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Originally Posted by AshenGrey
Well... if the batteries end up getting recycled instead of disposed in landfills, then how is this toxic for the environment?
Ok, so the battery lasts 10 years. Aren't there *other* things wrong with most cars by then? It's not like a 10-year-old Prius/HCH/Insight is going to have a pristine engine and transmission anymore either. The whole battery-cost issue is a fake argument. Most people who have a fully paid-off car simply buy a *new* on if faced with an expensive repair (like an engine or transmission). In that event, the dealer eats the cost of repair so that the old car can be refurbished and resold as a used car.
I don't see the problem here.
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I replaced my 17 year old Dodge Ram-50 that I purchased new last year. It had 175,000 miles on it and it is still on the road. To assume that cars don't last more than 10 years is false.
People that are faced with an expensive repair and *sell* take a huge lose. I work next to 2 transmission shops, there is a constant flow of cars sold to the shops for next to nothing, only to be fixed by resourceful employees on their own time for easy profit. That is because the parts needed are cheap and the labor costs nothing. If the hybrids battery pack is the problem it isn't a cheap fix and may be of no interest to the shop or anyone.
Only time will tell, but it does seem possible that hybrids will be finding their way into the junkyard sooner than non-hybrids. If the cost to replace the battery drops to where it makes sense to replace then maybe not.
Don't know enough about hybrids, can you continue driving them without a battery if everything else is still functional or are they dead on the road?