Steve Eldridge: Hopped-up hybrids being developed

So far, the work is only being done by independent mechanics, many of whom are on the West Coast. The president of Toyota North America recently said his company has sold more U.S. hybrids this year than Cadillac, Buick or Mercedes-Benz has sold cars. Current off-dealer modifications add another $3,000 to $12,000 to the vehicles that already sell at a premium. Still, as gas prices continue to rise, people will look into any option that’s available. It may be several years, though, before the manufacturers themselves offer these hopped-up hybrids.

One other thing about the cost of hybrids being sold today — repairs can be very expensive. MSN Money tells the story of one hybrid owner who was quoted $8,000 to replace his car’s transaxle. Of course, when you consider that that headlight-washer combo on a BMW 5 series is more than $2,000, maybe things are just expensive all over.

Schedule deterrents

One of the biggest deterrents to getting people to take buses is that the buses frequently don’t run close to the schedule that has been posted for them. Frankly, this shouldn’t be a surprise, in that the buses have to negotiate the same traffic that everybody else does. A new survey from the Citizens Planning and Housing Association says that MTA buses arrive at their stops when they are supposed to only 41 percent of the time. On-time performance is a key issue for riders who don’t want to have to wait too long either when it’s too hot in the summer or when it’s too cold in the winter. The Greater Baltimore Bus Initiative was designed in part to address this, but has apparently failed.