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Hybrids easier on conscience than finances

WASHINGTON, June 1 (UPI) -- Automobile analysts say the retail price of gas-electric hybrid vehicles will not be offset by savings from lower fuel costs or U.S. tax credits.

A study by Edmunds.com found that in most cases a hybrid vehicle owner would have to drive tens of thousands of extra miles a year or gasoline would have to hit stratospheric levels to reach a break-even point with a comparable gas-powered model, USA Today reported Wednesday.

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"If people go in with the idea they are saving money, they are mistaken," said Jesse Toprak, pricing director for Edmunds.com, an auto research site.

Edmunds.com compared costs of purchasing, taxes, financing, insurance and maintenance over five years but not depreciation and assumed driving two-thirds of the time on highways and one-third in the city. Gasoline was estimated at $2.28 per gallon the first year, and then rising 3 percent per year.

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