http://www.rocklintoday.com/news/tem...=1998&zoneid=1


Interesting. My father commented a few days ago that he believes driving will increase with fuel economy and there will be virtually no change in gas demand.

Visit my newly-acquired website, Volconvo Debate Forums!

I believe this makes sense, but in the end it's still an improvment. More driving likely means more trips are possible for someone on the same budget, when before they might have gone without. Also, with increased FE comes increased range, which is very convenient. I love being able to go nearly 750 miles on a single fill-up.

From MSN, here is a more typical piece of BS
http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/...ar/P113609.asp

-- Compare worse available reports of Prius MPG, to favorite small car EPA
-- Plug diesels


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Do they deliver on mileage?
Then there's the issue of whether these cars actually get the mileage they claim. This is actually a pretty big deal with the vehicles that are the most fuel-efficient: the Prius and the Insight. Owners have been yowling for years that their mileage isn't anything like the EPA's numbers.

"I drove a Prius for a week and never saw 60 mpg," Perry said. "I averaged around 42 mpg."

Now, that kind of mileage should make any Hummer driver blush. But it's not that much better than a fuel-efficient small sedan, like a Honda Civic. (The EPA clocks the Civic with Honda's "Lean Burn" engine technology at 36 mpg city, 44 mpg highway.)

So while hybrids might not be a scam, they are pretty expensive for what you're getting.
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I went for an 94 Jeep Cherokee (Ya I know evil SUV) getting at the most 16 mpg to my Civic getting 45 mpg, that’s about $1900 (at current gas prices around here) a year for me. That about how much more I spent to get the used Hybrid over a comparable "normal" used Civic.