There are only a few factors to consider when purchasing a hybrid vehicle over a standard and not so environmentally friendly counterpart. If these vehicles are so much better for the environment then why aren’t they standard among the vehicle industry? Take note that purchasing a vehicle to clean up emissions isn’t necessarily the same thing as purchasing a more fuel efficient vehicle that can provide investment return. More expensive vehicles are expected to have more power, more space, and more luxury; perhaps a combination of all three.

However, spending more on a hybrid vehicle doesn’t get you more fuel economy. Dumping loads of cash into a fully accommodated hybrid vehicle doesn’t get your more MPG but instead more bells and whistles. Ford, Honda, and Toyota, are the leaders in producing cheap hybrid cars that reduce emissions and use less gas. Hybrid vehicles currently come standard with a moderately heavier price tag than their non-hybrid counterparts. It is important to remember that the considerably large price tag should be considered an investment. Take into consideration how much money you spend each year on fuel. Will obtaining a hybrid vehicle with higher MPG reduce your yearly fuel costs therefore giving you a return on your investment? If so, are you willing to sacrifice luxury, horsepower, and space to purchase an inexpensive hybrid model?

There certainly are eco friendly cars with the aforementioned accommodations but if you are trying to save and earn money from your investment, these luxury hybrids simply do not provide the same fuel economy that the mini hybrids boast. For example, the boxy little Toyota Prius offers a combined city/highway 50 MPG while the Lexus LS 600h (which costs more than $100,000) can only grasp 20 MPG. The expensive luxury brand hybrids only reduce emissions certainly not lower fuel costs. Inexpensive compact hybrids like the Toyota Prius, an award winning super MPG model, offer exceedingly high highway and city MPG and a likeable package. Toyota has been offering great fuel efficient cars at moderately low prices since the introduction of the Corolla in the late seventies. Now Toyota continues to lead the numbers game in cost, fuel efficiency, and safety.

The Ford Fusion has considerably less fuel efficiency but can run on ethanol/gas mixtures and is manufactured largely from recycled materials. Honda also makes a couple of notable hybrids in the lower price range but often drivers complain about their inability to perform on the road. Perhaps the market will see less costly vehicles with increased performance and accommodation. There may be a bright future for electric cars but currently they don’t provide enough power, require extensive charging, and expensive maintenance.

Solar power, for instance, requires an initial investment but may potentially prompt the power company to send you a monthly check. An inexpensive hybrid car must be able to pay you back while at the same time keeping the environment cleaner. If you desire more immediate feedback then plan on purchasing a car like the Prius which can save you hundreds of dollars on your gas bill each year. But you may also find a compromising hybrid vehicle that offers more room and speed with slightly less efficiency. Remember, more money doesn’t buy you more MPG but asserting competition among automakers will help revolutionize the industry.

You ask yourself where is the car that gets the best mileage out there, better than the hybrids. You think to yourself that maybe the dealer is hiding it in the back of the showroom for those who can pay a little more. I mean this car must surely exist. Could it be that there’s a compact conventional car there that gets better mileage than the hybrids? A small conventional is definitely not more fuel-efficient than a hybrid car because no conventional car is.

Maybe it’s a car that doesn’t run on fuel at all. You’ve seen those you-tube videos showing you someone who has his car running on vegetable oil. You figure that the automakers can do that, so where is that car?

Maybe it’s an electric car that doesn’t use any fuel. You can’t even compare an electric car to a hybrid since one doesn’t even use fuel. So where is this car?

The answer to all the questions you may have on fuel-efficient comparisons is…there isn’t any other car out there in today’s market that can get better mileage than a hybrid car. This is why the hybrid is such a popular car. If you look at the 2008 Toyota prius, you will see that it has a combined highway/city mileage of 46 miles to the gallon. All hybrid cars must get over the 40 miles per gallon mark

So after you looked high and low for any and all new discoveries out there that can compete with the hybrids, you can rest easy knowing that there isn’t one out there that can do it. So if you were afraid that after you purchased any new or used hybrid cars, that you would have found a better one, forget it. in this market, there is none that compare to the hybrids.

Don’t get me wrong though, in years to come there just might be a different type of vehicle that can beat the hybrids on mileage.