I for one am hoping for a hatchback, and perhaps the return of the MT. :-)

 

Dropping the price by just a few hundred dollars could have a really large impact on the people in the US who are willling to buy hybrids. Right now, I think there's a certain perception that money is tight and it may not be 'worth it' to pay more in upfront costs when you never know how much gas will cost and whether it will 'pay for itself' in the long run in savings on fuel. Still, I know people who are on the margin- they say things like, 'I'd pay more, but not that much more.' If the price difference does drop, we could see a quick boost in hybrid sales to that set of customers, just like we're expecting in January when the tax credit bumps up a few notches with a similar effect in net prices.

I think that building a hybrid marketing base now is critical- people who get in on the ground floor and feel committed to the technology, the first adopters, will be the ones who provide the word-of-mouth and performance assurances to the next wave, opening the possibility of a huge market turnaround that the car companies just can't ignore. If hybrids work for us, then other people won't be as afraid of them (many people always fear new things, but some people anticipate them). A few first adopters can have impacts later on huge numbers of others, so picking up those marginal potential customers now could mean many, many more people down the road buy hybrids.

 

At least in the case of HSD, early adoption in the US was 5 years ago. People buying Prius now are pretty mainstream, 500,000 cars later.

 

I just hope this doesn't mean that they are going to curtail future development and 'rest on their laurels'.

 

Ericgo, I guess your idea of mainstream and mine are a little different. Sure, the Prius has been around for a while, but in terms of market forces, one popular brand can be an anomaly instead of the beginning of a trend. I do think that 500,000 cars is really impressive, but until hybrids as a class are a bigger share of the market, and there's more competition within the class (which looks like it's on the way) I think we can still use the term first adopters if we like. Certainly it's been my experience that the people I know have been thrilled to see my new HCH (purchased this fall) because of the novelty and because they don't know other people who have one, or they've never actually seen one before. That's the sense in which I was using the expression- when you're breaking ground in public perception, introducing a new thing in a positive way and setting expectations around the future buying habits of the people you interact with about a product, then you're affecting the market. How could you not be? Hybrids are going mainstream, but they're not there yet.

We could just agree to disagree.

 

Personally, I think the day the Camry Hybrid hits USA showrooms can be the symbolic "Launch Day" for mainstreamization of the hybrids.

That car, if packaged right and priced right, is going to appeal to a lot of previous Camry buyers, and we all know the Camry is a "Mainstream Icon."

PS
Hey, Post # 1000 - COOL !!

 

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Congrats!

I've been giving this some thought. You know, the extra cost in my HCH really wasn't a factor over say an EX. The return on investment was obvious, and the $1800 didn't break the bank. Not that I'm swimming in cash... ...but if you think of the hybrid like you would another option (like NAV), paying $1800 for an option that pays for itself over time isn't a hard choice. Unlike a spoiler, NAV, wheel upgrade, or other things that can run that much and never pay you back.

Rather than reduce the $1800 to a $600 hybrid cost, what they really need to do is offer hybrids in something less than the top trim level. Seems like every hybrid comes "loaded" or very close to it. Where you loose buyers is confronting someone who would be more in the market for a $17000 base Civic and not only force them jump to the highest trim level, but tack $1800 on top of it. You can create a $4-5K gap and that's what will deter buyers. So it's not so much we need hybrid options for every class of car, but hybrid options at different trim levels so they can hit the price points folks are interested in.

 

Tim, I do see your point, but so far the people most likely to buy a hybrid probably want it loaded - profit for the dealership. As the volumn goes up and the R&D costs are paid for, Honda and Toyota won't need to do this on hybrid sales.

I'd be tickled for Honda and Toyota to offer a hybrid version of every vehicle they sell by 2010. I just don't see the phase-out of non-hybrid models just yet, but glad it's on Honda's radar....

 

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