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Hybrid vehicles have really galvanized its foothold and stance as the future of the thriving global car industry.

When the first hybrid vehicles were introduced by giant car makers, including Toyota, Honda and Ford, the market response was so overwhelming and promising that other car manufacturers abruptly followed suit to seize the opportunity to snatch up market leadership.

It is expected that in a few years time, the market for cars would be greatly overhauled in favor of the hybrid cars, which are rapidly gaining popularity as gasoline prices continue to soar and the impact of engine combustion to the environment is started to be felt.

Thus, after the launch of pioneering batches of hybrid cars, many other companies have sprouted and showed their guts to pit head on against the industry leaders.

There are more start up car manufacturing companies today that are aiming to get the strong market hold in the car industry amid fierce competition posed by the long-time veterans.

Thus, it would be important to not that these new or start ups would potentially be the next important companies of the future. They have been ramping up their research and development initiatives to come up with product offerings that are not only at par with the current hot cakes, but also are pitted to be much better.

Thus, most start ups in the car industry are focused on developing and eventually selling their own versions and modifications of hybrid vehicles.

Several of these new and merging firms more than deserve sheer and great appreciation for taking the nerve and the guts to against the strong current and potentially face the challenges and setbacks of competing with major and giant rivals.

Some start ups

Because there are numerous start ups that offer future hybrid vehicles, the message is further beamed clearer across the industry.

Hybrid cars, indeed, are the cars of the future, the hope of the start ups to penetrate the intense and demanding market.

Here are some of these new companies that are aiming and hoping to enter the important market for the futuristic hybrid cars.

Tesla Motors.

The company is based in Silicon Valley and is aggressively making waves to solicit orders for its future hybrid cars, high-performance sports and utility cars, to be delivered by spring of 2006.

The future hybrid car models of the company would be mainly manufactured in the United Kingdom but would be greatly and widely distributed in the United States.

Tesla said its future hybrid car model would use sophisticated lithium-ion batteries that would last until the car runs a mileage of about 250 miles at 130 miles per hour.

Wrightspeed.

Wrightspeed is another start car making company based in Sillicon Valley in California. The company used to make computer parts and also used to be an amateur racer car maker.

Now, Wrightspeed has decided to take full gears in manufacturing cars, not just average and traditional cars, but hybrid cars.

The company has its own list of flagship future hybrid cars, which it is selling on a pre-ordered basis. Those future cars are estimated to last 200 miles before the next recharging is required.

Zap.

Auto importer specialist Zap in June 2006 started selling three-wheeled hybrid cars, which are actually made and imported from China. The future cars of the company are said to be able to reach a speed limit of 40 miles per hour.

Zap said its future hybrid cars are not just functional and economical, but are also fun to ride at and very sophisticated and chic.

The company’s future hybrid car is named Xebra, which is initially priced at $9,000 each. The car can seat four, with four doors and comes in striped colors, barely relative to its namesake.

Tomberlin Group.

The group is actually not that new in the industry, but has been failing for some time to gather pace to create a niche in the car making and selling market.

The company’s future hybrid cars are also sold on a pre-order basis at about $5,000 to $8,000 each, depending on the model, color and design.

Hybrid cars are fast gaining popularity nowadays. That would not be surprising considering the significant savings a car owner could generate through reduced and lesser oil and gasoline expenses.

For quite some time, car makers who develop and distribute hybrid cars in the market have been enjoying rapid growth in their already robust sales figures from hybrid cars.

That would not be surprising on the part of the industry observers who think the rising popularity of the hybrid cars are timely and long overdue.

Every week, there are almost always new rounds of oil or gasoline price hikes, making consumers and car end users want to save more and lessen their stress through investing or replacing their current cars with the new hybrid car models.

The environmental factor of the hybrid cars also make up for greater interest and eagerness on the part of the car buyers to acquire their own hybrid cars.

Hybrid cars

In the past decades, no one have imagined that the car industry segment would attain the status it is enjoying right now. Years ago, people were just dreaming of cars that would save them enough from oil and gasoline savings.

Now those fantasies are realities. Hybrid cars are starting to fold up the niche once dominated and solely dominated by the traditional and conventional cars.

Hybrid cars are easily accessible and available in the market today. It would just take a few time, probably a matter of minutes or hours to get or purchase one.

Hybrid cars are now sold in car dealers and show rooms all over the world, along with the traditional cars. Car manufacturing firms must have really been inspired to take the queue from great reviews and rising popularity of the hybrid cars among consumers and car aficionados.

Prices

Of course it follows that prices for hybrid cars are also higher and at premium compared to the prices of their traditional and conventional gas-powered counterparts.

That is because the technology used in the development and assembly of hybrid cars are still raw. Experts believe that it would still take some time before the prices for hybrids finally come down.

Hybrid car prices are really astronomical that not all consumers who plan to acquire one would be privileged enough to complete the purchase transaction.

But no worry. The hybrid cars are now also traded just like traditional or gasoline powered cars. Because there are used cars out in the market today.

Consumers who are very itching to own a hybrid vehicle can now seek the help of his or her broker or car dealer, to find a used hybrid car that is ready for purchasing.

Used car dealing

There are a number of ways how you can buy a used hybrid car in the market. As mentioned above, one way is to seek the help of a middleman, your broker/agent or a car dealer.

These people could greatly assist you in the purchase of used hybrid cars. Remember, buying one would never be that easy because hybrid cars are still unfamiliar for most of the people.

Another measure is to seek the help of an online car dealer.

Autoextra.com and best-price.com are just among those Web sites that specialize in providing users and online consumers with the best deals and transaction proposals when buying a used hybrid car.

All one has to do, just like in shopping traditional cars online, is to get the quotes printed online, choose the car models available, agree to the terms and conditions of the transaction, and voila, the deal will be closed immediately.

Calling through telephone lines for verifications of online information would be crucial and should not be overlooked.

Used hybrid cars or new hybrid cars

In the end, there would not be much difference if you would be buying new or used hybrid cars. Remember, new hybrids are definitely costlier and more expensive compared to the used hybrid cars prices.

But still check on the details. The difference might not be that significant. For sure you value being the first user of things. Sometimes, that is the more practical thing to do.

The history of hybrid cars is immersed in controversy. Not so much for the product itself, but for the technology it uses. Is it old like the conception of wheel itself, or is it a recent construct of idea, as recent as the embryonic stem cell technology? Your take. Read on.

First of, a hybrid car is a vehicle that uses on-board RESS, or rechargeable energy storage system. This is coupled with a fueled propulsion power source for the automobile’s propulsion. Hybrid car is low-gas consuming vehicle, therefore, a low-polluting vehicle.

The last character is particularly important because of the growing consciousness of the people worldwide on the need to conserve the environment.

History points to the clear difference of hybrid with all-electric cars. Electric cars use batteries charged by an external source. On this note, almost all hybrids, save for those considered as mild-hybrid, still need gasoline and diesel as their fuel source. Other fuels are also available in the form of ethanol or other plant based oils. Hybrid vehicles also use hydrogen gas occasionally.

But what’s in the history of hybrid cars?

The history of hybrid cars is closely intertwined with the history of automobile itself. In 1898, Ferdinand Porsche, a young Czechoslovakian, designed the Lohner-Porsche carriage, a series-hybrid vehicle that utilized a one-cylinder gasoline internal combustion engine. This engine can spun a generator which powered four wheel-mounted electric motors.

The car was eventually presented at the 1900 World Exhibition in Paris. The said automobile, capable of up to 56 km/h (35 mph) fast destroyed several Austrian speed records. In 1901, it won the Exelberg Rally, with Porsche himself driving the car. Over Mass production during this time was yet to be developed, but for Porsche’s future-looking design, 300 units of this model were sold to the public.

The first Porsche model however, technically speaking as we know Porsch today, was a hand-built aluminum prototype, and was completed on June 8, 1948.

The development of the first transistor-based electric car in 1959, the Henney Kilowatt, heralded a new development in the history of automobiles as a whole, and that of history of hybrid cars in particular. This transistor-based electric car, paved the way for the electronic speed control. Ultimately, this made the road for the development of modern hybrid electric cars possible.

The Henney Kilowatt was considered as the first modern electric car. It was a product of collaborative work between the National Union Electric Company, Henney Coachworks, Renault, and the Eureka Williams Company. Whilst the sales of the Kilowatt during this time were far from encouraging, its development served as prototype for the other automobiles down the history line of hybrid cars.

Between the 1960s and 1970s, another prototype of the earlier electric-hybrid vehicle was built by Victor Wouk. Wouk is among the scientists involved with the development of the Henney Kilowatt automobile. For this work, some historians bestowed onto him the honor being the �Godfather of the Hybrid� hybrid cars.

For his pioneering work, Wouk installed a sample electric-hybrid drivetrain into a 1972 Buick Skylark, courtesy GM for the 1970 Federal Clean Car Incentive Program. The program was later axed by the EPA in 1976. Hybrid enthusiast and supporters continued building hybrids automobiles. These models however, were not put into mass production.

In the fading years of the twentieth century however, the history of hybrid cars will take on a new course.

1978, the regenerative-braking hybrid, was developed by Electrical Engineer David Arthurs. The said regenerative-braking is to become the core design concept of most hybrids, currently available in the market. The first attempt of Arthurs used off-the shelf components, including an Opel GT. But the voltage controller that links to the battery motor and the DC generator belonged to Arthurs.

Fast forward in the 1990s

The history of hybrid cars took the final step to modernity in terms of mass production during the Bill Clinton administration. Clinton initiated the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles program in September, 1993, that involved the Department of Energy, Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, USCAR, and various governmental agencies. The partnership was tasked to engineer a modern efficient and clean vehicle.

In 2001, this program was replaced George W. Bush’s own hydrogen focused FreedomCAR initiative. The focus of the FreedomCAR initiative was to fund research that are considered high risk for the private sector to engage in. The long term purpose of which is the development and production of petroleum emission.

The success of hybrid vehicles in terms of mass production however, became a reality, when the Japanese car manufacturer entered the American market. This is when the history of hybrid cars finally took its modern development. Honda Insight and Toyota Prius became the modern progenitor of modern day hybrid vehicle available today in the market.

Hybrid vehicles boast of an all-encompassing operational system. They operate by combining an electricity-run motor, a diesel engine and maximum-powered batteries. The battery gives off energy for the electric motor and recharges when it recaptures the energy that is usually lost when the car is lessening its acceleration or while it is coasting.

How Hybrid Cars Work

The distinction of the full hybrid from the mild variety is that the electric motor and the diesel engine can operate on its own. In most instances, the electric motor can function by itself in low speed, and once it picks up, the diesel engine automatically takes over. Both the motor and the engine can function together if the car is in hard acceleration.

This combined effort provides the car the power that it needs for that situation. Full hybrid cars can consume and build up electricity simultaneously. The full hybrid setup can be found in models such as the popular Toyota Prius, the Mercury Mariner Hybrid, and the Escape hybrid from Ford.

For instance, one can look at the way the Toyota Prius works. The Prius runs on a technology called the Hyrbid Synergy Drive, which involves a power split device to combine the energy of the electric motor and the gas engine. The HSD enables a effortless switching of power sources that the car driver would not notice in the slightest while driving.

Unlike the other mild hybrid types, the Prius can be operated by the electric motor alone powered by the battery pack. As a result, a motorist can drive silently for short amounts of time. The Honda hybrids on this level cannot function just by the electric motor.

While speeding up a highway, the Prius utilizes the diesel engine as its main operator, and can get assistance from the generator if needed. Then this hybrid car shuts off the gas engine automatically during stops. This contributes greatly in mileage improvement and produces less emission.

Diesel VS Hybrid

A good case in point is Ford’s hybrid version of the Escape SUV, which boasted of emitting less than a pound of smog substances for every 15,000 miles the vehicle runs. This is a great improvement considering that traditional diesel-powered light trucks emit around 105 pounds of smog pollutants for the same 15,000-mile distance. Even regular cars produce 67 pounds!

So really, there isn’t going to be much argument over the great savings a consumer can gain with a hybrid vehicles. Sure, it comes at a cost, but its long term gains truly outweigh the initial price shock. After, over time, when more people realize the merits of hybrid vehicles, supply will definitely go up and push prices down.

Environmentally-conscious individuals would find heaven with hybrid cars. However, since they are just being introduced in the market, they can come at quite an expense. With increased patronage, it is hoped that more hybrid cars will become accessible to everyone in the future.

The modern car owners and buyers are really getting smarter and smarter through the years. That is because there are lots of car models and car brands out in the market today.

Each car brand and car model is aiming to get the level of support and patronage that would sustain for profitable and lucrative revenues and sales not jut currently but also in the future.

The car buyers have become more demanding as years pass by. That is because they expect car makers to address the concerns and issues they raise against the current cars they own.

Car buyers expect future and modern car models to eliminate the unlikely traits and limitations of the current car types.

It is in this manner that hybrid cars came to become the most interesting and sought-after cars of the new generation.

Giant car manufacturers Toyota, Ford, General Motors and Honda have all simultaneously embarked on a tight and pressuring race to become the top hybrid car maker and distributor.

Honda cars

Out of scrap, Japan’s Honda has been successful in building its own niche in the global car industry. Two decades ago, Honda was nothing. It was an unknown Japanese car brand that seemed to linger on its prototype vehicles.

But through the years, Honda emerged hard to win the battle. Its perseverance has paid greatly, and now, it is competing head on against fellow Japanese car maker Toyota in the global top spot for car manufacturers.

In the United States alone, sales of Honda cars have been constantly been on the rise the past few years, and rivals , especially the local based Ford and General Motors, are starting to feel the crunch in their respective sales and revenues.

Honda has become a threat to rival car makers. There are more than enough reasons for that.

Hybrid cars

When the tight race for hybrid cars started years ago, Honda was among the first few car makers to have really gone up and take the matter seriously.

Through the years, Honda has formed a patient, determined and resourceful team to set up research and development efforts for the brand’s own hybrid cars lines.

The effort did not fall futile. Now, the most modern and most sought-after hybrid car models are bearing the brand trade mark of Honda.

The Accord hybrid

One of the most popular Honda hybrid cars is the Accord hybrid vehicle that is now out in the market and enjoying a huge and warm patronage from hybrid car fanatics.

Honda claims that the hybrid car is zero-emission, but at the same time, the driver and car buyer will get to experience once again the exhilaration and feel of driving a satisfactory high-performance car.

This hybrid car model by Honda is tagged as the company’s most environmentally friendly. The prices are astronomical, though, in the higher premium to the most priced traditional or conventional car model in the market today.

The Honda Civic hybrid

Honda has recently released its 2006 Civic Hybrids. This Honda hybrid car boasts of a capacity to significantly reduce on gasoline consumption while at the same time enjoying the same old, well-loved features of the traditional Honda Civic cars.

It is understood that hybrid cars are somehow more inferior and fall a notch lower compared to their traditional counterparts, because maybe of the limitations arising from the integration of electricity and gasoline combustion inside its engine.

But the Civic hybrid claims that it breached that limitation. The Honda Civic hybrid is currently available in the market at not so reasonable prices.

But do not let it set a setback for you to own these hybrid cars. The features and advantages of owning and driving the Honda Civic hybrid for sure would outpace or breach the disadvantages.

Through the years, people have invested on buying cars mainly for the purposes of luxury, status symbol and convenience. It is to be noted that not all people are privileged to purchase and own his or her own car.

For one, cars are usually premium priced and are considered significant investments on the part of the average earning man. Another, because of the high and expensive maintenance cost like gasoline, brake fluid and others, owning a car has become really costly and stressful especially in these trying times.

As time passed by, not only are cars seen as costly and expensive investments of those who can afford them. Environmentalists are also raising concerns over the environmental impact of the cars greenhouse emissions to the already depleting ozone layer.

Every now and then, it is observed that geo-political and other forms of conflicts arise in the oil producing region of the Middle East. That is why oil prices are considered the most volatile of all commodities worldwide, adding up to the already piling concerns and woes of the modern day driver.

These are among the primary reasons why car manufacturers have strived so hard to come out with car models and variations that are aimed at addressing growing concerns over soaring oil prices and greenhouse emissions.

Thus, the emergence of new hybrid cars lived on and continuously awe not just the industry but also the overall consumer population.

New hybrid cars

Experts and global industry bodies project or expect at least 15 new hybrid car models to be unveiled or launched in the market within the next couple of years.

Japanese car makers are pioneering in developing and rolling out new hybrid cars. The first batch of these cars surprisingly generated robust and rapid sales, making them the moist sought-after and important segment of the car industry.

Why? Practically because of the overall benefits the consumer will gain from owning or using these hybrids. For one, gasoline consumption will be significantly lessened, making up for a complete overhaul and upgrade of the car’s efficiency.

Another, the environmental impact of hybrid cars is starting to lure concerned citizens into buying hybrid cars that are consistently rising in popularity nowadays. More and more people are being concerned about the environment and the effect of gas emissions to the atmosphere and to global climate conditions.

In the US alone, about 15 of the most popular and reliable car manufacturing companies are planning to unveil five new hybrid cars in 2007 and four in 2008. Two are already introduced to the market in 2006, and another four were previously launched in 2005.

New hybrid car models

Among the new hybrid car models set to capture the car market are the following:

o Mercury’s Milan Hybrid is a middle-sized vehicle
o General Motors Corp’s Sierra Hybrid (AHS II) is a full-sized pickup and Yukon Hybrid is a sports utility vehicle
o Ford has Fusion, a middle sized new hybrid car
o Chevrolet has sports utility vehicles Tahoe and Equinox
o Mazda has the Tribute Hybrid, a sports utility vehicle
o Japanese car maker Nissan is introducing a middle-sized new hybrid car called Altima Hybrid
o Saturn has VUE, another sports utility vehicle
o Mercury launched Mariner Hybrid, a middle sized SUV
o Lexus and Dodge has RX 400h and Ram Hybrid, respectively
o Giant Toyota has a middle sized sports utility vehicle dubbed as Highlander

Pricing pressures

Because new hybrid cars are the emerging and most advanced in the rising car industry, manufacturers are rushing to outpace each other in this segment not just for charity but for substantial revenue and income.

Thus, you should never be surprised upon knowing that the cheapest new hybrid car models would be priced not as reasonable as you might have expected.

Because the technology used in making and maintaining the new hybrid cars are more sophisticated than the traditional and conventional, assume that the prices would surge astronomically.

It is normal for any model or brand of hybrid cars to be priced at premium or above the average prices for common and usual cars.

Ever since the automobile of the gas-powered cars were introduced to the market in 1880s, car makers from around the world have been constantly aiming to introduce revolutionary and new modifications of cars.

Be it known that the gas-powered cars were also an improvement to horse-run carts in the decades before 1880s. After more than a century, the time is really ripe for the gas-powered cars to further advance and embark on another evolutionary stage to mount a different and more modified version.

Cars are more widely used around the world right now, that people from every corner of the world would find it hard to live by without owning one.

Cars have become a necessity and n important part of the everyday living of man. That is why, if there is one machine or device currently in use to mankind that needs or deserve further modification and improvement, it would definitely be the car.

Electric cars

But the usage of cars comes with different and varying setbacks and accompanying issues and concerns. The most grievous among these is the issue on gasoline consumption.

Traditional and conventional cars, being run by oil or gasoline, make up or require astronomical or higher gasoline consumption bills, which to many are enough reason to trigger a looming and fatal heart attack.

Because oil prices are constantly rising almost every week due to the volatile and unstable political and civil condition in the Middle East, the principal oil exporting region, gasoline prices have reached a point when ordinary people may find purchasing it almost a luxury.

The environmental concern that has been tagged on the gas-powered cars also invoked serious consideration and steps on the part of the car makers.

Because the phenomenon called greenhouse effect or global warming has started to show its wrath through climate changes around the world in the past decades, people are becoming more and more concerned about environmental degradation.

Thus, the electric cars were developed by several car manufacturers. Electric cars were the first attempt of car makers to address the rising and evoking concerns over environmental degradation and soaring oil prices.

Because electric cars are run by electricity, which is stored in batteries, there is no need for the car to undergo or process spontaneous combustion of gasoline on its engine. Thus, smoke or carbon monoxide emissions are eliminated.

The owners of electric cars would also not need to frequently visit gasoline shops and stations for refill. All they have to do is to deal with their batteries through recharging, which can be done at home or at recharging shops, which previously was also aimed by gasoline stations.

However, the electric cars had greater setbacks, so humungous that the adverse shortcomings and product limitations were offset at greater levels by its uses and advantages.

For one, the speed and mileage of electric cars are inferior compared to those by the traditional and conventional gas-powered vehicles. The required time or duration of charging of batteries is also one source of setback for the electric car.

The hybrid cars

Because of its limitations, the electric car was considered a failure and car makers did not proceed to fully roll out and launch the product to the market.

But the research and effort made to develop electric cars were not to be put in absolute futility. The car makers were really determined enough to come up with better cars that would address the issues revolving from pollutants and oil consumption.

The electric cars provided the templates that were used to develop another type of car—the hybrid cars.

The hybrid cars were crossovers or integration of the traditional gas-powered cars and the disappointing electric cars.

The hybrid cars were principally made to use the best features and qualities of each of the two types of cars, and cancel out their respective weaknesses.

For one, hybrid cars combine the use of electricity and gasoline in running and mobilizing the car. The gasoline consumption is this lessened, along with the high oil bills and air pollutants produced.

But the hybrid cars are still evoking a greater room for improvement. Because the industry is still in the experimental and initial phase when it comes to hybrid cars, expect to see more developments and modifications in the coming years.

Hybrid cars are better than electric cars and gas-powered cars because it got the best features and characteristics of the two types of cars.

Sure, hybrid cars are hot nowadays. And sure, this is not only a fad that would lose its appeal later on, because of the technology, gas mileage, and overall environmental concerns that it simultaneously tries to resolve.

So before you rush to your dealer, try researching on the different hybrid cars available in the market today. At the very least, compare hybrid cars using several factors.

We can start with some of the hybrid cars models currently available and are worth comparing. There is the Toyota Prius, the Honda Insight, the Honda Civic Hybrid, and the Honda Accord Hybrid. These are the four major hybrid cars available at dealers in your place today.

Your choice is also much improved with the availability of the Ford Escape Hybrid. This was the first hybrid SUV available. But you also have a choice with Lexus RX 400h, Toyota Highlander and the Mariner Hybrid.

First consideration is the mileage

Vehicles sold in the United States to day, on the average, gets a combined highway and city EPA fuel usage estimate of some 20.4 miles per gallon (mpg). All hybrid cars, hard as you compare, have EPA number well above than what specified earlier.

Honda Insight was particularly manufactured to obtain the best mileage, making it the undisputed leader in terms of gas mileage. The traditional manual transmission hybrids have EPA estimates of 60 mpg in the city and 66 mpg on the highway. The automatic version on the other hand has transmission rated slightly lower at 57 city/56 highway.

The second best choice is the newest version of the Prius at 60 city/51 highway. It can be seen that the city estimate is higher than the highway estimate due to this hybrid car’s capacity to operate on battery power alone at low speeds.

The 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid was available with a manual transmission that was rated at 46 city/51 highway; the automatic at 48 city/47 highway. Hybrid sedan is rated at 25 city/28 highway.

Compared with other hybrid cars, SUV’s, like GS450h, get the lowest gas mileage of the hybrid vehicles. The Ford Escape on he other hand is rated at 36 city/31 highway. This is much better than a non-hybrid Escape that is only rated at 22 city/25 highway.

Size does matter

Another point to consider if must compare hybrid cars is the size. With earlier models, hybrid cars only came in two sizes. First is the small sized vehicle. The second is the much smaller one. But hybrid manufacturers are learning to respond with the consumer’s specific needs. And because these manufacturers somehow know that the consumers had learned how to compare hybrid cars, all of them are putting some improvements.

But let’s go back to the size consideration. When considering size of a particular hybrid car number of passengers and typical loads you may be transporting.

The Honda Civic Hybrid is a compact sedan. It has five seats and has a general is outside look comparable to that of non-hybrid Civic. The interior is the same size, although the trunk of this hybrid is slightly smaller to accommodate the battery. For 2006 edition, it was redesigned, and now has a more slender and sporty overall look.

The Prius 2000-2003 models have 5 passenger compact capacity, and was redesigned in 2004 and evolved into a mid-size category car. This comparatively larger edition includes a versatile hatch back.

The Price

For price, below is a means to compare currently available hybrid cars. It’s not a clear-cut pricing table, but at least you have an idea.

> 2006 Toyota Prius, $21,2745
> 2006 Honda Insight, $19,330 manual transmission; $21,530 for automatic
> 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid, $21,850
> 2007 Lexus GS 450h, $54,900
> 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid, $25,900
> 2006 Honda Accord Hybrid, $30,140

For SUV:
> 2006 Ford Escape hybrid begins at $27,515 for the two-wheel drive version and $28,595 for four-wheel drive.
> Saturn VUE Green Line Hybrid SUV (summer 2006) $23,995.
> 2006 Lexus RX400h $49,060.
> 2006 Mariner Hybrid $29,840
> 2006 Toyota Highlander Hybrid $33,030 for the two-wheel drive; $34,430 for four-wheel drive.

The Look

The last consideration is the appearance. You can choose a hybrid car that looks like the other available models, or you may want to be totally different. Anyway, this one of the few reasons why hybrids are hot today and was able to penetrate the American market successfully within a short period of time.

Drivers who bought new hybrid cars this year are in for another headache.

If you, the car owner and user, just bought a new fuel-efficient and in-vogue hybrid vehicle, it would be such a pain in the ass, but sorry. To say in a more subtle manner, you should have never made the acquisition sooner, or you simply should have waited.

That is because effective January 1, 2006, owners and buyers of several latest models of hybrid cars would be imposed hefty tax credits. Those credits will differ and vary a lot. Several of the hybrid vehicles available in the market will still not be entitled to any tax credit at all.

Tax credit

What is a tax credit? The term refers to the dollar amount or tax imposition imposed or designated to certain hybrid car models. The tax credits vary and differ from one hybrid model to another, sometimes depending on the overall functionality and the popularity.

New hybrid car buyers at this point are already scratching their heads, thinking about the mess they would be entering. And they have enough reasons to take anti-depressant pills.

The new tax credit for hybrid cars in the United States is part of an energy legislation forged and ratified into a full pledged law or regulation.

The new rules are set to encourage consumers into buying green vehicles, or the so called hybrid cars, which are not only gasoline efficient but also environmentally friendly.

But problems and discrepancies come in when the changes or modifications from the old tax breaks systems for traditional gas-powered cars are altered or modified for certain hybrid cars models.

Computations

Perhaps, the problems and frustrations drivers and hybrid car owners encounter in the latest wave of tax credit grants are arising from the computations of the tax credit system.

These computations are not that simple and are made complex and complicated by the two important components. The first component is the fuel economy rating.

This is where most of the problems arise for the taxation of the hybrid cars, which is supposed to be simple and greatly appreciated by hybrid car buyers.

To the contrary, the tax measure is found to be miserable and complicated, making hybrid car buyers regret their purchase for a while.

It is because most of the hybrid cars available or purchasable in the market today fail on the fuel economy ratings, that are required by the federal government before the hybrid car is qualified for a tax credit.

So the effort to reduce the tax imposition for hybrid cars, and eventually entice car buyers into buying them, is made simply futile and a worthless initiative.

The other component of the tax credit computation is the conservation credit. The conservation tax credit is based on the hybrid car model’s projected and computed fuel savings on it entire life span.

In this aspect, almost all the hybrid car models available in the market today are also failing. Thus, it is certain that if you are a hybrid car buyer this year, there is a lesser and slimmer chance for you to be able to secure tax credits or tax savings.

Computing and considering the tax savings you could probably save if your hybrid car is qualified for a tax credit would certainly make you falter and regret the tax system. For sure, you would have the sentiment that it could have been better if the tax credit is simply not offered at all.

List of hybrid cars on the tax credit system

To be able to get a complete and accurate listing of the new hybrid car models that are qualified to secure tax credits, visit the online site of the US Treasury.

The site can be accessed at www.ustreas.gov. If you recently purchased a hybrid car, or are planning to buy one, check if your hybrid car model is qualified for hefty tax credits.

Have you ever felt the need to increase the efficiency of your car or reduce the significantly high oil consumption for you to save on costs?

You probably might have, given these times when oil prices are sky-rocketing and price hikes are being introduced every week. Your expenses for gasoline might even be reaching astronomical levels.

Through the years, especially since the first oil crisis in the 1990s when the first Iraq vs. United States conflict started, car manufacturers from Japan, the United States, Germany and elsewhere have begun the development of specially built and designed cars that would lower oil and gasoline consumption.

These cars are especially high-regarded during these times, because, apparently, gasoline has become the most essential liquid in the world, aside, of course, from drinking water.

Because car makers have always aimed to offer cars to the market that would quench consumers thirst for vehicles that do not mainly operate and rely on gasoline, the emergence of hybrid vehicles was made possible.

Hybrid vehicles

Hybrid cars, as manufacturers claim, are the cars of the future. That is because those cars are considered the answers to people’s prayers over the past years for vehicles that would not necessarily run on gasoline, which has prices that are so volatile due to emerging conflicts in the oil-producing countries every now and then.

Nowadays, car owners are being forced to just commute or take the public vehicles on their way to work everyday instead of using their cars because the gasoline prices are so high, that everyday use of the car would be unsustainable and most often, becoming a luxury.

In those cases, the purpose for buying or purchasing a car is breached, overlooked, neglected and unattained. For sure, cars are bought to give the buyer the convenience of going to destinations without the hassle of a public transport, which usually are tormented by delays, accidents and unlikely incidents.

No wonder, the launch of hybrid vehicles not so long ago was bombarded by promising and higher than expected sales of the cars. It is understandable that people have long awaited and anticipated the market launch of hybrid cars.

A little on the technical aspects of hybrid vehicles

Hybrid vehicles generally refer to those types of automotives or cars that run on the joint power brought about by gasoline and electricity stored in high-capacity electric batteries.

Hybrid vehicles save on fuel because there are certain times when the vehicles rely on the electric power produced by the batteries. Thus, consumption of gasoline is significantly lowered, leading to reduced oil or gasoline bills by the owner.

The technology for the manufacture of hybrid cars is continuously and consistently evolving over the years, marking significant changes, modifications and improvements time after time.

Usually, hybrid vehicles make use of rechargeable energy storage system also known as RESS which comes hand in hand with a propeller that provides fueled propulsion power.

In other countries, the term hybrid vehicle also refers to petroleum-electric hybrid cars which are also called hybrid-electric vehicle that use gasoline to feed the car’s internal combustion engines or ICEs and built-in electric batteries that provide the vehicle’s electric requirements to power the electric motors.

Manufacturers

Giant car companies around the world have somehow embarked on a tight race to massively produce hybrid cars. The competition for such types of cars is becoming more and more intense through the years especially because there is a rising opportunity in the segment.

Opportunities do really come in time of crises so giant car makers are rushing to each offer the consumers their own hybrid car versions and models and at the same time, underpin rising demand for such cars, equating logically to higher sales and company revenues.

Japan’s Toyota Corp and Honda Corp are leading in the race to dominate the hybrid car market not just in Japan and the United States but also in other parts of the world, where people are becoming more particular about efficiencies and oil-cost downgrades.

Other car manufacturers follow suit, and it is expected that in the next couple of years, more and more hybrid vehicles are to be unveiled in the market by the two car makers and their aggressive competitors.

No wonder, because hybrid vehicles are tagged not only as oil and cost-saving cars but also as environment-friendly vehicles. Yes, you read it right.

Because hybrid vehicles have reduced gasoline consumption, it follows that smoke and greenhouse gas emissions are also significantly reduced.

Thus, purchasing hybrid vehicles is like hitting two birds in just one stone. You would practically save on gasoline and oil costs and at the same time help save the environment by reducing the rate of green house gas emissions.