Hybrids driven more and cost more to fix

Roadster44

Active Member
Joined
Jan 8, 2004
Messages
269
Location
Greater Detroit Area, MI USA
Car(s)
2007 VW GTI
from http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Quality-Planning-Corp-1017137.html

via www.autoblog.com

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/07/16/study-despite-insurance-discounts-hybrids-are-driven-more-cos/

Conventional wisdom is that hybrid vehicles reduce our dependence on foreign oil and emit fewer environment hurting CO2 emissions. When comparing a hybrid to a conventional gasoline-powered model on a mile-by-mile basis, there's some logic to this argument provided the pricing disparity between the two models isn't too broad. However, a new study by Quality Planning shows that hybrid owners drive much more than non-hybrid owners, potentially negating the benefits of the added battery pack and electric motor.

Quality Planning studied nearly 360,000 vehicles throughout 2007 and 2008 to analyze driving habits, and some of the study's findings are pretty surprising. According to the survey, hybrid and non-hybrid drivers have statistically similar commutes, but hybrid owners drive their vehicles 25% more (2,000 miles) in non-commuting scenarios.

Dr. Raj Bhat, president of Quality Planning, thinks part of the reason for these findings has something to do with the fact that high mileage drivers are typically more interested in hybrids than infrequent drivers.

"What we don't know is whether owning a hybrid vehicle encourages people to drive more miles each day or take more pleasure trips. High-mileage drivers appear to be attracted to these vehicles, so insurers should take steps to verify the intended use of hybrids and validate actual miles driven wherever possible."

The study also shows that hybrid owners are significantly more likely to receive traffic tickets. According to the survey, Toyota Prius owners received .38 tickets per 100,000 miles driven, versus a non-hybrid average of .23 tickets per 100,000 miles. That's a 65% differential. One possible explanation for the ticket disparity has to do with where hybrid owners live. Quality Planning found that hybrid owners are more likely to live in an urban setting, where tickets are more frequently issued.

If you really want a hybrid and you don't want to hear any more bad news, you should stop reading. QP also found that repair costs are significantly higher for hybrid owners. The Ford Escape Hybrid, for example, costs 31% more to repair than the gasoline-only model, while repairing the Toyota Highlander Hybrid will reportedly add 45% more cost. A recent report by IntelliChoice that found that, in the long-term, hybrids and diesels are actually cheaper than gasoline-only vehicles.

The text below illustrates how much on a per dollar basis hybrid repair costs for collision and comprehensive coverage versus one dollar for a non-hybrid. The disparity is shrinking every year, but according to QP, hybrids still cost more to fix. Hit the jump to view the Quality Planning press release.

Collision Comprehensive
Coverage Coverage
2006 Hybrid Models $1.16 $1.75
2007 Hybrid Models $1.09 $1.35
2008 Hybrid Models $1.13 $1.17
 
In other news, water is wet, the sky is usually blue, and Prius owners are usually idiots.

The Prius owners get more tickets because they're busy playing the "video game" on the center display to try to get the most fuel economy instead of paying attention to their driving.
 
Last edited:
Sounds like a really boring game to me. I will stick to my 360.
 
They say what the tickets are for? Impeding the flow of traffic, perhaps?
 
Living San Francisco, I see a ton of Priuses (Priusi?). The funniest thing is to see one of those things being driven in anger. Just blasting down the interstate passing every other car, down a hill, and weaving in and out of traffic. I'm mean they have to be going like 65 and 70mph...

I really don't think most Prius owners look at the video game on the dash. They just assume it gets better mileage no matter how they drive.
 
I saw a 30-minute TV show on this topic a few months ago... they were talking about hybrid engines in Ford cars, and how a lot of mechanics have faced difficult uphill battles learning how to service these things. Further, it turns out there is actually a lot of extra danger involved. I really can't remember all the details (sorry), but it was a very evenly-presented, no-frills type of show (i.e. whatever the opposite of Clarksonesque is) and the take-away for me was to avoid hybrids altogether for the next several years.
 
I don't know much about driving habits, but i have always wondered about the long term maintenance costs of these petrol/electric hybrid vehicles.

You don't need to be an engineer or motor mechanic to know that these hybrid cars are more complicated than a traditional IC engine only vehicle. In a petrol/electric hybrid you have all the same parts as a normal car that can go wrong, plus you also have an electric engine, batteries, charging system and all the electronics to control everything.

Having the IC engine constantly cutting in and out is all well and good when the car is new and it works properly.
 
Anyone who has used something with a lithium-ion battery knows exactly how good an idea it is to put a $5000 one in something you use daily.
 
I really don't think most Prius owners look at the video game on the dash. They just assume it gets better mileage no matter how they drive.
You may have to if you want to actually control your climate control. The controls on your dash is either...off or full blast A/C. Never drove the Prius long enough to actually toy around with it. For me, they're weird cars, they don't act like a normal car and they don't really drive like a normal car either. Heck the first thing I did in the car was sit in it while turning it off and on...because I'm too used to hearing start up noise...I honestly didn't know it was ready to go(the screen actually confused me).
 
The one thing I like about the new Prius is the solar panel driven A/C. No drain on your engine and you can have A/C running while parked. That needs to be on more cars!
 
Hybrids are ridiculous. It's still running on Petrol nevertheless. Higher maintenance cost than a standard 1.6-1.8L inline-4 engines, 2 engines tax (in certain places). Wanna go green? Go for diesel or hydrogen.
 
The one thing I like about the new Prius is the solar panel driven A/C. No drain on your engine and you can have A/C running while parked. That needs to be on more cars!

You can make the same thing with some fans, some Peltier junctions, and a solar panel.
 
Living San Francisco, I see a ton of Priuses (Priusi?). The funniest thing is to see one of those things being driven in anger. Just blasting down the interstate passing every other car, down a hill, and weaving in and out of traffic. I'm mean they have to be going like 65 and 70mph...

I really don't think most Prius owners look at the video game on the dash. They just assume it gets better mileage no matter how they drive.

I've seen maybe 1 or 2 going below the limit... most are doing 85 or 90 in the outside lanes.
 
The one thing I like about the new Prius is the solar panel driven A/C. No drain on your engine and you can have A/C running while parked. That needs to be on more cars!
As far as I know, the solar panel only runs the ventilation (or even a few dedicated fans) to enable heat exchange with the outside. A solar panel wouldn't be powerful enough to run the A/C, the fact aside that it usually is mechanically driven and thus would need the engine to run.

So the idea is that the inside is not perfectly chilly when you get back to your car on a hot day, but much cooler than without any ventilation. Thus the A/C has an easier job cooling it down, thus you save fuel.

Just the other day, I read an article on how this seems to be catching on and will be seen on many new cars in the near future. Neat idea that...

EDIT: quoting from Third-gen Prius, twice the ugly and three times the smug.
Aside from optional extras like LED headlights and lane departure prevention, the most interesting new option is the solar roof. A roof-mounted photo-voltaic panel will power the air recirculation system when the car sits in the sun, reducing the internal temps and the subsequent load on the air conditioning system.
 
Last edited:
^Ahh I see, thought it would run the entire A/C system. Less fun but still a pretty good thing especially in black cars :D
 
Top