts the “environmental friendly” aspect of hybrids, then consumers could shy away from purchasing hybrid vehicles.

The “THIS MATTERS TO YOU BECAUSE…” section in the article above contains insight written by SEMA staff. E-mail feedback to tym@sema.org if you would like to comment on this article.