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Dave, should I get a hybrid to save on gas? They make financial sense in the long run, right? Gas prices are killing my budget…a hybrid is the only answer!
I’ve been getting so many questions recently from people all over America about these cool, new hybrid cars. Let me tell you straight up – don’t get one!
Since hybrids are new, they’ll get better rapidly… and also go down in value rapidly. You don’t want to try to be selling a high-mileage, first-generation model in 5 years because the value will plummet.
Do you really want to lose money?
The Math Doesn’t Work
Let’s say you currently drive a vehicle worth $10,000 that gets 15 miles/gallon. There’s this $25,000 hybrid you’re thinking about buying that gets 25 miles/gallon. That’s a $15,000 price difference just to get 10 more miles a gallon. If you drive 100 miles a week, that’s about a $10 difference a week.
So that would be about $40 extra you’re spending a month in gas if you stuck with the current car. A monthly car payment is MUCH more than that! To get your money back at current gas prices, it would take you almost 29 years to save $15,000 in gasoline! Listen to Dave explain this
The math DOESN’T work! You’d have to drive to the moon and back to make it worth it!
What You Can Do
* Get a different car. If you want to sell your gas-guzzling car, buy another car worth no more than the previous car’s selling price – this means no car payments!
* Move closer to work. Write down all the specifics to see if it makes sense in your unique situation.
* Change jobs. No one says you have to work where you do. There’s always the option to work close to home – or even start a home-based business.
Don’t use this high-gas thing as a rationalization to go get yourself a new car or spend a dime more on one. Just think and make smart decisions before you rush out to buy something like this that’s really going to lose you money.