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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]The longer you own the hybrid, the more sense it makes.  If you are the type that likes to replace your car every 5-9 years, then you get it if you want it, not for the savings.  If you are the type to drive it into the ground and drive it until it can't be driven, then a hybrid makes more sense.

I had a Ford Escape Hybrid from 2006-2019.  The hybrid cost about $9K more than the non-hybrid version (in 2006).  I immediately got a $2300 tax credit because Ford still had tax credits available back then.  I was driving about 16K-18K miles per year and was saving around $3K on gas because I was getting around 4mpg better gas mileage.  So after 2.5 years, I had paid off the cost difference in gas savings.  After that the $3K annual cost savings was all money saved.

In 2019, I bought a Toyota Highlander hybrid.  It cost about $14K more than the non-hybrid model of the same.  No tax savings anymore.  I drive less now (about 14K-16K per year).  I get about 3mpg better with the hybrid over the non-hybrid.  But with the slightly higher gas prices now, I still save about $3K per year.  So, in just under 5 years (e.g. earlier this year), I had paid off the cost difference of the vehicle in cost savings on gas.  I am probably going to be keeping the car around another 9-10 years.  So, at this point, all of the gas savings is money in my pocket.

We love our hybrids.  Based on talks with friends, my next car is likely to be a plug-in hybrid.  By that time, the kids will be grown and can probably downsize back to a small SUV (RAV4) or sedan. [/quote]

Thanks, this is helpful. Do you find the Highlander hard to park (city
, parallel, tight parking lots, etc.)?[/quote]

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