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But our bellies are yellow!
While hybrids are widely discussed these days by green consumers, only about 1 in 10 actually ever purchase one according to a study last year by J.D. Power and Associates. Out of all the cars sold in 2007, only 2.3 percent were hybrids, and this was up 35 Percent from the previous year.
While claims of more and more people buying hybrids cross our headlines, by 2010 J.D. Powers estimates that only 3 percent of cars sold will be hybrids, and by 2015 only 7 percent. Reports show that while campaigns driving awareness of the dangers of global warming have been successful and most people are now aware of "living green", only 28 percent of Americans report that they have made any significant changes to their lives in support of this awareness.
If you consider the fact that of the 10 people who claimed that they were environmentalists, only one actually put their money where their mouth was and bought a hybrid... we can also probably safely assume that a good half of these folks are probably more talk than action.
Critics have been raving over the Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid since January, which has earned it the Green Car of the Year award, yet over its 6 months on the market, it has yet to have sold much of a hair past 1,100. This adds up to all those raving critics, a few celebrities, a couple tester models, several collector warehouse trophies, and a handful of us good old fashion normal folk.
Where is our green?
Is it perhaps left behind at that over $5,000 premium price tag? Shoved to the side by fear of electromagnetic health issues? Swept under the carpet by thought of high priced mechanical issues? Or is it that most of us don't fit the definition of the average hybrid buyer who is female, age 50, high- income, professional, and highly educated?
We're sending the message to manufacturers that these are not the kinds of vehicles we want to buy. Is this really what we want to be doing, especially during a time when we're actually making some headway on the hybrid front?
Don't fear the hybrid!
This post was inspired by Mean Green Machines.
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