DETROIT - Some hybrid cars will pay for the premium added to their sticker prices because of high gas prices and tax credits from the US government on the more fuel efficient vehicles, a US study revealed today.
Hybrid cars and trucks, which get improved mileage in city driving by running on a combination of gas and electric power, cost between US$1,200 and US$7,000 more than traditional versions of the same vehicles, according to auto website www.Edmunds.com.
But a fuel economy study by Edmunds.com showed that the scales were starting to tip in favor of hybrids. "High gas prices and generous tax credits now offset the high sales prices of some hybrids, assuming owners keep their hybrids for a few years," said Alex Rosten, an analyst with Edmunds.com.
The shift is significant because analysts have said that higher sticker prices were constraining hybrid sales.
Hybrids currently account for 1 per cent of new car sales in the United States. But Japan's Toyota Motor Corp. <7203.T>, the hybrid market leader, sees its annual hybrid sales topping 1 million units soon after 2010.
