My wife ended up with some broken ribs, when all I had was a few bruises. I’m sure that if we had been driving a more politically-correct vehicle, we could have been seriously injured or killed. So I went right ahead and bought another Chevy Express.

No amount of fuel savings is worth getting severely injured or killed.

On another note, http://www.fueleconomy.gov is a good source for fuel economy ratings too.

The Highlander is built on a car platform, not a truck platform. It weighs 3900 lbs. (Camry weighs 3300). Highlander pulls .76 Gs around skidpad (handling test, equal to Camry). Goes through slalom at 58 mph (handling test, Camry 61 mph). 60-0 brake test in 127 feet (Camry 134 feet). It also seats 7 and carries 95 cubic feet of cargo (Camry seats 5 and carries 15 cubic feet). The Camry would use about $500 less in gas per year based on the estimates Trent provided (assuming V6 Camry, which would be a good idea with the weight of 5 people and cargo). Also, the safety ratings are very similar, and the standard antiskid system eliminates a huge percentage of rollovers.

If it handles as well, brakes better, carries more people and stuff, and still manages decent gas mileage, the Highlander beats the Camry hands down in my book.

SUVs are more dangerous than cars for several reasons. 1) They are built on truck frames and are considered trucks, and are not subject to the same safety standards that passenger vehicles are. 2) Stopping and maneuvering a 6,000 pound truck is not nearly as good as for a car weighing half as much (avoiding collisions in the first place is a big part of safety). 3) The higher center of gravity of SUVs leads to more rollovers (at least twice as many), a situation which causes many more injuries/fatalities. 4) People take more risks when they think they are in a “safer” vehicle, like an SUV. This is called risk homeostasis. More risky maneuvers and/or speeding equals more collisions.

When I see SUVs speeding along an icy highway in the winter, I think to myself “the laws of physics still apply.” Just because you have 4-wheel drive or weigh more than most cars doesn’t mean you can stop the vehicle any faster or will be safer driving into a jersey wall when you lose control.

If you knew ahead of time that you would burn an equal number of gallons at 17 and 23 MPG, then you could indeed average the two figures, but this does not hold true with an equal number of miles. You can average the two figures for equal mileage IF they are expressed in Gallons Per Mile (average the fractions 1/17 and 1/23). Or, just calculate the number of gallons used separately for each MPG. In the example, calculating it this way would show almost $750 additional gasoline expense over the 10-year period.

(Figures rounded)
6500 miles at 17 MPG uses 382.35 gallons
6500 miles at 23 MPG uses 282.60 gallons
For a total of 664.95 gallons.

13000 miles at 20 MPG uses 650 gallons.
The difference of 14.95 gallons per year is 149.5 gallons over 10 years, or close to $750 at $5 per gallon.

The error is much smaller for the hybrid calculations. ($37 gasoline expense beyond that which was calculated). So the real difference between the gasoline costs of the two vehicles increases by just a touch over $711 to about $8211.

Also, repairing a hybrid is a whole new ballgame, and readers who save money by doing their own work on a regular car will face potentially fatal risks with the hybrids. If you do choose to work on it at home, expensive protective equipment will also be needed to be purchased and it is ESSENTIAL to get the proper training in how to do it safely. http://www.asashop.org/autoinc/june2006/collision.htm

There is also significant risk to first responders on the scene of a severe collision. If those first responders have had the proper training and have the proper safety equipment, all is well. If, on the other hand, a well-meaning Good Samaritan on the scene tries to help, that could turn fatal to the Good Samaritan and/or the folks s/he is trying to help. http://editorial.autos.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=435450

My point about driving habits is that if you were to use the same tactics in any vehicle, hybrid or otherwise, you would see an improvement in gas mileage. This is true of even the largest SUVs–I can easily get 20 mpg+ out of my V8 Chevy Tahoe that is rated at 18 if I consciously change my driving habits.

So although my mileage is slightly better than what the EPA estimates, it is better than what you think the mileage is.

The Escape Hybrid, according to Ford, is rated at 29/27, not 35/33. If your mileage is that much better due to your driving habits, you would see the same increase in any vehicle, not just the one you happen to be driving currently.

a) property tax increase for more expensive car (not every state or locality has this)
b) opportunity cost of the use of the extra money

To judge the opportunity cost by potential economic reward, consider what the money could have earned with a conservative investment.

To judge the opportunity cost by energy cost savings, a comparison is needed with other energy-related investments. For example, it is silly to spend so much extra for a hybrid if you still have a house full of incandescent lights or if you’re heating your attic in the winter due to inadequate insulation.

Our common “sense” of energy and money needs to be developed far past the level of a simple gas-price/gas-mileage/miles-driven/sales-price equation.

I’ve actually found that it’s a rarity when our whole family goes anywhere together now, so we are doing OK with a compact wagon and a minivan, ourselves. I wouldn’t hinge your new car purchase on having to fit all three children if you already have a vehicle that can do that.

Also, from personal experience having owned both, if you are looking for a family hauler, the minivan outshines the SUV in pretty much every category — fuel mileage, comfort, purchase price, value, etc. We bought the AWD Sienna since we occasionally have to deal with snowy roads, and it’s even rated to tow 3500 lbs!

I’m guessing that your situation regarding two vehicles is more complicated than you stated above.

I can’t see that one child falling sick while your wife is at work justifies the expense of a second vehicle. I don’t know your situation exactly but I’m guessing that public transport is not accessible. Could you use taxis? Does this situation happen a lot? Thousands of dollars for piece of mind seems excessive.

Best Wishes
Karen

We chose the 2006 Pilot (wider backseat and 3rd row seating for the extra child seat), and had a fantastic experience purchasing a former rental vehicle through Enterprise rental return. I have always hated buying cars, not that I do it often, but knowing the price (we got a low-mileage vehicle in excellent shape with a clean vin report at $1000 under Bluebook). I’ll buy the next car the same way I think (hopefully in 14 years).
thanks, Laura

I see that you feel you need to have a car because of child-care issues, but as the Other Trent mentioned, are there taxis available? If you only need a car ‘just in case’, and can manage all the other types of trips (groceries and library) by waiting til your wife’s car is available, then if there’s a taxi option this might save a considerable amount of money.

That said, I did without a car for years when my husband worked away Mon-Fri and we only had one car. It’s sooo nice now that he’s working locally (bicycles to work) and since I work from home, the car just sits in the driveway. It is nice to have a car there if we need it. But if it started costing a lot more to keep, we would consider going car-free and renting a car as needed or just taking taxis. I realize that you might not be able to get taxis where you live, and that even a little shop to buy milk might not be within walking distance, though, which makes it tough to be without a car for 9-10 hours a day.

1) Differing maintenance costs – battery packs are very expensive to replace if they go bad, though their reliability seems to be somewhat environmentally related: extreme climates kill batteries.

2) “Voting with your money” – This matters less since you’re not buying new, but I think it’s important to use the leverage of one’s pocketbook to try and point producers in the right direction. Buying a hybrid or other fuel efficient car says to them “More of this please”.

3) Resale value – You say you’ll drive it into the ground, so maybe this doesn’t matter, but it might if you end up needing to sell it or trade it in at a later date.

4) Insurance – Don’t overlook the difference in insurance premiums for car-based vs truck-based vehicles and especially for some hybrids and small cars that get classed as “sports cars” for some odd reason. This can be many, many thousands of dollars of your “ownership lifetime” of the vehicle.