When Toyota's own people say hybrid technology just doesn't make any sense for American use you know that it will not get much bigger in America then what is being produced now.
From the WJR Auto Report (local radio station)
No manufacturer has been more aggressive in bringing hybrids to market than Toyota. So you can imagine my surprise when I read the results of an interview with the Japanese automaker's new chief of research and development. According to Kazuo Okamato, hybrid technology just doesn't make sense for American motorists. Actually make that dollars and cents. Okamato told the Financial Times that "when you just use the argument of fuel efficiency," the technology is "not justified." In other words, you can't save enough money on gas to pay off the higher price for a hybrid vehicle. That's not to say Okamato is writing off the technology. A hybrid's biggest appeal, he suggests, is to those who want to do their part to save the environment, something you can't always work into an economic equation. That's the sort of logic that has confounded many of Toyota's competitors, including General Motors. But the long waiting list for Toyota's hybrids suggests American buyers are clearly motivated by more than just economics.
Other hybrid posts, in which we find that hybrids don't get all the miles that are being claimed by the auto makers.
Hybrids, Not As Popular As Expected
How Do Hybrids Work
Hybrids Really Don't Go The Distance
I hate hybrids they really seem to be more closely related to go-karts then a car.
Posted by: Contagion at June 21, 2005 08:38 AMTest comment.
Posted by: Machelle at June 21, 2005 01:13 PMSure, hybrids may be a bad investment, but they make you FEEL good.
And isn't that what REALLY matters? :-)
Posted by: Harvey at June 21, 2005 09:43 PMI know someone who just bought one... and although I didn't say a word to her, I thought - that's the stupidest thing you could've done! There's too much downside and the "gee I feel sooooo good doing this" doesn't cut it for me. Not to mention - I can't imagine that the upkeep isn't also more expensive... and upkeep really counts over the years.
Posted by: Teresa at June 22, 2005 07:06 PM