Prius, Civic hybrid owners save money, Consumer Reports now says

[bananas]

Has this been posted before?
I just came across this - Consumer Reports made a math error in their currrent issue.

http://priuschat.com/Consumer-Reports-Eats-Crow-t16986.html

Consumer Reports Eats Crow
Mar 8 2006, 01:27 AM

My friend who won't admit he's at a level of genius, quickly realized the Consumer Reports had made a major calculation error in their article regarding the cost effectiveness or lack of payback in purchasing a hybrid.

He wrote a letter to Consumer Reports about the error and to the San Jose Mercury as well, who had put the CR report in an article in their newspaper.

Well, CR has now published a retraction and updated chart of the costs of hybrid ownership. The SJ Mercury will also publish the corrected information very shortly.

Way to go, John G.!

Here's CR's updated chart. I assume the retraction and "oops" article will be in next months magazine.

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/cars/new-cars/high-cost-of-hybrid-vehicles-406/hybrids-vs-all-gas.htm

Here's the Mercury News article:
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/14041566.htm

Posted on Tue, Mar. 07, 2006
Prius, Civic hybrid owners save money, Consumer Reports now says
By Matt Nauman
Mercury News

Consumer Reports now says it made an error when calculating the cost of owning a hybrid: Owners of the Toyota Prius and Honda Civic hybrids do save money, the magazine said today.

Last week, the organization released a statement ahead of its well-read April auto issue, which hit newsstands today, that said owners of the six most popular hybrid vehicles would pay more than buyers of comparable gasoline-only vehicles over their lifetime of ownership.

<snip>

The new calculations show that owners of the Toyota Prius will save $400 and owners of the Honda Civic will save $300 when compared with gasoline-only counterparts. Owners of four other hybrids -- the Honda Accord, Ford Escape, Toyota Highlander and Lexus RX 400h -- will still end up spending $1,900 to $5,500 more during five years of ownership and 75,000 miles, Consumer Reports said.

<snip>

Readers such as John Grebenkemper, who has a doctorate from Stanford University, told Consumer Reports it had made a math error in calculating depreciation.

Contact Matt Nauman at [e-mail] or [phone].

[Skink]

1. 10 gallons a month vs.100 at 2.97 carry the one and..

[benburch]

2. We had a thread where Prius owners were telling folks this...

...and were being called delusional.

[lastknowngood]

3. These people are crazy as hell I get between 43 and 47 miles

per gal on my 2003 civic hybrid and have put 68,000 miles on it without a problem. It runs great and not one mechinical failure. Where the hell did they get their numbers?

[Papillon]

4. Give your friend John G.

a high-five for me. I own a Honda Civic Hybrid and I love the feeling I'm doing something for the environment when I'm driving it. Now I can feel even better. :bounce:

[bananas]

7. I don't know him - I was quoting a post on another message board

[spindrifter]

5. Here's another bene for the hybrid folk

apparently the State of Cali lets hybrid owners have a sticker that enables them to use the HOV lane legally, even with single occupancy. I think it is a great idea. A friend bought one just to save the aggravation of sitting in commuter traffic. Ah, to have the money to do that!

[nickinSTL]

6. this is great news

I hope this will help convince more people to buy hybrids (as money talks louder to lots of people than "helping the environment").

Me, as soon as I'm done paying off my current gas-guzzler, I plan to get a hybrid (or whatever the primary alternative to conventional gasoline power is by then).

[skids]

8. Awesome. K&R

Just because it will p/o the trolls.

[Celtic warrior]

9. prius

I get about 42 MPG overall in my 2006 prius

celtic warrior

[Beaverhausen]

10. We hybrid owners knew it all along

the fact that we are also putting out nearly zero pollutants into the atmosphere is just a cherry on top!

[mod mom]

11. ?: I just purchased a Prius and expect to pick it up on 4/15. I read

about roof solar panels which increase mileage by 10% (Solatec is the company). I asked the dealer and they had no knowledge of this product but said that adding this option would negate the warranty. Anyone with any knowledge/experience with these solar panels?

[skids]

12. I wouldn't believe Solartec's claims.

60Wp of tiny strip solar panels aren't really getting a 10% increase. Something like that will be available in a decent size eventually, hooking up to the main batteries. (Solartec's only offloads the accesory load from the 12V system.)

Not that that's a bad thing -- adding a solar 12V battery charger can pay for itself over the life of the car by preserving the 12V battery life and perhaps saving you a couple jump starts if you leave the trunk unlatched or such. But it only takes a few watts of panel to do that, and they are available much cheaper:

http://www.siliconsolar.com/shop/catalog/Solar-Car-Battery-Charger-p-139.html

...they are also not a half-bad idea for any car, not just hybrids, and will probably not void warranties unless your dealership is particularly assinine -- they're easy enough to remove prior to service, though.

Some guy named Lap in Canada did put a decent solar panel system onto a Prius Classic, and I'd believe his claims of 10-15% mileage gain. But he used rigid panels. When a flexible decal system of decent wattage is available, then I'd take it seriously, but not until then.

[mod mom]

13. Thank you for your response. nt