Hybrid/Car Purchase Advice

[waitforit]

Anyone own a Hybrid? If so, are you happy with your purchase? Also any pros/cons would be greatly appreciated. I need a more reliable auto, and finally have the financial means to purchase one. I'm looking at a range of options, but what intrigues me most is the 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid, probably slightly used IE-10-20k on it. I know it's not "new," but it is a hell of a lot newer than my current truck, 94 Explorer climbing toward 130K. I do live in the North East, but hardly ever use any of the truck features such as 4x4. The mileage and reliability of the Civic are intriguing to me. Still in the beginning stages of the car search. Again, any advice and insight will be much appreciated.

[Lathum]

http://www.operationsports.com/fofc/showthread.php?t=51378&highlight=hybrid

[Lathum]

btw- what exactly is IT you are waiting for?

[waitforit]

I don't know if I follow you there. If you are asking why is it that I am not running right out and purchasing the car tomorrow, I don't need the car this minute, and would like to make sure that I make the best decision for myself. This will be the first I will ever have purchased for a significant amount of money, I don't want to screw it up! Truth be told, I'm going to be very busy with work and school for the next few weeks, so probably won't be making any major decisions like this until the end of March at the absolute earliest.

[DaddyTorgo]

he's making fun of your name

[Lathum]

lol

:p

[waitforit]

The name stems from an inside joke of an old college drinking game.

[Swaggs]

Without doing an ounce of research on it, I would guess finding a used 2006 Hybrid would be a pretty tall order. The cost of a Hybrid is so expensive up front, that they don't really lend themselves to leasing or rental cars (where a lot of "new" used cars come from). You might get lucky and find someone who thinks they made a mistake with the purchase, I guess.

Depending on what type of driving you do, you might do just as well to pick up a regular Civic, as they do pretty well on mileage and are relatively affordable.

[stevew]

I just recently purchased a fully loaded '05 Chevy Malibu. While not a hybrid, it is easily the best thing I've owned. Great mileage (I'm getting 30/37) and it just clipped over 25k miles. Got it for under 12k due to a family friend, but I'd gladly purchase it full price, new after my experience with it.

I've not looked into it recently, but I read some strong reservations about hybrids.

How are you getting that much mpg with your Malibu. I have the 06 version, and I'm topping 24mpg max. Mine is the 6 cylinder model, which would explain some of the mileage.

[hoopsguy]

Have a 2005 Civic Hybrid with a little over 50k on it. The mileage is listed at 48/48 but I've gotten closer to 40 without modifying my driving habits to try and squeeze out extra mileage. Overall, I like fewer trips to the pump but still wish I got a little better performance out of the car. I'm hardly an adrenaline fiend at this point in my life, but the acceleration is particularly sluggish in the 40-70 range - basically the range you want to go when passing someone in traffic.

I'm hoping to get another four years out of it and then see if there are better options for mileage/performance available for the next vehicle. I'm hopeful there will be with more hybrids showing up over the last couple of years.

Very, very little maintenance required for the car up to this point. And the warranty for the fuel cells is 120,000 miles, which may help alleviate concerns about a hybrid vs. non-hybrid car.

[Toddzilla]

Just bought a 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid. It's basically a Lexus with a hybrid engine and a Toyota badge. Drives like a dream, comfortable and quiet.

[waitforit]

Did some more research, I found three used 06 Civic Hybrids within 25 miles of my house of Long Island. They all have 10-20K on them, and are priced around 20 thousand. I may take a few trips to check them out. Like I said, the next month and truth be told the next 2 and a half months are the busiest of the year for me. I'm a full time grad student, and full time graduate assistant coach, and we are just now entering in to the main portion of our schedule. I may end up waiting until the season and semester are over before making the purchase.

[stevew]

Without doing an ounce of research on it, I would guess finding a used 2006 Hybrid would be a pretty tall order. The cost of a Hybrid is so expensive up front, that they don't really lend themselves to leasing or rental cars (where a lot of "new" used cars come from). You might get lucky and find someone who thinks they made a mistake with the purchase, I guess.

Depending on what type of driving you do, you might do just as well to pick up a regular Civic, as they do pretty well on mileage and are relatively affordable.

This is what I would probably do. You can get a decked out NEW car with a favorable financing package for a lot less than you would pay for a used hybrid car. Unless you drive a ton, you're looking at 5-6 years before the cost would probably equal out, if not longer.

[st.cronin]

The name stems from ... wait for it ... an inside joke of an old college drinking game.

fixed