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Hybrid Cars Are Grabbing Attention in Pennsylvania March 2005LouAnn Guilles of Lewisberry has driven a Toyota Prius hybrid car for the past year, and she loves it.She bought the car at Harrisburg Toyota in Lower Paxton Twp., one of three Toyota dealers in the Harrisburg area that sell the Prius. Her gas mileage has ranged between 47 and 52 miles per gallon. A trip to Cape May, N.J., last summer used a half-tank of gasoline. "I really liked the look of it," said Guilles, who is a graphic designer for the state. "It was kind of futuris- tic. And I liked it for the gas mileage and the low emissions. It's good for the environment." Hybrid cars are selling well in central Pennsylvania, area dealers say, but most report they aren't seeing many people driven to showrooms just because of rising gas prices. Toyota and Honda are the two main sellers of hybrid vehicles, which use a battery to power the car during parts of a trip, saving gasoline and greatly increasing mileage. They usually cost $2,000 to $3,000 more than conventional models. Some of that is recoverable from a $2,000 federal tax deduction that is good on any qualifying car purchased in 2005, but the deduction drops to $600 in 2006. "I'd say we're doing OK, but we don't have people lining up at the doors," said Brandon Cave, sales manager at Ebersole Honda in Lebanon. "To justify the extra cost for the hybrid, you need to keep the car a long time to get the fuel savings." Cave said the Honda Civic hybrid, which has been available longer, is more in demand than the new Accord midsize hybrid. There is no waiting list, and Cave said he has a couple on the lot. The Civic has a rating of 47 mpg on the highway and 48 mpg in city driving. City ratings are higher on some hybrid models because the battery is used more in stop-and-go driving. Ford has one hybrid model so far, the Ford Escape SUV. "We do have them," said Ed Catalone, general sales manager at Hoffman Fordland in Lower Paxton Twp. "We haven't sold any yet. We have one in stock." The Ford Escape would be good for someone who does a lot of city driving, especially under 35 mph when the electric battery kicks in, he said. There is no waiting list, Catalone noted. Mike McMullen at Bobby Rahal Toyota near Mechanicsburg said there is a wait of about three months to get the popular Toyota Prius. That's a big improvement -- it used to be six to nine months. "They've doubled production," he said. Among people who look at the Prius, most are interested in either the hybrid technology or in the environmental benefits of the car, such as its lower emissions, McMullen said. The mileage is impressive, though: 52 mpg highway and 60 mpg city. Mark Sites, sales manager at Harrisburg Toyota, agreed on the customer mix. "I think it's a bit of both," he said. "Gas prices and it being more environmentally friendly. They want to be green." The wait for a Prius at Harrisburg Toyota is down to about two months for buyers who want specific colors or options. Sites said he has a couple of the cars on the lot. Brad Wright, Honda sales manager at the Faulkner dealership on Paxton Street in Harrisburg, isn't disappointed with Honda hybrid sales, but he said shoppers are looking at costs versus benefits. "They're not the reactive sales [due to gas prices] you'd think they'd be," he said. "They're not inexpensive compared to the regular models." Motorists who like to trade in their cars every two or three years may find hybrids not to their liking, Wright said, because of the need to keep the car longer to realize the fuel-cost savings. Many more hybrid models are in the pipeline. Two expected this year are the Toyota Highlander, a sport utility vehicle that Sites expects to start showing up in June, and the Lexus RX 400 H, which is scheduled to become available April 15. Sites said the Highlander probably won't be available in any numbers until August. The pricing and mileage haven't been made available to him. Brian Barnes at Bobby Rahal Lexus said the luxury RX 400 H will sell for just under $50,000. For that, you get a car with city mileage of 30 mpg and highway mileage of 26 mpg. The car is based on the Lexus RX 330, which is the Toyota-owned company's best-selling model. It will sell for about $4,500 to $5,000 more than the RX 330 and have 30 percent better gas mileage. SOURCE: PennLive.com | ||
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