Prius has been a waiting list since debut. It will just lengthen again, and entice dealers to jack up the price.

I suspect that HCH, particularly the 06 models when they come out, will not remain on dealer's lots. My crystal ball is murky regarding waiting lists.

Fuel efficient non-hybrid 4 cylinders will be the big winners: civic, accord, corolla, and camry. The variable-atkinson-like 06 non-hybrid civics strike me as the best value for the cost. I hope Honda plans ahead, and makes a couple million units.

BTW, Toyota has decided to bring the mini-compact '06 Yaris to the US from 2007. HOORAY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And in other news, GM, Ford and Chrysler unveil plans for the FCG 450, a knock-your-socks-off 475 hp sports coupe with state of the art technology that allows up to 12 MPG. "Get the performance you need, without having to worry about the pump" Optimistic executives talk of sales in the hundreds, if not thousands.

R2-E2, 2G Prius.
Highway/City/Husband/Wife MPG: 56.5, as of 12/2005, 26K miles

Jac Nasser, Ford President: "We are planning to launch a hybrid version of
this car [P2000] within this year [1998]. We will also make FCEV available in
2004."