http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-0203060113mar06.story?coll= chi%2Dbusiness%2Dhed Chicago Tribune | 60% of car buyers would purchase hybrid $1,000 extra is limit, study says
By Rick Popely Tribune staff reporter Published March 6, 2002 As a debate about fuel efficiency standards rages, 60 percent of new-car buyers say they would purchase a hybrid electric vehicle that gets better mileage than a conventional model, but most of them said they do not want to pay more than $1,000 extra for the benefit. Those are key conclusions in a study released Wednesday by auto industry researcher J.D. Power and Associates on hybrid vehicles, which use electric motors to supplement a gasoline engine, increasing fuel economy and lowering emissions. Nearly one-third of those who said they would strongly consider buying a hybrid vehicle say they would do so even if the fuel savings did not cover the cost of the hybrid technology. Current hybrids cost about $3,000 more than conventional models, but the difference is expected to narrow as sales volume increases. "An awful lot of folks say they don't have to have all their costs covered," said Thad Malesh, director of the study. "This indicates a lot more demand for hybrids than some auto manufacturers imagine." Two gasoline-electric hybrid cars are available in the United States--the two-seat Honda Insight and the Toyota Prius, a five-passenger compact sedan. Both are priced around $20,000, and are the two most fuel-efficient cars sold in the country. The Prius averages 48 miles per gallon and the Insight 56. Their combined U.S. sales last year were 20,000, out of 17.2 million vehicles sold nationally. Power released the results of its survey of 5,200 recent vehicle buyers while Congress debates whether to raise the federal average fuel economy standard for cars and light trucks to 35 m.p.g. by 2013, a nearly 50 percent increase from the current fleet average of 24 m.p.g. The auto industry, led by the domestic manufacturers, argues that 35 m.p.g. would kill demand for sport-utility vehicles and pickups, two of the most popular--and profitable--types of vehicles. Even though Americans maintained their affection for gas-guzzling sport-utilities as fuel prices spiked in the last two summers, Power sees demand for hybrids growing to 500,000 units a year by 2006--driven in part by demand for hybrid technology in larger sedans, SUVs and mini-vans. Honda will introduce a hybrid Civic in April, also to be priced around $20,000. Malesh says it is "a landmark car" because it is the first hybrid based on a high-volume model. The Civic hybrid looks and drives like other versions of the Civic but will get nearly 50 m.p.g., a 50 percent increase over current models. Ford will introduce a hybrid version of its Escape SUV in fall 2003, and General Motors and Chrysler plan to put hybrid trucks on sale in 2004. Toyota and Honda plan to add larger hybrid models by mid-decade. Copyright © 2002, Chicago Tribune ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Buy Stock for $4. No Minimums. FREE Money 2002. http://us.click.yahoo.com/BgmYkB/VovDAA/ySSFAA/9bTolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Biofuels at Journey to Forever http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuel at WebConX http://www.webconx.com/2000/biofuel/biofuel.htm To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
