I don't know if I have a breaking point on the price. I have done a few things different such as started brewing my own biodiesel out of WVO, I get for free. And when I need to go to the big city to get a part or something I now take the wife and do all our shopping all in one trip.
And for the hybrids, well, 50mpg out of a vehicle that costs that much, and won't last and has no resale value after about 5 yrs I don't think so. My folks bought a VW jetta diesel, and consistantly get 55mpg and mom was complaining about it dropped to 54 until they had it fixed (had a problem with the egr I believe), that vehicle costs a lot less than a hybrid, gets better fuel economy, has better resale value at 5 yrs, and will outlast the hybrids 3 to 1. Not that the hybrids don't have a future and hopefully someday they might actually get the technology right, but they haven't yet.

 

I don't think the Prius has been around more than 2 or 3 years...hard to tell what the 5 year resale will be at this point.

As for VW's...I've heard they have their own issues, i.e. electrical gremlins...

I'm not sure what the answer is...

I know that Honda Insight...the first (IIRC) real Hybrid available to the public is rated between 65 and 70 mpg HIGHWAY!!! I believe you can get into one of those for around $20k. Of course it is a 2-seater, I believe...but 70mpg???!!!! What a miser!!!

Scott

 

My thinking exactly, also, how many Prius' do you see in a junk yard? Do you know anyone that had problems selling one, or had one with a lot of issues? Hondas hybrid has been around a little longer than the Prius, but the usefulness wasnt there, not to mention that the car was ugly.

 

My brother-in-law has had an Aspire for years now, and the little car just keeps on giving him good service ..... a good little commuter.
Dono

 

I think I'll probably keep it...if gas keeps climbing (and most believe it will), it will benefit me greatly to slow down and maximize my mileage with it. Right now I'm commuting in a 99 Taurus wagon (24V Duratec 3.0) that has been AWESOME...decent mileage and VERY dependable/reliable, not to mention EXCELLENT acceleration when you need it. It now has 128k trouble-free miles on it.

The Aspire's only downside is its inability to get up to speed quickly. I've owned 5 Festivas (same drivetrain as Aspire just not as heavy) and loved them all...the last one I blew a head gasket at 166k miles, at the "work end" of my 600 mile commute and didn't have the facilities to tear down and rebuild it, so I donated it. Had it happened near home, I'd have towed it and rebuilt it in my garage and probably still be driving it. I paid $600 for it and got 54k trouble-free miles for my money. Actually, another motorist lost his rear bike rack and mountain bike while passing me near Huntington W. VA...did $1600 damage to the Festiva...the insurance company totaled it, let me keep it for $200 and cut me a check for $1200, and I kept driving it until the head gasket blew...so in all actuality, I didn't have a dime in it, even in upkeep! Not often I come out ahead like that!

Scott

 

I cracked $100 the last time I filled up the KR.

 

$180.00 to fill the '90 F250, lasts about 7 days, just bought a '79 PSD W/5 speed hoping it will get a little better mileage.

 

Probably the smartest thing anyone can do. I was really suprised myself how slowing down just a little bit made my mileage jump. 28 mpg out of my Ranger isn't out of the question as long as I don't get tied up in too much traffic.

My breaking point is probably around $4/gallon. I already made some changes when gas spiked post Katrina, like combining trips and keeping closer tabs on the air pressure in the tires, etc. I have cut back a little on my railfanning activities and usually just don't go out on a whim much anymore...of course alot of that is due to working on my car/house and spending time with the girlfriend too.

 

When I still had my Civic Hybrid, I typically saw around 50mpg combined city/highway. I was probably driving about 65/35 highway to city.

Most folks that have reported that Hybrids don't do too well on highway mileage usually (from the reports and experiences I've shared with other owners) were doing about 75-80 mph all the time. I slowed to 65-70 and typically never had a hard time getting good mileage. Driving habits have a TON to do with what kind of mileage you get, hybrid or not.

 

My breaking point was 62.5 L

It's now $1.08 L.

I have tried to reduce my driving by 75%
I drive 90 Kph or 55 mph on the hwy and have increased my fuel economy to 25.3 mph in the Lincoln.

Problem is I get passed by everyone else doing 130 kph or more.

It seems people around here don't care that it is so much more expensive.

 

hehe... I think you might need to retake maths101 Rob (5 x 25 is 125), I guess you mean you usually only fill up 20gal in your 25... correct?

Anyways, I don't really have a breaking point... I have managed to almost wein myself off gas/diesel entirely (and not due to the price rise)
I haven't filled my Ranger up in the last 6 weeks (my cousin is using it at the moment anyway). My father has my ute, and is using it as his daily driver. My Mini hasn't left the garage due to an imbalance in the left CV.
The weather is starting to get colder, so riding my 83 Beemer K1200 is becoming a less enjoyable proposistion.

I have been out on my pushbike riding around the city, most of the time.
When I haven't been, I have had my cousins car (the one who has my Ranger while she is moving), its a *shudders* Honda Jazz... Pig ugly to look at, but the darn thing has way more front and rear passenger room as my Ranger, goes pretty well for an econo box (0-60 in mid 8's), and gets better mileage than my neighbours Prius!!! (hasn't dropped below 50 yet)
I have to say, the more and more time I spend with the car, the more I am impressed with it.

 

Negative, my Roo ranching friend.

Although I will admit my syntax in post #44 was off a bit, you left out a couple of very important words when you quoted me...
BTW, although my two teenage Sons would say otherwise, I actually managed to fumbled my way through Calculus.......go figure, eh?

 

Quote: milestone of hitting over $100.00

~~~~~~~~~~~~

and here I was going to say..the quote was: milestone of hitting over $100.00

Not saying it was exactly $100.00

 

I'd have to say the breaking point is getting close. Yesterday, I filled up for $74, at 109.9/liter. Drove into town do do some stuff with my mom, drove home, passed the same gas station, and it was 103.9. I then had to drive into town again today for an appointment. Did they call me to tell me the appointment was cancelled? Heck no. Total waste of a trip, gas, and time.

But, I have changed my driving habits. I made the same trip a couple weeks ago, driving like I did, and watched the gauge drop. Yesterday, I stuck to the slow lane, driving like a person with an empty gas tank trying to make it to a gas station. I tell ya, I went about double what I normally would have on the same amount of fuel. But today just ticked me off. I could have stayed home and not burned anything.