Is a hybrid worth it?

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Jonnycat26 @ Jun 21 2006, 08:29 AM) [snapback]274581[/snapback]</div>

Agree with you there.
Also, I don't think there really is that much to be gained by contacting the writer directly, unless that makes you feel better.
I have seen this same column written ad nasuem in a number of newspapers (including USA Today). I write a column for my local paper, and I know how this goes. It's hard to think of ideas on your own, so what these newly- appointed "experts" on hybrids are doing is just repeating the arguments that they have read elsewhere, until it becomes an echo chamber in the media.
What I would suggest is that people write letters to the editor of the newspapers in which these articles apppear. Be respectful in tone, don't attack the writer of the article personally (no matter how much of an idiot he may appear ), but correct the misconceptions and ommisions. You want to persuade, not antagonize. If you can get a discussion going in a public forum, and get a few more people to think about hybrids, you are doing something constructive.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Somechic @ Jun 21 2006, 09:19 AM) [snapback]274603[/snapback]</div>

Not really- I write a column for a local paper and my email address is at the end of the column so that readers can send me their "hate mail" (I don't get nearly as much of it from that as I do on PriusChat!) Not my phone number though, although people find it anyway.

 

I can tell you, as a person with a 4-year journalism degree, writers know that feedback is part of the process. That's why the news organizations post that contact information. You can get fan mail or hate mail - authors tend not to give hate mail any serious consideration and just hit the delete key. If you come across as genuinely concerned about the article and seem to be someone who really wants to help the reporter do a good job (this is what he or she does every day of their life), they will be more apt to consider your suggestions/arguments. They may be idiots that don't know what they're doing, but in their minds, this is their profession and (as others have suggested) constructive criticism will yield more results than a letter that begins with, "Dear Ignorant Moron..."

Don't expect them to go back and change the original online article, though. The workflow of a legitimate news organization usually dictates that once the story is published, it's on to the next story. At most, you might get a correction blurb, but they certainly won't rewrite the story for you.

 

The one thing that really bothers me about articles like this, is that they always seem to think that they have to get some "expert" who works for an automobile rag or someone who calls themselves The Car Coach. That's just plain stupid. If I were writing such an article and knew nothing about hybrids, I'd be stopping people who drive them and ask them about the mileage claims and whatnot. PriusChat is loaded with experts on the Prius, hybrids in general, EV, alternate fuels, et al. We know better than those goofy-a**ed experts quoted in the article and we'll always know more.

Another cost savings that I didn't see on this thread previously is that you only need to change the oil ever 5,000 miles instead of the 3,000 on a gas-only car. Granted, that's not a great deal of money but it does save some time as well. At 15,000 miles, my car only went through 3 oil changes and a gas-only car would have racked up 5. I love the fact that the mileage improves in traffic jams and traffic slow downs and the car won't burn gasoline when it doesn't need to. That saves even more. The EPA numbers are accurate. Currently, I'm getting 60 mpg with my normal mix of freeway and city driving.

 

I am tired of hearing that highway drivers won't benefit because the Prius is more efficient in city driving. What other car gets anywhere near 51MPG on the highway? I commute a little over 100 miles a day, most of which I am cruising at 55-75, and I have a 1 year average of 50 MPG. My previous car, a 10 year old Maxima (which easily sat 5 SalsaWonder), averaged about 30 MPG of premium unleaded. Do the math at current gas prices and I save $1200 a year. Factor in whatever value you want for the higher price paid for the Prius, and I am still breaking even in 3-5 years.

Toss in all of the commuter friendly features in a Prius that are hard to find on any car less then $30k (BT Hands free, Nav, HID lights, integrated XM, VSC) AND HOV lane access, and the Prius is a no brainer for anyone with a long commute.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cc_prius @ Jun 22 2006, 05:24 AM) [snapback]275157[/snapback]</div>

I drove to Chicago recently and mileage started to decline after around one hundred miles. I started with a somewhat uncharacteristically low 52 mpg and by the time we got to Chicago, it had gone down to 49. I do a lot of freeway driving in the Detroit area but it's mixed with city driving and that's why my mileage is now around 60 but on the freeway for hundreds of miles, the mileage does go down a little; probably due to having to run the gasoline engine constantly. I didn't resort to pulse and glide so perhaps people who do that will see better mileage than I got. <shrug>

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cc_prius @ Jun 22 2006, 05:24 AM) [snapback]275157[/snapback]</div>

I had a 2000 Maxima; a great car, and it did seat 5. Note- the current version of the Maxima is available in two configurations- one with a center console and two bucket seats in the rear (that one seats 4).

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cc_prius @ Jun 22 2006, 02:24 AM) [snapback]275157[/snapback]</div>

Just the other day I sent an email to Click and Clack, on the subject of city/hwy mpg. They too, assert not much fuel savings on the highway. My hwy mpg is higher than city, and surely I'm not the only one.

I did not start the letter with "Dear Ignorant Morons", even though they seem to prefer that salutation.