Consumer Reports crunches the numbers on hybrid vehicles that pay back the fastest and some that don’t make dollar sense.
In its October issue, Consumer Reports magazine looks at the overall financial benefit of 12 different hybrid vehicles. The analysis takes into account initial outlays compared with similar non-hybrid vehicles, as well as fuel, insurance, maintenance and deprecation costs.
The Saturn Vue Green Line comes out on top when looking at five-year total cost savings, according to Consumer Reports.
The top choices:
Saturn Vue Green Line
Cost: $26,920
Fuel economy (CR test): 28 mpg
Total 5-year savings: $4,550
Toyota Camry Hybrid
Cost: $28,460
Fuel economy (CR test): 34 mpg
Total 5-year savings: $4,250
Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid
Cost: $55,585
Fuel economy (CR test): 19 mpg
Total 5-year savings: $3,700
for the other nine vehicles …
