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Are Hybrid Vehicles Worth the Price?
For instance, the Ford Escape Hybrid has a combined output of 196hp from its I-4 engine and electrical motor. The regular I-4 Escape has 171hp.
Are Hybrid Vehicles Worth the Price?
If it fails within the warranty period, the cost of replacement is FREE.
That is assuming you didn't do anything stupid to void the warranty, like crash the car, tamper with the hybrid system, etc.
Failure of the battery pack in the 2nd-generation Prius within warranty terms is virtually unheard-of.
Brand Names: Important, But Not Key to Investment Decisions
This year it's history repeating itself-- People buying Toyota Corollas that can get 30mpg COMBINED (not just highway as GM and Ford have been advertising) because of $4/gallon gas.
Ford and GM needs to realize that not only do they need to build cars that are put together well, they also need to make cars that are MORE FUEL EFFICIENT than the Japanese if they want to regain market share in North America.
The situation in Europe for Ford is not applicable here in North America. Ford is doing well in Europe because they have less-stringent emissions laws, which means Ford's fuel-efficient diesel cars are a big hit there. They can NEVER sell those diesels as-is here, because they don't meet the EPA's Tier2 emissions standards.
The situation for GM in China is also NOT applicable for the North American market-- GM is doing well in China because gas is still cheap there at $2 a gallon, and the noveau-riche Chinese middle class don't mind buying gas-guzzlers because of that.
Until one of the Big Three can produce a 50mpg car that is street-legal in the U.S. with comparable reliability and cost about the same as the Toyota Prius, they are not going to gain back market share in the era of $4/gallon gas.
(Don't bother mentioning the Chevy Volt. Sucker is going to cost $40,000 and by the time it comes out Toyota will have its 3rd-gen PHEV Prius with similar 40-mile-electric capability in the showrooms for $30,000.)
Chrysler's Rebadging Plan: Strategic Blunder for Nissan?
Agreed. Toyota has left the door open for Chrysler to introduce a hybrid minivan for the past 5 years. And Chrysler has not taken advantage of it!
The window of opportunity is closing fast. Toyota has been selling their Estima Hybrid minivan in Japan for years, and in the next couple years they plan to bring it to the U.S. as the Sienna Hybrid.
The opportunity is there.. It's just Chrysler is doing everything they can to flub it!
General Motors: General Malaise
Chevy's commercials say they have a line up with more cars that get 30mpg than other makers, but that's misleading. 30mpg HIGHWAY only. If you factor in city mileage, even the Chevy Aveo (which is made by Daewoo in Korea by the way, not here in the U.S.) gets only 25mpg.
Meanwhile, Toyota has Yarises and Corollas that can get 30mpg COMBINED, ditto Honda with their Civics and Fits.
Why should the American consumer keep buying GM cars if they can't match the fuel economy of foreign cars to prop them up so GM has no incentive to change? That's corporate socialism at its very worst.