Below, you can read and understand the common hybrid car myths.

Hybrid cars are the same as electric cars

This is not true because hybrid cars are fuel-powered for the most part. They have what are called battery assists. The assist is powered by a nickel-metal hydride battery pack that is rechargeable.

You are guaranteed to save money with a hybrid car

If you are doing city driving, you may save gas and you may not. The same goes for highway driving. There are just many different factors. It has been said that if everyone bought hybrid cars, the gas consumption would decrease by only 10%. That’s not a very big difference.

A hybrid cars battery can run out

A hybrid car’s battery should not run out while you are driving it. The engine in a hybrid car does not idle when stopped (at a red light for instance.) What does it do instead? It recharges its battery. So there’s no need to worry about a hybrid car stopping you.

The hybrid cars rechargeable battery only lasts for 2 years

A hybrid car certainly would not be worth purchasing if this was the case. A hybrid car’s rechargeable batteries usually come with an eight-year warranty.

If I run out of gas, I can keep driving on the hybrid car battery

Keep in mind, a hybrid car’s battery is an assist. That means that hybrid car’s still run on fuel. After you run out of gas, the battery may keep the car running for just a little while. However, the car will stop very soon.

Hybrid cars will soon put conventional car sellers out of business

This probably won’t happen anytime soon. The reason for the delay has to do with the how much a hybrid cars. Many people simply can’t afford one. Also, people just aren’t too sure whether they will really save money on hybrid cars. Therefore, they are slow to join the rush of people who want a hybrid car.

Hybrid cars will only save you about 88 dollars a year

I did hear something on the news about this once, but it may not be true. If there’s something you really want though, and there’s a lot of smoke surrounding it, you simply have to start digging and do some of your own research.

There are many different models of hybrid cars, and many different manufacturers make them. This means that there may be many more variables involved than the ones discussed here. You can even try buying a used hybrid through a cash for clunker program. A hybrid car may help you, and it may not, but the final decision is up to you.

Here a some facts for you to look at in regards to the battery pack of new and used hybrid cars.

Let’s start off with the issue of the battery needing to be replaced. The battery packs of these cars do not need to be replaced. As a matter of fact the batteries are covered under the warranty for a time period that last between eight to ten years. If you want to know how long that is in mileage, the life span is 150,000 to 200,000 miles, but is expected to last longer than that.

Environmentalist have been making sure that the materials used in the batteries won’t harm the planet, so the vehicles use NiMH batteries. The NiMH batteries are fully recyclable, unlike the rechargeable nickel cadmium batteries.

The batteries of the hybrid cars have hundreds of cells. which usually means that there is a lot of complexity going on under the hood. Don’t worry, the warranty covers the battery, so there’s little to really worry about.

Research has shown that there have been a very low failure rate on the battery pack of these hybrids. Toyota has reported that some of the original Prius models have gone over 300,000 miles.

For those of you who watch the news reports that these batteries cost nearly $9,000 and say that it’s not worth the investment, I’m here to say that these batteries are built to last. If by the off chance the battery does fail, again it’s covered under the cars warranty. The Department of Energy looked into hybrid vehicles, but stopped its test when the capacity was “just like new” after 160,000 miles.

As time goes on and the technology evolves, the next generation of hybrid batteries will have more power, last longer and cost a whole lot less.

So when you start looking to buy eco friendly cars, take comfort to know that the batteries aren’t really an issue.

Myth #1
Hybrid cars are the same as electric cars

One has nothing to do with the other. Hybrid cars are fuel-powered for the most part. Hybrids have what is referred to as battery assisted. The assist is done with a nickel-metal batter pack that is rechargeable.

Myth #2
You are guaranteed to save money with a hybrid car
It doesn’t make a difference if you are doing city driving or you’re doing highway driving, you may or may not save gas. There are too many factors involved to really get a solid answer on that.

Myth #3
A hybrid cars battery can run out
The battery of a hybrid car does not run out while you’re driving it. Since the engine in a hybrid does not idle when stopped (for a red light or in heavy traffic). At those times the hybrid car recharges it’s battery. There is no need to worry about “running out”.

Myth #4
The hybrid cars rechargeable battery only lasts for 2 years
One of the most expensive part in a hybrid is the battery, so if that was the case, the hybrid car would not be worth purchasing. The Battery typically comes with a eight -ten year warranty.

Myth #5
If I run out of gas, I can keep driving on the hybrid car battery
As I stated in myth number one, the battery is an assist, which means the hybrid car still needs gas to run. If you do run out of gas, you might make it to the nearest gas station, but that’s about it.