Batteries included: hybrid cars gaining acceptance in corporate, government fleets.(FOCUS: Car dealers): An article from: Fairfield County Business Journal

This digital document is an article from Fairfield County Business Journal, published by Thomson Gale on January 30, 2006. The length of the article is 931 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Batteries included: hybrid cars gaining acceptance in corporate, government fleets.(FOCUS: Car dealers)
Author: David Toth
Publication: Fairfield County Business Journal (Magazine/Journal)
Date: January 30, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 45 Issue: 5 Page: 13(2)

Distributed by Thomson Gale

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Does the hybrid Toyota Prius lead to rebound effects? Analysis of size and number of cars previously owned by Swiss Prius buyers

This digital document is a journal article from Ecological Economics, published by Elsevier in 2006. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Description:
Hybrid powertrains are considered being a promising technology to decrease fuel consumption of passenger cars. Sales numbers of hybrid cars are expected to rise considerably until 2010. However, the introduction of more efficient products is often accompanied by rebound effects, which counteract the positive effect of increased efficiency. We investigate two kinds of direct rebound effects that could possibly occur when buying hybrid cars: (i) people could tend to switch from small and/or already fuel-efficient cars to the new hybrid car, and (ii) the average vehicle ownership could increase, if the hybrid car is often purchased without disposing of an already owned vehicle. A survey was conducted with all 367 buyers of the Toyota Prius 2 in Switzerland in the first nine months after market entry. Return rate reached 82.6% without sending out reminders. The survey-based approach does not allow us to investigate whether hybrid drivers will in the future drive more (the classical example of the direct rebound effect). Detailed data on the car replaced by the Prius and on the other cars owned by the household were collected. Our analysis shows that average CO2 emissions dropped from 210 g/km for the previously owned vehicles to 104 g for the Prius. Empty vehicle weight (curb weight) increased by 9 kg only, which is below the market trend. A constant population-averaged vehicle ownership still allows for a certain amount of first-time car purchases and for increasing vehicle ownership for individual households, as these additional cars are compensated for by other households disposing of a vehicle. We present a new vehicle ownership model which assesses whether the vehicle transaction behavior of a sample of new car buyers corresponds, on average, to constant or increasing vehicle ownership. It is based on disaggregated data from the Swiss travel behavior micro census. Model results are consistent with market data and data from literature. Model results show that if ca. 20% of car purchases do not replace a vehicle (for a population with an age distribution identical to Prius buyers), this still allows for constant average household vehicle ownership. Only 13.7% of the surveyed Prius buyers did not replace an old car. Hence neither of the two rebound effects investigated could be found though the sample would have been large enough to do so: vehicle size did not increase, nor did average household vehicle ownership.

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Reducing energy consumption in road transport through hybrid vehicles: investigation of rebound effects, and possible effects of tax rebates [An article from: Journal of Cleaner Production]

This digital document is a journal article from Journal of Cleaner Production, published by Elsevier in 2007. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Description:
Hybrid powertrains are considered to be a promising method to raise the overall fuel efficiency of passenger cars. They are predicted to enter the automobile markets in increasing numbers in the near future. This paper investigates 2 aspects relevant to the promotion of hybrid vehicles as part of an energy reduction strategy. First, are hybrid cars accompanied by rebound effects, which counteract their increased fuel efficiency? Second, do tax rebates indeed lead to higher sales numbers? We present results from a survey conducted with all 367 buyers of hybrid second-generation Toyota Prius in Switzerland in the first 9 months after market entry (response rate, 82.6%). As control group, questionnaires were also sent to 250 Toyota Corolla (61% returned) and 250 Toyota Avensis (52%) buyers. Among other items, the surveys asked for the car being replaced, if any. Main results are that the increase in car size for hybrid car buyers was lower than both, the market trend and the control group. Increase in car size was lower for hybrid car buyers than for both control group and market trend. 6% of hybrid car purchases did not replace a previously owned vehicle (control group 3%, P=0.05), the Swiss market average being 20%. Hence rebound effects could be identified neither for vehicle size nor for vehicle ownership. As an energy policy measure, hybrid vehicles are eligible for tax rebates in parts of Switzerland. We found evidence that these tax rebates indeed lead to significant higher sales. We present a rough cost estimate of such tax rebates as CO"2 abatement policy tool.

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