Thanks for the replies. That's all good food for thought. Getting even more picky, I think my next car should be an AWD or 4WD suv type, which means I'd be looking at FEH, Lexus Hybrid, or Highlander hybrid (Is Honda planning an MDX hybrid? Any other companies got one in the works?). That said, my main motivation is not cost. My main motivations are: 1) I'm a tree hugger at heart 2) anything to end dependence on foreign oil 3) Want to stop polluting the atmosphere 4) decreased emissions over many vehicles 5) secretly desire an suv but feel too guilty buying an ICE and wrecking the panet with bad emissions and poor gas mileage. Unfortunately, my job requires frequent light speed jaunts to the hospital. My current Accord EX from 1993 is a 4 cylinder model that feels like molasses and has terrible brakes. It sure is reliable, but reliably mediocre at that. I get about 23 MPG at this point with my driving style. Any further thoughts on hybrids? I'd really like to be part of the trend telling the auto companies to look into alternative energy sources. I'm a fairly political person and hate my reliance on fossil fuels. I probably won't be buying for 1-2 years becasue of my finances, but I'm starting to look becasue this growing hybrid market is becoming a viable option it seems. Thanks again for any opinions.