IMHO Chrysler is totally missing the boat with their new hybrid. Big deal, it gets 20 mpg. A minivan will do almost the same thing (except tow heavy) and will get 20 mpg without hybrid technology. If Chrysler wanted to hit a home run, they would have built a Neon hybrid (instead of scrapping it). If they could have made it get 50 mpg and keep it under $20K they could sell a million a year. Which hybrid does Toyota sell more of, the Highlander or the Prius? Of course, it's the Prius by a wide margin. In July Toyota sold over ten times as many Priuses as it did Highlander hybrids (14,785 vs. 1,371). These numbers show that consumers don't want SUVs that get 20 mpg, they want something that gets 40-50 mpg. With gas at $4 a gallon, 20 mpg is nothing to brag about.
1998 Gulfstream Ultra B/H Ford E450 V10
2005 Chevy 2500HD 6.0 w/ Maxidump insert
6x12 Interstate enclosed trailer
7x16 Bulldog flatbed hauling a 2006 Kioti CK20 TLB
2003 Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer
1998 Saturn SL2 toad
I'm positive that those other models will get their hybrid versions soon. isn't Nissan going to build Dodge the econo-car in the near future anyways? Maybe that will be there little hybrid. Vans are sure to be next though.
2008 Cougar 310SRX 5th Wheel
2005 Dodge Ram 2500 QC 4x4 CTD
2008 Nissan Armada LE
While I agree a minivan may not be too cool, but by a wide margin they are a much more practical vehicle than any SUV or crossover vehicle. Only one area where a full frame SUV is better at is towing, and only a small segment of owners ever tow anything. My wife's new Honda Odyssey with the 3.5 V6 that can switch from 6 to 4 to 3 cylinders is already returning 26+MPG and this with only 250 miles on the van. The Odyssey has more interior room, greater weight carrying capacity than most SUVs and gets much better mileage, and rides much better. Only wish Honda would offer their excellant 2.2ltr turbodiesel here in the states.
Capt Skup
AD-1(AW)USN Ret.
Wonderful Wife, 3 beautiful Daughters
"Never get in a battle of wits with an unarmed man"
hockeyfreak wrote: " The Aspen and Durango consistently held at 18 to 20 mpg,"
So what?!?!
Our Excursion gets 18-20 on Diesel....
Isn't diesel about a buck a gallon more?
Not anymore. My big ole goat gets 20-21 on the highway and my little TDI Beetle gets @ 50mpg. Why not come out with a diesel hybrid that'll turn some serious mpg's and leave the SUV's the way they are. Seriously, how long would it take to make up the price difference of +10K hybrid optioned Tahoe when considering 4-5 mpgs? I bet it would take longer than you think.
Sometimes as I put my foot through the throttle of my D/A and feel the thrum of its battleship moving power, I remember a girlfriend back in the early 80's. No, not for that reason...
She had a '76, '77 VW diesel rabbit, 1500cc, maybe 55 hp - but major MPGs - 45+ highway back then.
Gee, a little engineering over the years and a 2006 version should get around 65 mpg!
So who needs a 'hybrid'?? But I guess we went the wrong way with diesel tech...
TxCoastCamper wrote: Sometimes as I put my foot through the throttle of my D/A and feel the thrum of its battleship moving power, I remember a girlfriend back in the early 80's. No, not for that reason...
She had a '76, '77 VW diesel rabbit, 1500cc, maybe 55 hp - but major MPGs - 45+ highway back then.
Gee, a little engineering over the years and a 2006 version should get around 65 mpg!
So who needs a 'hybrid'?? But I guess we went the wrong way with diesel tech...
And the beautiful thing about these diesels...at least mine, is they will run on almost anything. So who needs those stinkin batteries, just give me a diesel.
Capt Skup wrote: ... My wife's new Honda Odyssey with the 3.5 V6 that can switch from 6 to 4 to 3 cylinders is already returning 26+MPG and this with only 250 miles on the van.
Wow, my 2001 Chevrolet Venture (3.4 V6 with 4A) driven by a 18 year old is averaging 25 mpg (and it has 99k miles). GM should have never dropped the minivan.
Dad of Four Girls
Wife
2001 Yukon XL (8.1L, 4.10)
2002 Dutchmen 31BH4DSL
I really enjoy these hybrid threads, and I must add my two cents, as I usually do.
The beauty of all these hybrid systems is that they RECAPTURE energy that would be LOST.
Two mode, six mode, gas, diesel or trash-powered, it doesn't matter. The main point is that we can now use batteries and electric motors to get back and use some of that energy. The price, weight and overall technology will only get better from here.
In the "old" days, it was just wasted away. Stop light ahead just turned on you, all the inertia gone. Crest the hill, we use to coast down the other side while wasting gas to keep the engine idling. Now, hybrid users coast and recharge and have extra energy to get up the next hill.
I guess the original motor car buyers were guinea pigs, too. That has worked out well for us.
As battery and drive train research progresses, we will see a day when every vehicle has a system to recapture wasted energy. Probably will be a hybrid system similar to those in use today --the same systems that many are calling green gimmicks. Call them gimmicks or status symbols --I disagree. Some are just at the tip of the spear of future technology.
If you are bragging on your 20 MPG diesel puller. Some day, that rig will use hybrid technology to get 25. That will come when the technology and price progress to a point when the system is just part of the vehicle like power steering or fuel injection are part of most vehicles now.
Kudos to Dodge for getting with the program.
Chuck, Heidi, Jessica, Nicholas & Tan Puppy
2008 3/4-ton Yukon XL, Flagstaff 831BHSS
Equalizer Hitch and Prodigy
Offline
A minivan will do almost the same thing (except tow heavy) and will get 20 mpg without hybrid technology. If Chrysler wanted to hit a home run, they would have built a Neon hybrid (instead of scrapping it). If they could have made it get 50 mpg and keep it under $20K they could sell a million a year. Which hybrid does Toyota sell more of, the Highlander or the Prius? Of course, it's the Prius by a wide margin. In July Toyota sold over ten times as many Priuses as it did Highlander hybrids (14,785 vs. 1,371). These numbers show that consumers don't want SUVs that get 20 mpg, they want something that gets 40-50 mpg. With gas at $4 a gallon, 20 mpg is nothing to brag about.
