Ouch! Sales of Hybrid Cars Down 42.8% in December
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada 
on 01. 6.09
-10% for 2008
Hybrid cars have suffered from a power 1-2 combo punch in recent months. First, the global economic meltdown (housing bubble bursting, credit crunch, etc) sharply reduce car sales overall, and then oil prices fell like a rock, reducing the pain at the pump. This resulted in a year with a 10% drop in hybrid vehicle sales, and a staggering -42.8% in December compared to last year. Read on for more.
Going Backwards
While it's probably a good thing that car sales are down overall, what we don't want is to go back to the days of very cheap gas and big SUVs. If hybrids sell badly for long enough, carmakers might reduce their investments in new models and R&D, delaying the move towards more efficient transportation (a lot of tech developed for gas-electric hybrids can be used in plug-in hybrids, diesel-electric hybrids, electric cars, fuel cell vehicles, etc).
For example, in December 2008, 17,698 hybrids were sold. That's the lowest number since December 2004, when only four hybrid models on the market.
The Toyota Prius, always the best-selling hybrid out there, actually lost a bit more terrain than the average with a drop of 44.7%. It's no surprise that Toyota has delayed the construction of the Mississippi Prius plant and has decided to halt Japanese production for 11 days...
Update: Overall light-duty vehicle sales in the US dropped 35.5% in the month. Total light duty vehicle sales were down 18% for 2008.
See also: Green Cars of 2008: Mega-Ginormous Summary of the Year
Image: Green Car Congress
More Articles About Recession & The Car Industry
BYD Delays Sale of Electric Cars in North-America to 2011
Bailout of the Day: Automakers to get $17.4 Billion, Detroit Auto Show Still On
GM Puts the Brakes on $370 Million Chevy Volt Engine Factory
Toyota Puts Brakes on Construction of Mississippi Prius Plant
Follow @TreeHugger on Twitter & get our headlines with @TH_rss!
Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:
- 7 Ways the Troubled Automotive Industry Could Change Your Car and Your Commute
- 7 Steps to a Greener Road Trip
- Nissan Electric Cars are Coming to Your Town!
- Reduce Your Carbon Footprint by Half in Three Steps
- What is the Cheapest and Greenest Way to Travel?
- Does Your Car Qualify for the Federal 'Cash for Clunker' Program?
I hope this won't delay plug-in hybrids. We've been waiting long enough!
Toyota has such a modern setup, they can changeout stuff much more quickly. The SUV crash, when prices were high, nearly killed the big three, but I think Toyota and Honday will weather this no problem, since, er, they're not dinosaurs?
As a comparison, what did overall car sales do?
@James J.: Ya good point. If all car sales suffered thanks to that wacky economy then surprise surprise other car sales will suffer too.
Overall light-duty vehicle sales in the US dropped 35.5% in the month. Total light duty vehicle sales were down 18% for 2008.
It's too bad car companies take such a short view of this. Gas won't stay low forever and when the inevitable rise comes, the car companies will be on their heels again, trying to respond with more fuel-efficient cars.
Why not be a visionary and actually think long term. Toyota and Honda have enough cash to weather this storm and to continue to invest in R&D and production. When it ends, they can come out on top.
The drop in hybrid sales is only marginally worse than the drop of total car sales for December. Given the premium required to purchase a hybrid and the drop in the price of gasoline, this was to be expected.
"this was to be expected."
It's not surprising, but it hurts just as much.
It's a good thing. Hybrid cars aren't sustainable (both in terms of energy and metals).
Seeing the general downturn of the economy, when people are hardly buying anything, it isn't surprising that sale of hybrids is down. Plus people exhibit more conventional buying patters, choosing to go with the tried and tested rather than the new in an atmosphere of economic stringency.
"It's too bad car companies take such a short view of this."
They're having trouble enough as it is making ends meet from one day to the next right now; they can't afford to take a long term view.
Still well-proven 5-star 4 - Cylinder petrol and diesel cars are the most efficient, viable, affordable, reliable, safe, comfortable, practical and sustainable cars. People and governments must buy only such eco-safe cars
Still well-proven 5-star 4 - Cylinder petrol and diesel cars are the most efficient, viable, affordable, reliable, safe, comfortable, practical and sustainable cars. People and governments must buy only such eco-safe cars
The reality is that even with the record high gas prices we experienced in the summer of 2008, it will take too many miles driven for a hybrid vehicle owner to break even versus buying a comparable non-hybrid compact car. And with December 2008's gas prices, it would take several hundred thousand miles to break even. Thats not even taking financing or battery replacement into consideration.
"The reality is that even with the record high gas prices we experienced in the summer of 2008, it will take too many miles driven for a hybrid vehicle owner to break even versus buying a comparable non-hybrid compact car. And with December 2008's gas prices, it would take several hundred thousand miles to break even. Thats not even taking financing or battery replacement into consideration. "
Facts:
Battery replacement is a non-issue with hybrid cars. They last the life of the vehicle and are recycled at the end. Some cabs in Vancouver have put 100s of thousands of miles on Priuses without problem.
Also, people don't buy cars to save money. If they did, everybody would be driving small Hyundais and SUVs would never have gotten popular. So the "break even" thing is a straw man.
The reality is that even with the record high gas prices we experienced in the summer of 2008, it will take too many miles driven for a hybrid vehicle owner to break even versus buying a comparable non-hybrid compact car. And with December 2008's gas prices, it would take several hundred thousand miles to break even. Thats not even taking financing or battery replacement into consideration.
Cabs will rack up 100's of thousands of miles in a short time, while the average consumer racks up 100,000 miles in about 5-7 years.
If not to save money, what would be the percieved benefit in purchasing a hybrid?
"Cabs will rack up 100's of thousands of miles in a short time, while the average consumer racks up 100,000 miles in about 5-7 years. "
Yeah, it's even worse to do it intensively, but there are also Priuses from 1997s in Japan that are still going fine, as well at 1999 models in the US that are selling for very high prices and going fine.
"If not to save money, what would be the percieved benefit in purchasing a hybrid?"
What's the point of buying any car? You like it and it does the job for you. On top of that, hybrids can have lower CO2 emission, lower smog-forming emissions, and you are also encouraging new technology (which will eventually lead to plug-in hybrids and electric cars).
Plug-ins and electric cars will only be of benefit only if we can bring down the cost of electricity. Much of our electricity is still produced by coal-burning power plants, so I cannot see that being a good rationale for going electric.
Purchasing questionable technology does not encourage the advancement of new technology in a free market society. You must convince the consumers that the product has some real benefit to them. I don't think that anybody has come up with a convinving argument for the masses to move to hybrids or electric cars.
Perhaps the guys that sell the Snuggie or the Shamwow can be tapped.