ABG: A decade on, survey suggests buyers still don't understand hybrid cars

Even though I see an improvement in the number of hybrid vehicles at my workplace, I am surprised every day by the number of people that ask me questions about my car based on past misinformation.

It always starts with the high cost of replacing the hybrid battery and not being able to justify the hybrid "premium". When I go through the excercise of replacing the misinformation with the correct facts, I always get this "deer in headlights" reaction and the same "that is not what I understand from reading the paper and magazines" !!

Like the article says, a decade later and the same misinformation being spread.

 

Most of the American public likely don't know how an ICE works.

 

I keep being asked if I have to plug Pearl in! My response is "it's a gasoline powered vehicle".
Next is the "high cost" of the battery. My response is always "ever paid for an automatic transmission", and they usually have!
Sigh!

 

A while ago, I read a piece somewhere (can't even remember where) that quoted Yoko Ono. She was asked about her involvement in social and political causes. The interesting part of her response to me, was given her involvement in very high profile movements and causes over her lifetime sadly, she said that often she felt that real change on a large scale doesn't happen until people are hurt. Or until people are "forced" to make change.

I'm paraphrasing, badly from faulty memory. But the crux of her response that was despite efforts to illuminate people to whatever cause, she had come to the conclusion that often the real change doesn't happen until reality conspires to make the change almost inevitable. I thought this a sad observation, but one that unfortunately is seldom wrong.

I have a friends on both sides of the Hybrid fence. My "anti" Hybrid friends? I'm convinced that it really has little to do with misinformation. Sometimes, often they harbor many of the misconceptions that exist, but that isn't REALLY the problem. The problem is they aren' t "hurting" enough. They don't care to really investigate Prius, they don't care to really know, because despite political realities, despite economic realities, and despite enviromental realities, they still can afford to fill up.

They might whine as gas prices rise, but until it REALLY stops them, not just slows them, until then, Prius, Hybrids and EV's are just the fringe realm and unreal to them. They look at what appears outwardly to be a rather utilitarian hatchback, and think for a similar price they could own a big, comfortable, powerful "whatever"...

The mythology, the misconceptions? They become the light breeze that is all they need to close the door...but the truth is they aren't ready to open it anyway.

I have debated with them, I will to various degree work to inform, but it doesn't matter. They are going to believe what they are going to believe, because it is what they want to believe.

I once spent considerable time "almost as an experiment" overturning an Anti-Hybrid friend of mines misconceptions about Prius. After I had offered a counter, to almost every wrong misconception he harbored...his final response was that " Well it might all be true....BUT he felt Hybrids just weren't quite "ready" yet..."....

The ultimate shield of such a vague opinion is almost unassailable. So I just let it go. This IS a friend. But my feeling was...no Hybrids are ready...YOU aren't ready.

And so that's why I don't sweat the misinformation, or misconceptions so much. Yes they exist, yes people harbor them. But I don't think it's really going to change until it reaches a tipping point, coming probably much sooner than many think, but a tipping point where knowing about a 50 mpg vehicle and its realities outweigh the convienence and familiarity of what they currently know...ICE and gasoline.

 

A decade on and no, not surprised at all

I find it very interesting the former CIA Director drives a Prius that has a rather unique bumper sticker "Bin Laden hates this car"

So I guess all the anti-hybrid folks out there have something in common with Bin Laden. They also must support soldiers being wounded, maimed, and killed just to have the luxury of cheap fuel

Don't even get me started on these nuts

the comments are priceless. My suggestion is that anybody with a truck like that be forced to serve in Iraq and Afghanistan for a minimum of 3 years

People like that have ruined America, have turned it into the laughing stock of the world.

 

I would laugh at these buyers, but I have no room to talk. After two months, I still haven't figured out how to plug my Prius in.

 

www.enginer.us

I think toyota are taking the right approach in europe, by simply offering a hybrid version of every vehicle. Hybrid yaris or IQ is going to rock, since one of the main detractors of the prius is it's quite big, with quite a big, powerful engine. a 1L hybrid IQ would be so good.

 

I heartily disagree with this. I cannot recall any commercial I've ever seen on TV, for example, describing the batteries on board.

Anyway it is sad but not surprising so many have no idea whatsoever about how hybrids work. A great many people in society are technically inept and don't care about how anything works that they regularly use.

These people will eventually learn because they'll be encouraged or forced (by edict maybe, finances more likely) away from sub-20 mpg vehicles. This is what electric me says and it applies to many things. You can offer information and open-minded people will embrace it. Others will be dragged kicking and screaming. Until then they want nothing to do with it because probably it's mentally too challenging.

I absolutely agree with this. I would guess that more than half the adult population cannot describe from any level more detailed than "it burns gas and I think air mixed in there" how one works.

A person at work in response to my Prius said her husband "would never drive one". So he got a truck. That is expensive pride with gas where it is now. Also got the questions about the high cost of replacing batteries.

My other vehicle gets 18 mpg city but in a way many just don't realize there is another world. A world in which 50 mpg is achievable in a highly functional vehicle. It just doesn't compute because they've gone so long without it they cannot believe it's possible. This is probably how people with horses looked at "motorcars" when they first came along. Didn't trust them, didn't understand them, new-fangled nonsense, gonna stick here with my horse, he ain't never let me down.

 

Like said before, I was bit surprised when a nice lady at Toastmasters told how her 'friend' said that hybrid batteries are made from toxic materials harversted in Africa or some place like that and that she wouldn't buy a Prius or similar car. We're not talking about 'dumb' lady here, she will likely be the club president next year. Damn good speaker too.

So much misinformation out there. Far as Lithium harvesting goes, I understand it can leave some nasty water after it's been 'processed', but surely the process can be made better. I've seen a video about Lithium harvesting in the Andes in Bolivia. (Geology website).

 

Well now we know why gm's hybrids are both overpriced and shite, they spent all their R&D money on dissing the prius instead....

 

Yes, that money and effort would have been better directed to prevent their bankruptcy

 

This morning's Drive section of paper -

"Trucks rise, hybrids fall in ranking of 2010 top sellers"

"Los Angeles - Trucks were hot and hybrids not..... hybrids were off 6 % from 2009 .... F150 ... was bestselling vehicle in America in 2010.... 38% increase from 2009 ... "

America's top 10 -

3 full size pickups (F150 from 20 MPG combined V6 to 14 MPG 6.2L 4x4)
6 midsize sedans
(CR-V might be the other)

I think the results will be far different for 2011 .... hybrid sales up

 

LOL. People's attention spans are so bad. Crude prices went up in 2010 and net employment down from a year earlier but hey the gov said the recession is over so forget he negativity check out this new F150!

 

You can get that new eco-boost F150 for cheap. And it gets great mileage I think 16/22. with more power than the old v8. On the other hand I have seen two hybrid commercials while watching basketball, the lexus ct200 and the infiniti M.

 

Hey wait a minute ... I bought more oil company stock because of these reports. I figured if people are really this shortsighted, I gotta make some money. Petrobas rules .....!

 

Don't know about the output numbers from the engine, but the ecoboost has the same payload and tow ratings as the 6l v8, which might get 18mpg at best.

 

If Prius sales for 2011 remain in proportion with last year it'll be a record year. Since the last big rush on the Prius came in 2007 and 2008, I'd be interested to know how many buyers are updating and how many are new.

There's more possible expansion of the hybrid market to come with the Sonata Hybrid and the Prius v.

 

I'm not dissing the truck at all its big, heavy, and fast. The turbo 6 has 365 hp and is tuned for low end torque. But on topic, it is the best selling vehicle. Many don't need the truck, and could get by with a much more fuel efficient car. But in the interest of this discussion, think of how much fuel would be saved if ford had a hybrid F150 and 10% bought it. I know the silvarado is hybridized, but I think ford could do a much better job. Even if they just is they just did it for electronic 4wd it would save a lot of gas.