edatoakrun said:The limited hybrid sales, many years after their introduction, is related to the fact that the cost benefits to the buyer of reducing gas use by about 20-25%, verses the higher initial purchase price, never produced financial (and arguably environmental) cost benefits for most car buyers, including myself.cwerdna said:As a Prius enthusiast, we hear all the myths all the time (the influx of misinformed trolls has slowed down considerably though). On other message boards, I and others have a hard enough time convincing people to buy the midsized Prius (which starts at ~$23K) that has no range limit or other hybrids, as it is. You think those same people will be willing to spend more on an EV w/limited range and not knowing squat about charging, infrastructure, etc. while possessing a whole bunch of FUD?
I believe BEVs may be far more successful in gaining market share, since the huge ownership cost benefits (and hopefully, the environmental benefits, also) of reducing gas use by 100%, will eventually become obvious, to the greater car buying public.
Of course, this will only occur, if The market operates on a relatively “level playing field”.
IF the government policies that distort current energy markets, that obscure the true comparison cost of electricity vs. petroleum fuels, which currently subsidize gas more than electricity (IMO) are changed to increase the relative subsidy level to gasoline, BEVs will never replace ICEVs as the standard passenger vehicle in the US market.
I think you meant to start your last paragraph with 'until'.
Careful saying hybrid and Prius in the same breath. Another strong year at 135k Prius sold in '11 in US. #10 of all cars / trucks in US was Civic at 220k units. So, 135k is far from limited sales and Prius has been pulling 100k plus since 2005.
You need to worry about the nearly 1 million F-series and Silverado's sold in US in 2011, especially if they're not used for work or hauling. Chart gallons / mile vs. MPGs, watch the inverse function ramp up with sub-20 and 20 ish MPG vehicles. That's what we need to get the soccer moms out of.
Lot of Prius drivers will migrate to Leaf, so don't pooh-poo hybrids. They introduce many to 'some' electric propulsion.