Five Fuel Efficient Cars That Beat Hybrid's Price Tag

Feb. 16, 2010 — -- Ever since I turned this column over to the cause -- the cause of teaching people how to save BIG instead of small, save smarter instead of harder-- I've been soliciting readers to give me their ideas for saving at least a thousand dollars in a single step. That's the topic of my book, "SAVE BIG," but I'm eager to learn more BIG savings strategies from you . Well, sure enough, this week one of you basically wrote my column for me. (For which I am especially grateful, given that I currently have to shovel out of my house in Washington, D.C., after back-to-back blizzards.) Brian Moody, automotive reporter for Car Concerns radio and former senior road test editor at the auto Web site Edmunds.com, sent me an e-mail with this subject line: "You don't need a hybrid." I was intrigued!

Brian's savvy observation is that there are now several regular cars that rival hybrids for fuel efficiency --but they're much cheaper. If you're buying a hybrid to save the planet, kudos, but if you're buying one to save money, read on. The most popular hybrid in America is the Toyota Prius --at least it was until Toyota's facade of perfection crumbled! But that's another story. A base model Prius costs $23,000 but many people pay upwards of $30,000 to get one with a few features on it. Yes, a Prius can get more than 40 miles to the gallon and as gas prices rock and roll, that's really appealing. But there are several non-hybrids that get close to that same gas mileage.