This is interesting. Link to the 458-page study is here:
 
http://cnwmr.com/nss-folder/automotiveenergy/DUST%20PDF%20VERSION.pdf
 

Doubts Cast on Hybrid Efficiency - Daily Auto Insider

	

The Daily Auto Insider 
Monday, April 3, 2006

April 2006

Driving a hybrid vehicle costs more in terms of overall energy consumed
than comparable non-hybrid vehicles, according to CNW Marketing Research
Inc.

The Bandon, Oregon, auto research firm says in a news release that it
spent two years collecting data on the energy necessary to plan, build,
sell, drive and dispose of a vehicle from initial concept to scrappage.
This includes such minutia as plant to dealer fuel costs, employee
driving distances, electricity usage per pound of material used in each
vehicle and literally hundreds of other variables.

To put the data into understandable terms for consumers, it was
translated into a "dollars per lifetime mile" figure. That is, the
Energy Cost per mile driven.

One of the reasons hybrids cost more than non-hybrids is the
manufacture, replacement and disposal of such items as batteries,
electric motors (in addition to the conventional engine), lighter weight
materials and complexity of the power package.

For example, the Honda Accord Hybrid has an Energy Cost per Mile of
$3.29 while the conventional Honda Accord is $2.18. Put simply, over the
"Dust to Dust" lifetime of the Accord Hybrid, it will require about 50
percent more energy than the non-hybrid version, CNW claims.

And while many consumers and environmentalists have targeted
sport-utility vehicles because of their lower fuel economy and/or
perceived inefficiency as a means of transportation, the energy cost per
mile shows at least some of that disdain is misplaced.

For example, while the industry average of all vehicles sold in the U.S.
in 2005 was $2.28 cents per mile, the Hummer H3 (among most SUVs) was
only $1.949 cents per mile. That figure is also lower than all currently
offered hybrids and Honda Civics at $2.42 per mile.

"If a consumer is concerned about fuel economy because of family budgets
or depleting oil supplies, it is perfectly logical to consider buying
high fuel economy vehicles," says Art Spinella, president of CNW
Marketing Research, Inc. "But if the concern is the broader issues such
as environmental impact of energy usage, some high-mileage vehicles
actually cost society more than conventional or even larger models over
their lifetime."

The most Energy Expensive vehicle sold in the U.S. in calendar year
2005: Maybach at $11.58 per mile. The least expensive: Scion xB at $0.48
cents. "We believe this kind of data is important in a consumer's
selection of transportation," says Spinella. "Basing purchase decisions
solely on fuel economy or vehicle size does not get to the heart of the
energy usage issue."