Prices of hybrid cars lower as fuel costs soar

By Asha Popatlal, Channel NewsAsia

SINGAPORE : If you are one of those who think fuel prices are going way too high, the growing trend of hybrid cars may be one to watch.

These are cars which use a combination of petrol and electric power to drive the car.

The take-up rate for hybrid cars in Singapore has been slow.

According to the National Environment Agency (NEA), there are now close to 90 hybrid cars on the roads, including one driven by the Environment and Water Resources Minister himself, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim.

But prices of such cars are coming down by at least $20,000 for leading models like the Toyota Prius in the past few years while green tax rebates have doubled from 20 percent to 40 percent from the beginning of this year.

These are facts to bear in mind the next time you get behind the wheel of a conventional car.

As Chairman of NEA Assoc Prof Simon Tay says, such conventional cars lose 80 percent of their fuel as heat, and only 20 percent is used to turn the wheels.

And of that 20 percent, 95 percent is used to move the car.

- CNA /ls