WASHINGTON, April 8 (UPI) -- For those ready to revolt against rising gas prices but haven't yet found a hybrid they like, the latest issue of Consumer Reports previews several upcoming hybrid models, three of which are due out this year.
Right now, there are three hybrids on the market: the Toyota Prius, Honda Insight and Honda Civic Hybrid, CR said. But, "Within the next two years, the number and range of hybrid models is expected to increase dramatically. New SUV and family sedan hybrids will provide greater versatility and interior space than the small hybrids offered today, but fuel economy will probably not be quite as good," CR said.
For people who just decided they can't wait for their hybrid any longer, the Prius was named Top Pick in the magazine's Green Car category in its April Auto issue. It achieved the highest gas mileage out of any five-passenger vehicle CR has tested, 44 miles per gallon, and produces "near-zero" emissions, the magazine said.
Hybrids pair an electric motor with a gasoline engine for better fuel economy and lower emissions. Hybrids should save drivers about half of what they'd spend on fuel for comparable cars, but usually cost more than similar cars, CR said.
Now is definitely the right time to check out hybrids; soaring gas prices and sinking inventories don't bode well for drivers this summer, let alone the rest of this spring.
"Choosing a vehicle that's a few miles per gallon better is the best insurance against volatility in the fuel market," said Jim Kliesch, vehicle researcher at the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, on hybridcars.com.
Thursday, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said that this summer's gasoline prices are expected to average a record $1.76 per gallon. High crude oil costs, high demand for gasoline, low gasoline inventories, and stricter gasoline blend requirements have already driven up gasoline costs even before the summer driving season begins, EIA reported.
A gallon of gasoline was already selling for $1.771 per gallon as of Thursday, and hit an all-time record average price of $1.773 per gallon on Wednesday of $1.773, before adjustment for inflation, according to motorists' group AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report.
Ford's 2005 Escape Hybrid SUV is due out in summer 2004, and will get about 40 mpg and travel 500 miles on a tank of gas, Ford said.
The 2005 Honda Accord Hybrid is due out in fall 2004. Honda said that the Accord Hybrid will be as economical as its four-cylinder Civic and accelerate better than its 240 hp Accord V6. It will also be the first hybrid-engine vehicle to provide the passenger and luggage capacity of a mid-sized sedan, CR said.
Lexus plans to bring out its mid-sized SUV, the 2005 Lexus RX400h, in fall of 2004, while Toyota will unveil its 2005 Toyota Highlander Hybrid in early 2005. Toyota says the vehicles will achieve 27.6 mpg, 270 hp, and travel more than 600 miles per tank of gas. The vehicles will be offered with either front- or all-wheel-drive. Toyota is touting the Highlander Hybrid as the first seven-passenger hybrid SUV.
GM's first hybrid vehicle release will be the Saturn Vue SUV, and will improve fuel efficiency by almost 50 percent to nearly 40 mpg, according to GM, which said it will release two other hybrids over the next three years.
Chevrolet says its 2006 Chevrolet Equinox SUV and 2007 Chevrolet Malibu sedan will achieve 12 percent to 15 percent better fuel economy than conventional models.
The chairman of Ford Motors had a suggestion Wednesday as to how to give the hybrid industry an extra boost. Bill Ford, chairman and chief executive of the United States' second-largest auto manufacturer, said he supports higher fuel taxes if it would help create incentives to promote energy-efficient vehicles, the Financial Times reports. "I would support some combination of gas tax -- which I know is politically not that popular -- and incentives [for fuel-efficient hybrids]," Ford said at the New York Motor Show.
"I think it is unreasonable for us to expect that the really low fuel prices we have had [in the US] for many years will continue," he said.
More information on upcoming hybrid models is available at www.crxtra.org.
