Besides, hybrids don’t really do anything to save the planet. A Prius doesn’t really get much better gas mileage than a Corolla. I know this well, having driven both extensively. The main difference is that you paid almost $30k for an underpowered Corolla when you bought the Prius.
The larger hybrids (Highlander, Escape, Accord, etc.) don’t really get better gas mileage. They have better performance than the base 4-cylinder engine without the bigger engine.
Now to the real ecological cost. There’s a lot more computer gear in these hybrids, which making this stuff is surely less friendly. Then the real problem comes in – the batteries. Ask the folks in Canada what Toyota’s battery plant has done for the environment. How about battery disposal? In not too many years, the initial Prius owners will have to start replacing these. What happens to the environment with those in the landfills?
Once again, the so-called “progressives” had a knee-jerk reaction to a problem with a poorly thought-out solution.
