To continue on our recent post where we brought you top 5 Pickups that are cheapest to own, we decided to bring you another top 5 list, but this time it will be about hybrid and electric cars. As we did in the last post, we continue to use the numbers that were crunched by the experts at the auto-industry research firm Vincentric to make this list.
As you recall, while the gas prices were high the demand for alternative fuel cars was high, so the justification for making them was firm and right. Thanks to the shift in fuel prices lately the alt.-fuel cars now have a problem called affordable fuel. According to the post that Vincentric made apparently due to this situation only 29 hybrids that were evaluated had lower total ownership costs than their closest all-gasoline-powered counterparts. To make a small comparison, we have to travel back to 2013 when we had a situation in which 13 out of 33 models made financial sense to own when the gas prices were hanging at around $3.50/gallon. You all know that plug-in hybrid and fully electric cars have a lot higher premium over the gas-powered counterparts, but they also have one-time federal income tax credits as high as $7,500 for EVs.
What must be understood is that not everyone is buying these alternate fuel vehicles purely for economic reasons, most buyers are attracted to them for their altruistic purposes as “greener” cars with a lot smaller carbon footprints. But enough of the chit-chat here is the top 5 list we promised above! Enjoy!
#1 – Hybrid Car – Toyota Prius C
Five-year operating costs – $30,107.
#2 – Electric/Plug-In Hybrid Car: Mitsubishi i-MiEV
Five-year operating costs: $29,553.
#3 – Luxury Hybrid Car: Lexus CT 200h
Five-year operating costs: $40,638.
#4 – Luxury Electric/Plug-In Hybrid: Audi A3 Sportback e-tron
Five-year operating costs: $44,781.
#5 – Luxury Electric/Plug-In Hybrid SUV/Crossover: BMW X5 xDrive 40e
Five-year operating costs: $65,564.
As in the last post, the same goes here. All and any additional info regarding these top 5 vehicles can be found right here on our site! Feel free to suggest, comment and share!
