Hey, Mr./Mrs./Ms. Sucks,

Good to hear from you.

Make the difference in mpg between Kia and Prius (for me) closer to 15.

In Calif., diesel hasn't quite the pizzaz of the Toyota Hybrid. In fact, you could ask the same question of someone who buys a, let us say Cadillac vs. a Chevy. The Cadi owner is also smug as he looks down at the peasants in their Chevy. And perhaps the Chevy owner responds as you do.

Now for the bike. I ride around 130-200 miles per week. Should I also tell you I've ridden across British Columbia, rode my bike from Toronto to Halifax (1000 miles)? Oh, yes - even sleeping in a tent.

I'm not called centrider for nothing - that's for Century Rider, 100 miles in a day's bike ride.

And I'm only 71 years old.

Go suck on a Brook's Saddle.

Oh, and by the way - use your spell checker. It can help you look educated.

Whatever.

I've yet to see single person here post that hybrids are the cureall for excessive oil consumption. We bought one because for the 6 months that we owned it, the tax breaks and fuel savings alone were enough to compensate for depreciation, basically leaving us with a very nice new vehicle to drive for six months for only the cost of insuring it.

Now, I commute by bus and bicycle (that I purchase with equity from the hybrid sale) while my wife uses our only other vehicle to ferry the kids around and run other errands. It just doesn't make sense for me to drive given the convenience of my work commute, BUT I WOULD BUY ANOTHER HYBRID IF IT DID!

Yes, I'm such a sanctimonious prick.

LiberalImage.com

Mr. Sucks,

Wow, all that hate and not a single intelligent thought in the whole darn message. I don't have to add much to what Centrider said, but I will say this:

I am such a smug Son-Of-A-B**** that I would not be caught dead in whatever Rustoleum finished, smog spewing, flea trap you drive, and I'm a Republican!

You do not want to start messing with the real "tree huggers"!

Regards,

Mr. Bigsk8r

That is a shame, Jesus said you should love your enemies.

We tend to use facts and data and that secure knowledge gives us confidence to deal with those who don't.

Well let's see:

1. $17,300 vs. $16,424 - $876 difference Prius over Scion xB (1.)
2. 52 MPG vs. 33 MPG - 19 MPG Prius advantage

But a Kia Spectra would not have meet our requirements and is significantly louder and uncomfortable. The Kia gets even worse performance than the Scion xB:

1. $17,300 vs $16,995 - $305 difference Prius over Kia Spectra
2. 52 MPG vs. 28 MPG - 24 MPG advantage Prius

The available diesels are noisier, expensive, and poor performing. In the larger truck models, they make sense but in vehicles the size of a Prius, the options are poor:

1. $17,300 vs $21,283 - $983 difference Golf TDI over Prius
2. 52 MPG vs 37 MPG - 15 MPG advantage Prius

I'm an engineer and love the hybrid technology. It really is an exceptionally well engineered car with the ability to move in silent, electric mode. The relatively small gas engine, 70 hp, significantly reduces noise and vibration. Yet the instant power from the 40 hp motor gives it very nice pickup.

In Huntsville Alabama, I live 10 miles from work, just a bit too far for a biking or walking to work. Our bus system starts at 6:00 AM and shuts down at 6:00 PM and doesn't go onto NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center where I frequently work.

When I worked at NASA HQ in Washington DC, I used both bicycle and Metro to commute to and from work. It was significantly cheaper, faster and easier. On snow and bad weather days, I'd walk to the Metro station. But sad to say, Huntsville Alabama lacks that kind of infrastructure.

Actually, we have the facts and data, the real world to deal with and no time to waste visiting areas we don't care for. Regardless, have a happy and come back some day went you need another lesson.

Bob Wilson

1. The Traveler's hybrid discount led to a $500 savings in car insurance and subsequent $400 savings in house insurance. I've also made significant fuel savings over the first 20,000 miles.

Operation Iraqi Oil Freedom:

Automatic, stock, project car.

My other 1500 cc car:

Automatic, stock, backup car.
Free speech, dialog and knowledge thrives without the poison of SPAM.

Who let the oil executives?

Come on, Bob. You should know there's no point arguing with an idiot... er, troll. Your time is much too valuable for that. Spend it on your research and educating the rest of us -- as you have done so magnificently!

Jim

Lifetime fuel mileage:

After learning how to hypermile:

The great thing about Trolls like HybridSucks is that they are such great COMIC RELIEF. They might as well also claim that the Earth is flat, Elvis and Jim Morrison are still alive, and that there are loads of cash in Al Capone's vault! Ha ha ha ha ha!

A Kia Spectra comparable to a Prius? In Kia's dreams!

Bike to work? In Baltimore, you could bike to work but you'd have to walk home because the teen-bums would steal your bike.

Public Transportation? In Baltimore, you'd get mugged by the Apex Predators and harrangued by the Heroin Zombies. I think the rats are developing opposable thumbs, too!

Besides, you get a HUGE discount on parking if you own a hybrid. That by itself pays the hybrid "premium" in under three years. Combined with the actual gas savings, the break-even is about 2 years.

I tip my hat to the Troll. It's not every day I get a laugh this early in the morning!

bwilson4web,
While I'll have to agree with most of your post, your diesel comment is out of date. Today's models don't carry the same stereotype of recent years.

HybridsSUCK I hope you will have more to contribute than your first post.
Describing your hate for the community here is not a good way to start.

The article is much older than last April. Every conceivable reason (even made up reasons) why not to buy hybrid have been around, including this one at least since 2003.

Efficient drivers do it better.
1003 miles a tank personal record. 74MPG calculated. HCH1 CVT

Right. The 2007-era diesel engines are almost as clean as a gasoline engine, yet give fuel economy halfway between a standard petrol car and a gas/electric hybrid (at a price about halfway between a standard gasoline car and a hybrid).

Once the next generation battery chemistry is available for hybrids (thus cutting the hybrid surcharge significantly), I wouldn't mind seeing a diesel/electric hybrid. A diesel HCH could probably get about 60 MPG, while a diesel Prius might get 70-75 -- and still have tolerable emissions!

The great thing about diesel technology is that it requires less adaptation to run biodiesel in a diesel engine than it does to run E85 in a gasoline engine. It's probably possible to grow more organic diesel than it is to make ethanol.

For the Troll out there: other than the fact that you have to drive a hybrid 80k miles to make up the "premium" there really is no downside. They're all quite, clean, powerful, and reliable.

Unless it is a TCH, where there is no premium to get the hybrid. I came out even the day I drove off the lot if you compare option to option on a regular camry XLE vs the hybrid. Each day I am getting further and further ahead of the XLE in terms of cost savings.