Customers say hybrids are passing test of time
03-08-05, 05:08 AM
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Customers say hybrids are passing test of time
Consumer Reports finds satisfaction among owners after doubts early on.
By Eric Mayne / The Detroit News
U.S. motorists were first introduced to gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles six years ago, but the honeymoon is still going strong, according to an influential consumer survey.
The Toyota Prius, which features a gasoline-powered engine paired with a fuel-saving electric motor, won top marks in Consumer Reports magazine's owner satisfaction survey.
When the magazine asked owners if they would buy another Prius, 94 percent of 1,640 respondents said they would, beating out the 92 percent score achieved by the Lexus LS430 luxury sedan.
The Honda Accord was the magazine's top pick for family sedan. The Accord beat out 32 products, including perennial favorites such as the Toyota Camry and Volkswagen Passat.
New technology often generates enthusiasm in the marketplace, but the public is rarely fooled for long, said David Champion, senior director of Consumer Reports' auto test center.
"There's a honeymoon period," Champion said. "If reliability is not good, then (satisfaction is) going to go down. These hybrid systems have been very reliable."
As hybrid vehicles reached the market in recent years, some said they were likely to be trouble plagued and expensive to maintain. And critics claimed its intricate workings and reliance on batteries would not hold up to the rigors of everyday driving.
"They are 'ready for prime time,'" said Tom Elliott, executive vice president of American Honda Motor Co. "They are really a mainstream technology."
Fewer than a dozen hybrid vehicles are available in the United States, the the number will reach 38 by 2011, J.D. Power estimates.
Annual sales of hybrid vehicles reached nearly 90,000 last year and is expected to top a half million within eight years, Power said.
In April, Toyota will launch its second gas-electric vehicle -- the Lexus RX400h. Two months later, a hybrid version of the Highlander sport utility vehicle will go on sale.
The new models along with the Prius will push Toyota's total hybrid sales past 100,000 units, said Dave Hermance, a senior environmental engineer with Toyota USA.
"We're already over the hump" in terms of overcoming consumer skepticism, Hermance said.
Allen Bukoff, a researcher for Autoextremist.com, said hybrid sales will continue to climb because of "early adopters" -- consumers who are attracted to cutting-edge technology. Bukuoff recently completed a study of hybrid buyers.
"It is kind of a club," Bukuoff said.
"That group of people has been exhausted yet."
General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group, two companies that were initially reluctant to join the hybrid party, recently agreed to work together on developing hybrid technology.
Later this year, Ford Motor Co. will launch its second hybrid vehicle -- a Mercury Mariner, a companion to the Escape Hybrid SUV, which wasn't tested by the magazine.
Ford also will market three additional hybrid vehicles within three years.
Third on the magazine's owner satisfaction list was the Honda S2000 roadster. Among the products determined to be least satisfying, 12 of the worst 20 are from Detroit automakers, while seven are built by Japan-based companies.
Among 2004 models tested for reliability, the magazine said the industry averaged 16 problems per 100 models tracked.
Customers reported an average of 17 problems per 100 vehicles for 2004 models from Chrysler, Ford and GM. That was down from 18 problems per 100 in 2003.
Japanese and Korean automakers had a rate of 12 problems per 100 vehicles -- unchanged in the magazine's last three surveys. European automakers, some of which have battled quality issues in recent years, had 21 problems per 100 vehicles. That's up from 20 a year ago.
By Eric Mayne / The Detroit News
U.S. motorists were first introduced to gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles six years ago, but the honeymoon is still going strong, according to an influential consumer survey.
The Toyota Prius, which features a gasoline-powered engine paired with a fuel-saving electric motor, won top marks in Consumer Reports magazine's owner satisfaction survey.
When the magazine asked owners if they would buy another Prius, 94 percent of 1,640 respondents said they would, beating out the 92 percent score achieved by the Lexus LS430 luxury sedan.
The Honda Accord was the magazine's top pick for family sedan. The Accord beat out 32 products, including perennial favorites such as the Toyota Camry and Volkswagen Passat.
New technology often generates enthusiasm in the marketplace, but the public is rarely fooled for long, said David Champion, senior director of Consumer Reports' auto test center.
"There's a honeymoon period," Champion said. "If reliability is not good, then (satisfaction is) going to go down. These hybrid systems have been very reliable."
As hybrid vehicles reached the market in recent years, some said they were likely to be trouble plagued and expensive to maintain. And critics claimed its intricate workings and reliance on batteries would not hold up to the rigors of everyday driving.
"They are 'ready for prime time,'" said Tom Elliott, executive vice president of American Honda Motor Co. "They are really a mainstream technology."
Fewer than a dozen hybrid vehicles are available in the United States, the the number will reach 38 by 2011, J.D. Power estimates.
Annual sales of hybrid vehicles reached nearly 90,000 last year and is expected to top a half million within eight years, Power said.
In April, Toyota will launch its second gas-electric vehicle -- the Lexus RX400h. Two months later, a hybrid version of the Highlander sport utility vehicle will go on sale.
The new models along with the Prius will push Toyota's total hybrid sales past 100,000 units, said Dave Hermance, a senior environmental engineer with Toyota USA.
"We're already over the hump" in terms of overcoming consumer skepticism, Hermance said.
Allen Bukoff, a researcher for Autoextremist.com, said hybrid sales will continue to climb because of "early adopters" -- consumers who are attracted to cutting-edge technology. Bukuoff recently completed a study of hybrid buyers.
"It is kind of a club," Bukuoff said.
"That group of people has been exhausted yet."
General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group, two companies that were initially reluctant to join the hybrid party, recently agreed to work together on developing hybrid technology.
Later this year, Ford Motor Co. will launch its second hybrid vehicle -- a Mercury Mariner, a companion to the Escape Hybrid SUV, which wasn't tested by the magazine.
Ford also will market three additional hybrid vehicles within three years.
Third on the magazine's owner satisfaction list was the Honda S2000 roadster. Among the products determined to be least satisfying, 12 of the worst 20 are from Detroit automakers, while seven are built by Japan-based companies.
Among 2004 models tested for reliability, the magazine said the industry averaged 16 problems per 100 models tracked.
Customers reported an average of 17 problems per 100 vehicles for 2004 models from Chrysler, Ford and GM. That was down from 18 problems per 100 in 2003.
Japanese and Korean automakers had a rate of 12 problems per 100 vehicles -- unchanged in the magazine's last three surveys. European automakers, some of which have battled quality issues in recent years, had 21 problems per 100 vehicles. That's up from 20 a year ago.
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