Growing choice of hybrid cars available

By Thomas Geiger Jun 15, 2011, 3:06 GMT

Stuttgart - Only a few years ago the Toyota Prius could celebrate its status as the only hybrid car on the road with a combination of electric motor and combustion engine, but the choice has meanwhile grown to a wide range from luxury to small car.

Car makers are offering new hybrids in almost every segment on an almost monthly basis. Honda is for the first time offering this year the technology in the small Jazz model for an extra 2,000 euros (2,934 dollars).

The Jazz is listed with a consumption of 4.5 litres per 100 kilometres and a carbon dioxide emission figure of 104 grammes per kilometre.

Toyota too is planning to extend its hybrid range. At the Geneva Motor Show in March it presented a Yaris hybrid with serial production planned for next year. Already available is the premium Lexus CT200h. Technically it is based on the Prius with an output of 100 kW/136 hp and a consumption of 3.8 litres. The carbon dioxide emission figure is put at well under 100 grammes per kilometre.

The Japanese car maker is also planning to extend the technology to a family vehicle called the Prius +. 'From our customers we know that they would like a little more space and variability than in the Prius,' says Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda. The minivan with hybrid technology is planned for early next year with a longer and higher roof and an optional third row of seats.

Environmentally conscious families would also like the Peugeot 3008 with the French car maker lauding it as the world's first diesel hybrid. Although it only has two seat rows it offers great interior variability. Peugeot has combined the electric 27 kW/37 hp motor with a 120 kW/163 hp engine that provides a combined output of 209 hp. Consumption is only at 3.8 litres with a carbon dioxide emission figure of 99 grammes per kilometre.

When it comes to the major German car makers, hybrid technology is limited to the premium class in the VW Touareg, Porsche Cayenne, Mercedes S400h, BMW X6 and BMW 7-Series with prices averaging around 90,000 euros (132,000 dollars).

But the Mercedes head of marketing, Joachim Schmidt, sees a gradual 'democratisation of the technology' that will find its way to more affordable segments. The hybrid technology used for the S-Class will also be used for the E-Class.

BMW's press spokesman Dirk Arnold says the hybrid in the 7-Series will soon also be offered in the 5-Series. Apart from the Q5 hybrid Audi is also planning later this year a hybrid version of the new A6 with a combined output of 180 kW/245 hp.

Volkswagen will be offering exclusively for the North American market a hybrid version of the new Jetta next year. A hybrid Jetta or Golf is planned for the European market shortly afterwards.

'What was once a niche technology is gradually becoming a mass product,' says Nick Margetts from the market research company Jato Dynamics.