Page 4 of 13 FirstFirst 123456789 ... LastLast
Results 76 to 100 of 306

Thread: Hybrid cars...anybody got one?

  1. #76
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    new york
    Occupation
    Optometrist
    Posts
    3,749
    Quote Originally Posted by MasterCrafter View Post
    I never bought one but a few years ago i talked a Doctor friend of mine out of buying one.

    He was trying to make a decision on whether to buy the hybrid... or not to buy the hybrid. It was the same model car.

    I pointed out to him that the hybrid model was like $10,000 or more and he wouldnt save money because his car payment and insurance would be higher.

    So when he factored in the length of the loan and the monthly payment. Then compared that to how much he saved on gas. He would have had to keep the car for 6 to 7 years or something like that to break even.

    They are starting to bring down the price on these now, but i still think there needs to be work done on pricing vs value. I mean, is it just a feel good car or is it practical?
    $10k is a bit overstating. The fact is a Prius is about $2k over what a comparable car costs. It's not all about the money. Some people spend $1500 on wheels or a moon roof...or both, or spend thousands to soup up an engine. Why is it wrong to pay a $2k premium to decrease my consumption of foreign oil?

  2. #77
    Ophthalmic Optician
    Join Date
    Sep 2001
    Location
    USSA
    Occupation
    Dispensing Optician
    Posts
    12,591
    Quote Originally Posted by Fezz View Post
    *Notice this slacker doesn't have his Official BeerSlide Waxing Uniform on!
    Duh! That's the day you declared is Dressdown Monday.:cheers:
    Ophthalmic Optician, Society to Advance Opticianry

  3. #78
    Ophthalmic Optician
    Join Date
    Sep 2001
    Location
    USSA
    Occupation
    Dispensing Optician
    Posts
    12,591
    Quote Originally Posted by fjpod View Post
    $10k is a bit overstating. The fact is a Prius is about $2k over what a comparable car costs. It's not all about the money. Some people spend $1500 on wheels or a moon roof...or both, or spend thousands to soup up an engine. Why is it wrong to pay a $2k premium to decrease my consumption of foreign oil?
    Hey! What's going on? We're in the middle of trying to highjack the thread, and you keep bringing it back!

    What's up with that?:bbg:
    Ophthalmic Optician, Society to Advance Opticianry

  4. #79
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    new york
    Occupation
    Optometrist
    Posts
    3,749
    to da moon Alice

    I'm just a sensible kinda guy.

  5. #80
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2004
    Location
    Down in a hole!
    Occupation
    Dispensing Optician
    Posts
    13,078
    Quote Originally Posted by Johns View Post
    Hey! What's going on? We're in the middle of trying to highjack the thread, and you keep bringing it back!
    Sheesh! The NERVE of this guy!

    That's what you get when you are stuck in a dark room all day!

    :cheers::cheers::cheers::bbg:

  6. #81
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    new york
    Occupation
    Optometrist
    Posts
    3,749
    He just can't help himself...poor lad.

  7. #82
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2004
    Location
    Down in a hole!
    Occupation
    Dispensing Optician
    Posts
    13,078
    Quote Originally Posted by fjpod View Post
    to da moon Alice
    Wrong thread for this!

  8. #83
    MasterCrafter OptiBoarder MasterCrafter's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    The Lab
    Occupation
    Optical Laboratory Technician
    Posts
    459
    Quote Originally Posted by fjpod View Post
    $10k is a bit overstating. The fact is a Prius is about $2k over what a comparable car costs. It's not all about the money. Some people spend $1500 on wheels or a moon roof...or both, or spend thousands to soup up an engine. Why is it wrong to pay a $2k premium to decrease my consumption of foreign oil?
    I said this was about 2 years ago.

    Take the Chevy Malibu.. The hybrid version is $25,900 and the non hybrid is about $17,900. Thats about $8000 more. So i guess it deponds on what model.

    But i do like the idea of decreasing our dependence on foreign oil. You do have a point there!!



  9. #84
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    new york
    Occupation
    Optometrist
    Posts
    3,749
    Quote Originally Posted by MasterCrafter View Post
    I said this was about 2 years ago.

    Take the Chevy Malibu.. The hybrid version is $25,900 and the non hybrid is about $17,900. Thats about $8000 more. So i guess it deponds on what model.

    But i do like the idea of decreasing our dependence on foreign oil. You do have a point there!!
    You're right about the american versions of hybrids. There are roughly two reasons why they don't catch on. First, When you look at the difference in price in the Ford Escape, or Chevy Malibu, you often see a $5000+ difference between the hybrid and non models. And secondly you are lucky if you get a 5 mpg improvement.

    With the Prius, there is no non-hybrid model to compare. I paid $21,300 for mine. It's a little smaller than a Camry but bigger than a Corolla. I replaced my clunker which was getting 13 mpg locally. It's a great commuter car and the hatchback gives more flexibility for hauling stuff than a normal car it's size. If you drive it like a maniac, you get 45 mpg (city or highway). If you drive it conservatively, like Johns hates, you get 55. No other car can duplicate that.

    And mind you...I never bought a foreign car, nor believed in buying foreign cars, my whole life (which is a considerable 57 years).

    If half the drivers in the US started getting 50 mpg instead of 25, the oil sheiks would be sucking wind. It's not about the oil used in making a hybrid (doesn't it take more oil to make a 4x4, or fancy wheels, or a killer sound system?). It's about NOT BUYING GASOLINE specifically.

    It would be the best energy policy the US could have, and the government wouldn't have to spend a nickle. All folks would have to do is replace their old car with a $23.000 Prius.

  10. #85
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2004
    Location
    Down in a hole!
    Occupation
    Dispensing Optician
    Posts
    13,078
    Would the sheiks really be sucking wind or would they just raise prices to make up for volume?
    Last edited by Fezz; 10-29-2010 at 05:59 AM. Reason: shsims? What the heck is that?

  11. #86
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    new york
    Occupation
    Optometrist
    Posts
    3,749
    Quote Originally Posted by Fezz View Post
    Would the shsims really be sucking wind or would they just raise prices to make up for volume?
    If the US decreased it's gasoline consumption by 50% the price of oil throughout the world would plummet. Europeans and in other countries where gasoline is very expensive, would never stand for higher prices, and it would make no sense for OPEC to raise prices to those customers.

    Think about it. Does the Federal Government have a better policy? What would it cost to build nuclear power plants, clean up coal technology, build solar and wind generation? The only better energy policy option I can think of would be to tax the cr@p out of gasoline and then the politicians can use the money to pay off the national debt...or get us into more debt.

    When your old car dies, buy one that gets 50 mpg...even if you have another one that only gets 25 mpg...imported oil problem solved. You break even.

  12. #87
    Ophthalmic Optician
    Join Date
    Sep 2001
    Location
    USSA
    Occupation
    Dispensing Optician
    Posts
    12,591
    Quote Originally Posted by fjpod View Post
    If the US decreased it's gasoline consumption by 50% the price of oil throughout the world would plummet. Europeans and in other countries where gasoline is very expensive, would never stand for higher prices, and it would make no sense for OPEC to raise prices to those customers.
    That already happened, and since the price was lower, many folks ran out and bought large(r) vehicles again.

    I'm an optician, so the price of fuel is of no concern to me.
    Ophthalmic Optician, Society to Advance Opticianry

  13. #88
    registeredoptician Refractingoptician.com's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2000
    Location
    North America
    Occupation
    Optical Retail
    Posts
    1,323
    Simply amazing !

    You guys never cease to amaze me ! All this talk of loyalty to your country and don't buy foreign and so on and so on . Opticians would have to be the least qualified of any group to speak out on this subject.

    Isn't it off-shore lenses you put into those $ 50,000.00 foreign made edgers to cut them down to fit into those foreign made frames ?

    Who would be your biggest competitor ? A company from France and one from Italy ?

    Who is the largest employer of Opticians in North America ? Is it not a foreign company and foreign frame manufacturer ? AND isn't the next largest employer of opticians in North America a company that specializes in Asian imports ?
    Last edited by Refractingoptician.com; 11-01-2010 at 08:37 PM.

  14. #89
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    new york
    Occupation
    Optometrist
    Posts
    3,749
    Quote Originally Posted by Johns View Post
    That already happened, and since the price was lower, many folks ran out and bought large(r) vehicles again.

    I'm an optician, so the price of fuel is of no concern to me.
    The point is not the price of fuel. The point is that we buy it from one of the most unfriendly regions of the world where we have to spend billions militarily to keep "stability". I know you realize that. You just want me to think you don't like the idea of hybrids and saving gas. You can't fool me.....ahahahahahaha.

  15. #90
    Ophthalmic Optician
    Join Date
    Sep 2001
    Location
    USSA
    Occupation
    Dispensing Optician
    Posts
    12,591
    Quote Originally Posted by fjpod View Post
    The point is not the price of fuel. The point is that we buy it from one of the most unfriendly regions of the world where we have to spend billions militarily to keep "stability". I know you realize that. You just want me to think you don't like the idea of hybrids and saving gas. You can't fool me.....ahahahahahaha.
    Ok. here's the truth:

    I don't like someone telling me that I HAVE to drive a certain car, use a certain lightbulb, wear a freaking sweater, or cover my kid's books with a 80% post consumerable recycled product!!! I want to drive what is comfortable, but a light bulb that turns on bright when I hit the switch, and cut down a tree so my chainsaw utilizing friends can have jobs.

    Our oil doesn't have to come from overseas...that's a choice, and not one that I made. We've got it here if we're allowed to use it, but that's a whole other discussion, and not one I want to get into here.

    No, I don't care if people want to drive boxy looking dorkmobiles...that's their thing, but when the gov't. starts telling me that I HAVE to, then that's a different story.
    Ophthalmic Optician, Society to Advance Opticianry

  16. #91
    MasterCrafter OptiBoarder MasterCrafter's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    The Lab
    Occupation
    Optical Laboratory Technician
    Posts
    459
    Quote Originally Posted by Johns View Post
    but when the gov't. starts telling me that I HAVE to, then that's a different story.
    Dats a good point also !!



  17. #92
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    new york
    Occupation
    Optometrist
    Posts
    3,749
    I'm certainly not advocating that government tell us what car to buy...but the government does tell us to pay income taxes, sales taxes, excise taxes...drive on the right side of the road, not to drink and drive, use headlights at night, and the list goes on and on.

    We chose the car we want to drive, as you say,...what pleases us. some folk like comfort, power, others like economy. I like the concept of sticking it to the people in the middle east that stick it to our government, and in the process, to the American people. So it pleases me to do this. I/m not doing it because my government says so. In fact, it seems like my government doesn't give a hoot about how much debt we rack up buying foreign oil from countries that wouldkill and mame our citizens.

    I'm an advocate of using less foreign oil... my government is not. We are the government. We've got to get them what we want them to do in our best interest. Our government is not the enemy. Some of those overseas are. You talk like you'd rather have a Saudi run our government than a Democrat.

  18. #93
    Ophthalmic Optician
    Join Date
    Sep 2001
    Location
    USSA
    Occupation
    Dispensing Optician
    Posts
    12,591
    Quote Originally Posted by fjpod View Post
    You talk like you'd rather have a Saudi run our government than a Democrat.

    Now that's more of what I expected!:cheers:

    I tell you that I like to drive comfortable cars, and you get that out of it?

    Better check that car of your for fumes...
    Ophthalmic Optician, Society to Advance Opticianry

  19. #94
    Bad address email on file
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    York, Pennsylvania, United States
    Occupation
    Optical Laboratory Technician
    Posts
    49
    Drive more Hybrids my big 4x4 needs all the gas it can get a hold of :bbg:

  20. #95
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    new york
    Occupation
    Optometrist
    Posts
    3,749
    ok...just don't complain when unfriendly oil rich countries own half of the land and businesses in the US....and when they can launch their activities through shills in seemingly friendly countries...and our military is powerless to do anything.

  21. #96
    Master OptiBoarder
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    new york
    Occupation
    Optometrist
    Posts
    3,749
    So more hybrids are being made...Ford fusion, Chevy Volt, Lexus, and did I see BMW? Anyone care to comment on their experience?

  22. #97
    Banned
    Join Date
    Jun 2000
    Location
    Only City in the World built over a Volcano
    Occupation
    Dispensing Optician
    Posts
    12,996
    Are you sure Johns isn' from the South?
    With a quote like that, he would have to be.

    Chip

  23. #98
    One eye sees, the other feels OptiBoard Silver Supporter
    Join Date
    Jul 2002
    Location
    Wauwatosa Wi
    Occupation
    Dispensing Optician
    Posts
    5,456
    Quote Originally Posted by fjpod View Post
    So more hybrids are being made...Ford fusion, Chevy Volt, Lexus, and did I see BMW? Anyone care to comment on their experience?
    My brother-in-law has a hybrid Fusion (he couldn't wait for cold fusion). So far so good. My next car will definitely be an all-electric car. We'll keep one of our present cars for road trips, or just rent a car as needed.
    Science is a way of trying not to fool yourself. - Richard P. Feynman

    Experience is the hardest teacher. She gives the test before the lesson.



  24. #99
    Bad address email on file
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
    Location
    Amelia VA
    Occupation
    Other Eyecare-Related Field
    Posts
    3
    I have an 05 4 wheel drive Escape hydrid with 180000 miles on it. Love it and have had no problems.

  25. #100
    Master OptiBoarder OptiBoard Gold Supporter DragonLensmanWV's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    The Greatest Nation
    Occupation
    Optical Retail
    Posts
    7,645
    Quote Originally Posted by Robert Martellaro View Post
    My brother-in-law has a hybrid Fusion (he couldn't wait for cold fusion). So far so good. My next car will definitely be an all-electric car. We'll keep one of our present cars for road trips, or just rent a car as needed.
    I just got a Fusion, though not hybrid.
    DragonlensmanWV N.A.O.L.
    "There is nothing patriotic about hating your government or pretending you can hate your government but love your country."

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads

  1. Rimless disaster
    By idoctor in forum General Optics and Eyecare Discussion Forum
    Replies: 41
    Last Post: 06-24-2006, 03:28 AM
  2. Health Hazards in Optical
    By Jubilee in forum General Optics and Eyecare Discussion Forum
    Replies: 38
    Last Post: 07-16-2005, 07:09 PM
  3. Oprah gives the poor people a reality check.
    By mrba in forum Just Conversation
    Replies: 7
    Last Post: 09-28-2004, 12:30 PM
  4. Cars vs. Computers
    By Joann Raytar in forum Just Conversation
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 03-25-2002, 06:27 PM
  5. Air bags in cars
    By Di822 in forum General Optics and Eyecare Discussion Forum
    Replies: 5
    Last Post: 04-26-2001, 03:36 PM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •