I have been going back and forth on whether to get a hybrid small SUV like either the Ford Escape or Mercury Mariner. I can't make up my mind.

I live in Tampa, and as my name suggests, I am a Realtor and we run the A/C (on high during June, July and August!) a lot so my concern is am I going to lose a lot of the fuel economy by doing so, and might I be better off with a regular non-hybrid car? Also when I priced the Escape they were getting MSRP for the one I wanted, a 2WD with all the options, which was about $30K. In my mind, I am going, I could get a luxury car for $30K, that seems a bit crazy for an Escape to me.

I currently drive a Jeep Liberty that's only getting about 18-20 mpg and has 80K miles on it and am almost ready for something new. With the rising price of gas, who knows how high it will get, I am wondering if a hybrid is the way to go or if I should get something like the BWM 3 series (which my husband owns and gets about 28-32 mpg in that but it requires premium fuel so that's about 30 cents higher a gallon, right?). Do the hybrid SUV's take regular fuel? I also drive about 20K miles a year taking my clients all over town, mostly stop and go. I need a formula to figure out what's the best way to go here, cost wise, between a hybrid SUV and a passenger car like the Beamer. I'm not a snob about what car I own, but I do want something that looks nice and is comfortable for my clients. Help me decide!

I know some will say get a hybrid car instead of an SUV, but I should mention I am leaning a bit towards an SUV. I had a bad car accident a few years ago and the false sense of security of sitting up higher and having more steel around me is comfortable to me. I guess either way if I can get something around that gets at least about 30mpg I'd be happier.

Thoughts? I'd love to hear from Mariner or Escape owners too who run the A/C a lot as to what they get for mileage.

 

You want to send a Personal mail to Gary G. as he lives in south Florida and has a lifetime average of 45 mpg!

 

I am a Realtor in NY. It was between 96 and 98 degrees for over a week. MPG ran 36.1 (see my signature) I run a NAH (Nissan Altima Hybrid). You should see similar figures, but there are many on here that own the FEH (Ford Excape Hybrid) Oh, FYI. Its tough to fit a Realtor sign in the NAH, Fits like a charm in the Prius or FEH, but I didn't so I opted for the NAH and manage with the signs.

In your line of work, a hybrid makes GREAT sense, regardless of the A/C. What you are getting mixed up with is those of us that are Hypermiling. Your mpg should be at least what the sticker shows. You will get bit by the hypermiling bug eventually and even if you can't do it while there are clients in the car, there are times when you will do it. It is not hot 365 in Fla.

Go visit the FEH thread here and ask away. I don't think you will get one person who does not like it. One question though; Why the FEH? The Prius has amazing back seat room for clients. Even more so than the NAH and the FEH!

Good luck and keep us posted and remember, regardless of which Hybrid you get. You will Love it!

 

I'm sorry to hear about the car accident but a Camry hybrid is also a very comfortable car. I would recommend at least getting a chance to sit in one but I also understand it has to be a comfortable car.

Bob Wilson

 

I think you have your answer regarding a car or suv. This security is FALSE. You already know it. Were you driving a car or suv for this unfortunate accident?

Quick story: My Nephew craved an SUV. He totaled his CAR this winter on the interstate during a snowstorm. He no longer wants an SUV. Why? The car spun out and hit the guardrail. He (all of 23 yr old) realized right there that if he was sitting up higher (center of gravity being higher) the vehicle would have rolled. SUV's do not meet Roll Over standards. That is, their roofs will not support the vehicle upside down. He walked away from a total wreck un injured. If it were an SUV, he would have been getting cut out of the vehicle.

If you are concerned about safety, research the crash tests done on every car you are looking at. The Smart Car (yes that little tiny thing) has better crash test results than most SUV's.

You are a Realtor, you check facts every day. Actual Tax, # of bedrooms and Baths, Sq. Footage, on and on. Do the same for your next car/suv. And when you go for a test drive. Take a sign with you to see how it will fit. Take a Tall person with you to see how they fit behind YOU. And make sure the dealer lets you truly test drive the Hybrid car. Some dealers up here, don't have the Hybrids in stock or they don't make them available for test drives. Others do, buy for them.

 

Check this out:
rolloverstatitics.jpg?t=1214154319
This shows you are more likely to die in an automobile rollover than SUV rollover! Source: http://isacae.com/media/DETNEWS4-11-2004.pdf

As usual, the driver's behavior is usually the guilty party when auto wrecks are involved.

 

Nope, You are not taking into account the entire formula.

First: The chart clearly shows that SUV rollovers are On the Rise, while Car Rollovers are decreasing.

Second; You need to account for how many Cars vs SUV's are on the road to accurately predict the risk.

For instance: Lets say the death rate was equal. If there are 50 million cars and 25 million SUV's you are 50% more likely to die in the SUV yet the rates are the same.

 

I don't want to debate which is safer, whatever I look at, I'll check the safety ratings. And I'll buy one with airbags everywhere. I do like sitting up higher in a baby SUV though, I feel like I have a better vantage point and can see better to avoid any possible accidents, I am an extremely defensive driver since being in a bad accident. I am scared of a smaller car like the Prius because I feel like if I got into an accident with something like a Hummer, guess who would lose. The Prius. I think I'd fare a little better in something with more metal around me. But I guess in the end it all depends on the type of accident it is. When I had my bad accident I was in a Chrysler PT Cruiser with that long pointy front, and someone pulled out in front of us to make an illegal turn and we T-boned going about 45mph. Only the fact that the car had a longer front saved us, as it took most of the impact, but I still wound up with some pretty serious injuries. I can't ride in a PT Cruiser to this day without having flashbacks even though it did its job in the crash.

I do like the looks of the Camry and the Altima, but a friend of mine has a non-hybrid Altima and it corners terribly and is long and hard to park, at least compared to my Jeep, which actually fits in to a compact parking spot. It's big but not too big. But the Altima IS luxurious. I will drive the Camry and see what I think. Good to know that the A/C running does not effect the mileage too badly - I had read somewhere that when hybrids first came out, it was something like 30% worse mileage when running the A/C which sounded bad.

 

Running with the AC is not a significant hit on mpg on the Altima Hybrid. Probably around 1 mpg loss.

 

That's because we run the A/C on the Hybrid battery not the engine.