IS A HYBRID CAR RIGHT FOR YOU?

Hybrids offer a fuel-saving option for drivers who have reservations about all-electric vehicles. But there are trade-offs.

- DAVID MUHLBAUM

AT A TIME WHEN many consumers want to save on gas but aren't ready to buy a fully electric car, hybrid vehicles-which use both gasoline and electric motors to make them go-are having a moment. The Kiplinger Letter forecasts that hybrids will account for 14% of vehicle sales in 2024, up from 9% in 2023.

That growth is taking place despite another round of buzzy product launches last year for fully electric cars, also known as battery electric vehicles (BEVs). Some went well; some were glitchy. Carmakers around the world threw money into electricvehicle development, even as prospective car shoppers continued to fret about recharging availability, among other concerns. Amid all the hubbub, what Americans actually went out and bought was, increasingly, hybrids.

Carmakers are reacting, changing their model lineups to accommodate this trend. But is it a trend to follow? We'll take a look at the motivations of some hybrid buyers and the merits of the vehicles-and recommend a few as well.

But first, a review of how hybrids work. The car that started it all almost 25 years ago is the Toyota Prius, now in its fifth generation. The basic premise of a hybrid remains the same: A gas-burning engine is paired with an electric motor and a battery pack. The gas engine and the electric motor either take turns or work together to move the vehicle, depending on conditions. And the battery pack gets charged up either through regenerative braking (the electric motor runs in reverse as a generator when the car is slowing down) or by the gas engine. You can't charge an ordinary hybrid vehicle by plugging it in.