Japanese Demand for the Prius Continues

For the sixth months straight the Toyota Prius has been the #1 selling car in Japan. Like the U.S. Cash for Clunkers program, Japan has been offering tax breaks and government subsidies for the purchase of environmentally friendly vehicles. This increase in demand has boosted Toyota’s profits after three consecutive losing quarters.

With numerous green vehicles on the market, what is it that makes the Toyota Prius so enticing to Japanese car buyers?

• Efficiency - The Toyota Prius gets up to 51 mpg. Gas prices in Japan may be at a 4 year low, but they still average over $4.00 USD a gallon.

• Pricing - Fighting to compete with the Honda Insight, Toyota has lowered Prius prices in Japan to around $19,000. Slightly less than the still affordable U.S. starting price of $22,400.

• Reliability - Long known for dependability, Toyota scored the highest in vehicle satisfaction for reliability in recent AutoPacific and IntelliChoice studies.

• Safety - The IIHS awarded the 2009 Prius top scores of “Good” on all tests.

As hybrid interest in the U.S. continues to heat up, it will be interesting to see if American car buyers follow suit. Do you have a favorite hybrid? If so why?

Can America Once Again Lead the Automotive Industry?

Looking at the American automotive industry in recent years, it’s hard to believe that we once lead the world in mass producing quality automobiles. After last year’s near collapse, American auto manufactures are struggling to regain a foothold and many plant workers are still left jobless. However change could be around the corner.

This Tuesday Fisker announced it will purchase a closed GM assembly plant in Delaware, with plans to begin producing plug-in hybrid electric cars by 2012. The luxury automaker expects to create or support 5,000 new jobs, producing up to 100,000 vehicles per year.

CEO Henrik Fisker described the production of hybrid electric vehicles as “the most dramatic change in the car industry ever.” He is optimistic that America can once again become “a leader in advanced vehicle technology.”

Fisker will use the Wilmington Delaware plant to build vehicles under Project NINA. Aiming to prove electric cars can be equal to or better than today’s gasoline powered models. If consumers embrace these new vehicles other automakers are sure to follow. With gasoline prices on the rise and increased environmental awareness we can only expect they will.

L.A. Auto Show - Green Car of the Year Finalists

Yesterday, the L.A. Auto Show announced the finalists for Green Car of the Year. This year’s picks are excellent examples of the the wide range of prices, styles, and technologies car manufactures are offering.

Audi A3 TDI 
Clean and stylish, the A3 TDI sports a clean burning diesel engine that gets up to 30 mpg and energy saving extras.

Honda Insight
Not only is the Honda Insight efficient, but it’s ECON Assist system will teach you how to drive more efficiently.

Mercury Milan Hybrid
America’s most fuel-efficient mid-size sedan with EPA estimated mpg 41 city/36 hwy, the Milan Hybrid runs on electric mode up to 47 miles per hour.

Toyota Prius
The 3rd generation Prius offers some of the best fuel efficiency on the market, up to 51 mpg.

Volkswagen Golf TDI
Not only is the Volkswagen Golf TDI affordable, but it’s estimated annual fuel cost is just $1,140!

The award will be announced December 3rd, 2009.

Hybrids and Small Cars Dominate Sales of 2008's First Half

Businessweek recently released a list of the best selling cars of 2008. During the first half of the year small cars and hybrids have come out on top of the sales numbers. According to Businessweek cars that have four-cylinder variants and get around 30 mpg on the highway or above are the gainers so far.

Here's al list of some of the best-selling cars during the first half of this year:

Model Honda Civic Honda Accord Ford Focus Chevrolet Cobalt Nissan Altima

Sales 204,961 205,671 123,449 114,250 158,006

                                                                                             

Even though the Chevrolet Malibu's 87,410 units sold weren't enough to rank it in the top five, they were enough to place it atop the list of cars with the largest one-year sales increase because for the same period of 2007 the Malibu finished with just 60,025 units sold. Also, Malibu June sales were up 86.4% from one year-ago. The fact that its gasoline-electric hybrid version went on sale in January is probably one of the reasons for the big jump in numbers.

Check the whole list at Businessweek

The Mazda Tribute Hybrid: More of a Ford than a Mazda

The Hybrid Electric Vehicle technology that has been in the Ford Escape Hybrid for years, is finally being shared and released in Mazda's crossover this year. And while the Mazda Tribute Hybrid is better priced than the Escape, its extremely limited availability and lack of some of the usual expected Mazda attributes may make it a less attractive option for buyers.

The Escape is a very nice hybrid utility vehicle, so there are worse faults than being too similar to it. But Mazda is known for their sporty handling, which is somewhat blunted in the Tribute, though mpg estimates are a welcome 21 city / 31 highway. The Tribute's acceleration is sufficient, but not necessarily zoom-worthy or as fun as some other Mazda models. Other disappointments are less-than-perfect frontal 4 star crash scores and the crossover's poor reliability history. Also, the Mazda Tribute Hybrid is only available in the state of CA this year.

So if you don't live in the Golden State, you may want to check out the Ford Escape Hybrid or a relatively efficient utility vehicle like the Honda CR-V.

The Saturn Aura Hybrid - Not Quite Worth the Extra Cost

The Saturn Aura is a promising new midsize sedan that debuted last year. It has Opel-inspired European looks and provides a spacious and dynamic ride. We think it's a strong new GM sedan worth looking into. Unfortunately the BuyingAdvice Team is not as excited by the Saturn Aura Hybrid Green Line, which costs about $2,500 more than the gasoline version, but doesn't nearly live up to the extra expense.

Perhaps we have been spoiled by hybrids like the Toyota Camry Hybrid and Honda Civic Hybrid which get over 10 more mpg than their gasoline-fueled counterparts. And while Saturn has been up-front about saying that their hybrid technology is a "mild hybrid powertrain", the estimated gain per gallon is a disappointing 2 miles over the non-hybrid Aura. It fares a bit better against its V6 engine, but the handling of the Green Line Aura is actually more clumsy and the acceleration less powerful. Recent reports say that by 2009, Saturn plans to release a full hybrid powertrain on the Aura. We recommend saving your money until that change occurs.

If you are interested in a Hybrid that offers fuel-economy that is worth the extra upfront cost, we recommend the Toyota Camry Hybrid and the Honda Civic Hybrid.

The Lexus RX 400h - The High-brow Hybrid

This is the second year for Lexus's hybrid offering in the crossover SUV category. The popular RX model's hybrid version is called the 400h, and it comes in either front-wheel or 4WD. Although there are SUV hybrid options out there for far less money, the BuyingAdvice Team thinks buyers will be hard-pressed to outmatch the Lexus RX Hybrid 400h in light of its outstanding level of performance and luxury.

The RX 400h combines a V6 that works alongside a continuously variable transmission and overall has 268 hp, which even outdoes the RX 330. This hybrid can reach 60 mph in about 7.5 seconds. Without sacrificing any of the refinement or power of the ride, compared to its gasoline counter-part, the RX 400h succeeds in getting about 9 more miles per gallon. But the downside is that investing in refinement and a luxury green option will end up costing you quite a bit of green of your own. The RX 400h has starting MSRP around $42,500.

Other utility hybrids that will cost you a lot less, but often have less hp and luxury features are the Toyota Highlander Hybrid and the Mercury Mariner Hybrid.

The Honda Civic Hybrid - Less Space-age Fuel Efficiency

The Honda Civic is a long-standing top model, offering solid safety, comfort and a great ride; and since its update in 2006 it has top-notch styling as well. What's even better is that since 2003, the Civic has a Hybrid model available. While it doesn't beat out the Toyota Prius as our favorite Hybrid, the BuyingAdvice Team does admire the Honda Civic Hybrid for increasing its already admirable fuel-economy and for offering Hybrid buyers a more conventionally-styled green option.

It's understandable that the Prius's Jetson-like interior is not for everyone. The Civic Hybrid offers 40 / 45 mpg and is styled with the same options as the EX trim which includes a six-speaker audio system, cruise control, full-power accessories and loads of safety features. The interior is refined and roomy and not all that different from other Civic models. The highly-regarded, well-integrated ride is not altered by the gasoline/electric powertrain. In fact, the only thing that may feel different is stopping at the gas station a lot less frequently. Also, safety scores are near perfect.

The reason the Toyota Prius remains number one on our Hybrid list, is that it gets 8 more miles per gallon compared to the Civic Hybrid and costs about $1,000 less. Another option is the Nissan Altima Hybrid, but it costs a few thousand dollars more and gets about 10 less mpg.

The Toyota Prius The Best Hybrid and Even More Affordable

This year the EPA's more realistic gas mileage estimates for 2008 put the Prius hybrid at 48 mpg for city driving and 45 mpg on the highway. Here at BuyingAdvice we admit we have some green-leaning tendencies. But besides spewing less harmful emissions, there are some other reasons that make this car truly impressive. With its terrific reliability record, full collection of safety features and now a price that's over $1,000 lower than last year, the BuyingAdvice Team thinks the Toyota Prius is a practical hatchback with a wonderfully futuristic twist.

The design of this car matches its forward-thinking technology under the hood. The interior design is often described as "space age", but it's also spacious and user-friendly. With its electric start-up, there is some adapting required. But overall, the car rides similarly to a full gasoline-fueled engine. It uses a continuously variable transmission to switch between the electric and gasoline motors. Acceleration is a bit laid-back, but can handle highway driving and passing just fine. Safety scores are in the 4 to 4.5 star range. And despite new hybrids coming out all the time, the Prius is still the most fuel-efficient vehicle on the market.

If you are attracted to more conventional styling, you may want to look at the Nissan Altima Hybrid, but you will lose a whopping 10 mpg and pay about $5,000 more. For over $500 less, you can also look into the Honda Accord. Although a hybrid version is no longer available, the Accord gets pretty good mileage for a regular gas engine, but about 14mpg less than the Prius.

GM Comes Around to a Hybrid Way of Thinking

With plans to release 8 new hybrid models in the next two years, GM is finally emerging from its reputation as falling behind the times in terms of green technology. In reality, GM spends more money each year on research and development than any other company. But what seemed to stall out GM in the past was getting their more cutting-edge concept cars to the public market.

While GM was playing it safe and questioning the true monetary value of hybrids, which is admittedly still a valid question, they left a window open for Toyota's innovative Prius and their incredible marketing campaign to take the industry by storm.

But GM is finally stepping up to some innovative moves of their own. This year GM will release the first full-size SUVs to have hybrid technology-the GMC Yukon and the Chevrolet Tahoe which will feature two electric motors designed to make city and highway driving more efficient. Soon GM will also sponsor Project Driveway a consumer test of hydrogen fuel-cell-cars.

What the BuyingAdvice Team would love to see is the Chevrolet Volt, or some variation of it, which was a concept car presented in 2007 make the jump to a model. It would mark the rebirth of the electric car. The Volt brings plug-in hybrid technology up to the next level, the car charges in only 6.5 hours using a standard outlet and can run for 40 miles before needing to switch to E85, bio-diesel or gasoline fuel.

To read more about GM's greener side check out this full article in Time Magazine.