Hybrid Car Reviews - Doing Your Research Before Making A Purchase

Fuel prices have continued to rise consistently since 2005 and they have now reached historic high peaks. What was considered a car with a moderate fuel consumption a few years ago can now be seen as a thirsty model. Clients are not looking for powerful cars anymore. Instead, they are looking for smart cars, cars that will provide them with an optimum fuel consumption while providing similar power. Car manufacturers have seen this trend in customer behavior and they have begun to offer more and more hybrid models to the market. Of course this means more hybrid car reviews from the journalists at the motoring magazines as demand increases. Hybrids are beginning to be seen more and more on the streets nowadays as they offer a brand new technology that allows for significant fuel savings. Together with hybrids, car makers are also looking for other technologies that will offer an even better economy: cars powered by methane gas are already on the market and full electric cars are close to being produced.

Hybrid cars have several significant benefits compared to traditional cars. They have two types of engine: a gasoline or a diesel one and an electric motor. The gasoline engine is more powerful and it is used to drive the car outside of town and on highways. The electric engine combined with the batteries onboard are used to power the vehicle at slow speeds and across town. The hybrid helps you the most when driving across busy town centers and when idling on the highways, as only the electric motor is used and the car is virtually pollutant free. Most cars have the highest fuel consumption when driving in town (a large V-8 SUV can reach as low as 20 mpg around town) and hybrids are the solution for this problem. When the driver needs more power or goes beyond a certain speed (30 or 40 mph), the gasoline engine starts to deliver power. If you are using your hybrid car mostly around town, you will save significant amounts of money. This is especially useful considering that hybrid cars have slightly higher prices than gasoline cars. However, most car dealers will show you the benefits of the hybrid technology if you ask them and will show you several hybrid cars.

The Toyota Prius and the Honda Civic Hybrid are recommended if you use them around town. They are medium size cars that can carry up to five adults in complete comfort and safety. Their hybrid technology allows for a significant mileage that is unachievable by traditional gasoline powered cars. When they need more power, they will use the gasoline engine in combination with the electric one to offer you the best compromise between power and economy.

The Japanese carmakers were among the first to introduce hybrid cars on the market. Toyota, Lexus and Honda all have several hybrid models available and more to come. Reading about hybrid car reviews is recommended before you make your final decision of purchasing a new car as such a model can save you a lot of money. You will soon be able to buy hybrid SUVs as both American and Asian carmakers are finalizing their hybrid models and are preparing them for launch.