Hybrid cars more expensive to own than compacts: CAA study

Hybrid cars may be environmentally-friendly and trendy, but they are more expensive to own and operate according to a new report released by the Canadian Automobile Association.

The 2011 Driving Costs guide adds up the costs Chevrolet Cruze, Dodge Grand Caravans and Toyota Prius owners spend on depreciation, insurance, tires, maintenance and gas breaking it down to a per kilometre expense.

While the Prius is the least expensive vehicle to operate at 9.2 cents/km, it costs $21.48/day to own. This is compared to the Cruze, which costs 14.7 cents/km to operate, but only $17.09/day to own.

Even if one drives these cars 32,000 km/year, it still costs half a cent less to own and operate the Cruze (35.4 cents) than the Prius (35.9 cents. At a more realistic driving amount of 18,000 km per year, the Cruze is the clear leader in terms of cost. Cruze (49.4 cents) owners spend just under three cents less than Prius (52.8 cents) owners per kilometre.

The Grand Caravan costs the most expensive costing 66.5 cents per kilometre if driving 18,000 kilometres and 47.5 cents per kilometre if driven 32,000 kilometres.

All figures are up from last year by about two cents per kilometre across the board. However, the study used the Cevrolet Cobalt for the 2010 study.

One major jump affecting the price increase over last year is the cost of gas. In the 2010 study it is based on an average price per litre of $1.02 and in 2011 it is based on a price of $1.29 per litre.

This news isn't hindering automakers efforts to produce more environmentally-friendly vehicles. Toyota recently announced that it was going to build electric RAVs at their plant in Woodstock, Ont., making them the first major automaker to build electric cars in Canada.

If you want to know how much it cost you to drive per kilometre, CAA has a table on their website where all you have to do is input your costs.

(Reuters photo)