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News

Most Hybrid Cars Depreciate Slower Than ICE-powered And Electric Vehicles

November 19, 2023 David

Recently, an article explained that Japan’s slow rollout of electric vehicles (EVs) isn’t necessarily a bad thing. In fact, it might be well-timed since EV sales have recently slowed down.

Despite continuing growth, EVs are spending more time idle on dealer lots compared to internal combustion engine-powered vehicles (ICE) and hybrid vehicles. This trend coincided with Toyota’s Chairman and former President Akio Toyoda’s observation that the world isn’t quite ready to fully embrace EVs, as reflected in recent sales figures.

A recent study by iSeeCars found that EVs are suffering the most from depreciation, while hybrids are holding their value well and spending less time on dealer lots. This prompts the question: why are hybrids gaining popularity while EVs haven’t lived up to automakers’ expectations?

To ensure accuracy, the data used for this article was sourced from various manufacturer websites and other authoritative sources, including iSeeCars and the Wall Street Journal.

Hybrids Are More Desirable Than EVs To Most

Hybrids are more favored than EVs for several reasons. Fluctuating gas prices and lingering concerns about high fuel costs make hybrids an attractive option for those looking to switch to electrified vehicles.

Think Of EVs As Smartphones With Wheels

Understanding the lifecycle of EVs provides insights into their poor resale values. Similar to smartphones, EVs, particularly due to their large batteries, are subject to battery degradation. Although battery technology has improved, it is still evolving, and older EV models may become outdated as technology advances in the coming years.

On the other hand, hybrids are appealing as they offer the benefits of both ICEs and EVs, providing a balance between range, smoothness, and efficiency.

Here’s How Hybrids Are Holding Up Versus EVs

Based on the iSeeCars study, hybrids depreciate less than EVs, with an industry average of 37.4% over a five-year period compared to EVs’ 49.1% depreciation rate. SUVs and trucks also show different depreciation rates.

How Every Category Fares

Segment	2023	2019	% Improvement Since 2019 (Percentage Points)
Overall	38.8-percent	49.6-percent	10.8-percent
Hybrids	37.4-percent	56.7-percent	19.3-percent

Unsurprisingly, The List Is Dominated By Toyota

Toyota dominates the list of hybrids with strong resale values, reflecting the company’s pioneering role in the hybrid market.

Hybrids: Average Five-Year Depreciation

Here Are The EVs With The Best Resale

The Tesla Model 3 has the best resale value among EVs, but it still depreciates at a higher rate than hybrids.

EVs: Average Five-Year Depreciation

Hybrid Resale Values Reflect Their Desirability

Strong resale values suggest that hybrids are desirable in the used car market. For potential buyers, this means hybrids are a reliable long-term investment, while leasing an EV may be a better financial choice due to rapid technological advancements.

Sure, Go Ahead And Buy Your Dream Hybrid

Hybrids hold their value well, and their matured technology means they are a suitable choice for long-term ownership.

With An EV, Consider Leasing Instead Of Owning

Considering the rapid innovation in EVs, leasing an EV may be a wiser financial decision to avoid the significant depreciation and the potential need for costly battery replacements.

Cars

The Potential Drawbacks of the Fuel Efficiency Trick

September 16, 2023 David

In a letter to the hosts of “Car Talk,” a reader shared her experience of taking frequent 150-mile round trips with her boyfriend in her Toyota Yaris. She mentioned that her boyfriend had a habit of turning off the car at every stoplight, which annoyed other drivers and seemed to decrease fuel efficiency. The reader sought advice on whether this strategy was truly beneficial.

According to Tom, the decrease in gas mileage was likely due to the boyfriend’s driving habits. He suggested that the boyfriend’s tendency to accelerate aggressively and drive at higher speeds outweighed any potential fuel savings from shutting down the engine at stoplights.

Ray chimed in, pointing out that modern vehicles equipped with automatic stop/start technology are designed to handle frequent starts. However, he cautioned that continuously turning off the engine at every stoplight could eventually result in expensive repairs, which these vehicles are specifically built to avoid.

He further explained that stop/start technology can increase fuel economy by approximately five percent, depending on the amount of stop-and-go driving involved. However, it’s important to note that cars equipped with this technology have heavy-duty starters capable of handling numerous starts each day, unlike the starters in a Toyota Yaris, which are typically designed for only a few starts at a time.

Ray recommended a more selective approach, advising the couple to turn off the engine only when they anticipate being stationary for two minutes or longer, rather than shutting it off at every brief stop.

Technology

This WW2 ‘Earthquake Bomb’ Was Intentionally Designed to Miss Its Target. Here’s Why

September 5, 2023 David

In 1941, an engineer named Wallis came up with a unique idea for the Allied forces. He proposed dropping an incredibly heavy bomb near a target, which would then penetrate deep into the ground before detonating. The resulting explosion would create a tremendously powerful shockwave that could severely weaken the foundations of a building, rendering it useless.

The goal was not to directly destroy the target in the traditional sense, but rather to cause what can be described as an “earthquake” effect. This approach was based on the scientific understanding that shockwaves travel faster and more efficiently through solids compared to air. The British Royal Air Force (RAF) approved Wallis’s proposal and allowed him to experiment with creating this unique bomb.

This bomb was known as the Tallboy. It should not be confused with a small can of beer, as it weighed a staggering 12,000 pounds. To put this into perspective, the heaviest bomb available before the Tallboy weighed only 1,000 pounds. Standing at 21 feet tall, Wallis’s creation truly earned its name.

The Tallboy had a diameter of 3 feet 8 inches and had a total weight of 11,855 pounds. The bomb contained 5,200 pounds of Torpex D1, an explosive twice as powerful as TNT. When dropped from an altitude of 20,000 feet, the bomb created a crater that was 80 feet deep and 100 feet across. It had an estimated terminal velocity of around 3,600 feet per second and could penetrate through 16 feet of concrete. Upon impact, the Tallboy would be traveling at approximately 750 miles per hour.

Over 700 Tallboy bombs were dropped during the course of the war, targeting various locations including the German battleship Tirpitz.

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