said by rantou :

So they will use gas guzzling Hummers for advertising, but they want to be green otherwise? Sounds like the pot called the kettle black!

said by MadMANN :

They want to save money on gas. Anything that will cut costs is positive for them and much needed.

said by pnh102 :

According to the article, Verizon had their vans equipped with after-market hybrid technology. This process adds significantly more cost to the vehicles (assuming they were purchased new). It is unlikely they will recoup any savings from gasoline purchases using this approach.

said by MadMANN :

As a field tech, I put about $100-125 in my tank every week. In a year, that's $5200. In five years (the average life of a field vehicle, sometimes more), that would be $26,000. So you are telling me that a hybrid truck would cost close to $26,000 more than a normal truck?

The savings are obvious.

said by pnh102 :

What is not being told here is how much Verizon spent on each vehicle to have it converted. Given how much more hybrid cars cost than non-hybrid cars, it is not reasonable to assume that the cost of converting each vehicle for hybrid use could be that high. For example, compare the cost of a 2007 Honda Civic Hybrid Sedan to a non-hybrid Honda Civic Sedan. The hybrid costs about $7500 more than the non-hybrid (assuming the lowest MSRPs are used).

Another factor is that hybrid cars realize much of their gas savings from the fact that they are small. Compare the 4 cylinder Saturn VUE SUV to its non-hybrid counterpart. The former gets 27-32 MPG and the latter gets 22-27 MPG. That isn't exactly a stellar difference.

I am also assuming that a field truck gets more abuse than a standard car, so there might also be a battery replacement needed (especially since older batteries lose their ability to retain charge). There's another ding in the potential savings.

said by pkarlos_76 :

Quoted from »www.hybridcars.com/faq.html

"How often do hybrid batteries need replacing? Is replacement expensive and disposal an environmental problem?"

Answer:
"The hybrid battery packs are designed to last for the lifetime of the vehicle, somewhere between 150,000 and 200,000 miles, probably a whole lot longer. The warranty covers the batteries for between eight and ten years, depending on the car maker.

said by MadMANN :

As a field tech, I put about $100-125 in my tank every week. In a year, that's $5200. In five years (the average life of a field vehicle, sometimes more), that would be $26,000. So you are telling me that a hybrid truck would cost close to $26,000 more than a normal truck?

The savings are obvious.

said by jaa :

No, I am telling you that the 10 to 20% fuel savings ($5,000 over 5 years in your example) does not cover the cost of the conversion.

said by cmaenginsb :

You can't compare a car built in 2000 with one built in 2007. A 2007 Camry gets 24/34 vs 40/38 for the hybrid. Making it 11% savings on the highway and 40% in the city. Assuming you had an even mix of driving you get a 26% average savings.

said by cmaenginsb :

You can't compare a car built in 2000 with one built in 2007. A 2007 Camry gets 24/34 vs 40/38 for the hybrid. Making it 11% savings on the highway and 40% in the city. Assuming you had an even mix of driving you get a 26% average savings.

said by CConverse :

You know what? If they're saving $$$, GREAT!!! Maybe it will send the message to other businesses that they can take steps to become environmentally responsible without cutting into profits, if not potentially increasing them after the initial investment.

said by pnh102 :

Hybrid vehicles generally cost so much more than gasoline powered equivalents that any savings from gas use is minimal at best.

said by Thaler :

I'd personally rather not fund that whole region as much as possible.

said by RIRWIN1983 :

What we realy needto do in the short term, is reduce the cost of hybrids.

said by pnh102 :

I agree completely... I just think that hybrids are not the best solution to that problem. I would suggest opening up more US territory to oil production, opening more refineries in the USA, pushing for significantly higher fuel economy standards for all vehicles, and possibly funding a "no holds barred" effort to develop an alternative fuel that uses raw materials that are found or manufactured in abundance in the USA.