By Marnie Hughes

You’ve heard about them. You’ve read about them. You may have even seen a few. But what do you really know about hybrid vehicles to make the decision that puts one in your driveway? With the continuing increase in the cost of fuel, and a desire to leave less of a carbon footprint, consumers are looking at their significant purchases with an eye toward sustainability.

We did a little local investigating to find out what the dealerships in the Halton Hills and Milton area are offering up in terms of hybrids. It’s important to note that not all local dealerships are offering hybrid or alternative fuel vehicles at the moment. Many aren’t yet available to the North American market and in some cases the demand for hybrids at certain dealerships is simply not there and doesn’t warrant the additional equipment requirements necessary to carry these vehicles. There are some dealers, however, who are experiencing increasing interest in hybrids. “With concern over fuel prices, more and more people are asking about hybrids,” says Shane Stoodley of Georgetown Toyota. “Anywhere from 20 to 25% of people walking in want to know more about these cars."

Each vehicle has its own appeal and styling, so to make a direct comparison is difficult. If you’re looking strictly at the numbers, here’s what we found out (from local dealers and through Internet research):

Aside from the benefit of not burning as much fuel, the government is encouraging consumers to consider hybrids by offering tax credits through the ‘ecoAuto Rebate Program’. To see if this might apply to you, check out the Transport Canada website at www.tc.gc.ca/programs/environment/ecotransport/ecoauto.htm

“Interest generally comes from people who are doing a lot of local driving,” says Charles McCarroll of Georgetown Chevrolet. The hybrid vehicles offer the power of fuel alongside the power of a battery. Typically the engine uses fuel during acceleration and through sustained speed and distance, while the battery kicks in during slowdowns within the city such as approaching a stop light. A couple of drawbacks are the increase in cost and the increase in weight. Some drivers have reported that the weight increase (up to 300 additional pounds in some cases) may take some getting used to and may also impact on handling.

In addition to considering hybrids, today’s consumer can look at vehicles powered by alternative fuels such as diesels and biodiesels, flexible fuels (i.e. 85% ethanol, 15% gasoline), bi-fuel, propane and natural gas.

Biodiesel is a popular alternative fuel made from vegetable oil or animal fats that can be used in diesel engines (not gasoline engines). Diesels get typically 30 to 35% more mpg than comparable gasoline vehicles.

Some of the pros to using biodiesel include: cleaner than diesel with reduced emissions, renewable, supports local agriculture, promotes longer engine life by acting as a natural lubricant, and a pleasant exhaust smell.

Drawbacks to using biodiesel are: it requires special handling in cold weather, has slightly less energy content than diesel fuel, and tends to deteriorate natural rubber fuel system parts (hoses, seals).

A limited but growing number of vehicles are now being produced by auto manufacturers to test market demand for alternative fuel products. These vehicles can operate on straight gasoline or on any proportion of ethanol mixed with gasoline, up to an 85 percent limit. These are known as flexible fuel vehicles. E85 (85% ethanol, 15% gasoline) has the highest oxygen content of any transportation fuel available today making it burn cleaner than gasoline and creating fewer emissions. Ethanol is also non-toxic, water soluble, renewable, and biodegradable. In some isolated cases, your existing vehicle can be converted to accommodate E85.

Locally, the demand has not yet been there to encourage dealers to carry E85 vehicles. If you’re considering an ‘environmentally friendly’ vehicle, talk to your local dealers. They are the ones most knowledgeable about the current offerings in your area and what is coming down the road.