Demand, prices for used hybrid vehicles fade as gas costs less

DETROIT


Last summer, when gas prices topped $4 a gallon, demand for hybrid cars skyrocketed. Used hybrids were selling for as much as a new hybrid’s sticker price, Flores says, and new hybrids had waiting lists and sold for well above sticker.

Now, Flores says, a one-two punch of the recession and low gas prices are hurting used hybrid sales. “The premium between a hybrid and a non-hybrid is probably not justifiable in the minds of the consumer during this recessionary period, because you’re not going to make your money back,” he says.

Consumers have become much more price-sensitive, Flores says, and if they can’t justify the extra cost upfront of a hybrid, they won’t buy one. Many new hybrid cars cost about $3,000 more than their non-hybrid equivalent.

USA Today