At L.A. Show, Hybrids Are Big

Green tech continues to dominate major auto shows, but at L.A., the theme is hybrids with heft

by Matt Vella

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Will the eco-trendiness that has made a sales star of Toyota Motor's (TM) gas-electric Prius brush off on mega-trucks and behemoth SUVs? That's what automakers are asking with a raft of new super-sized hybrids at this year's L.A. Auto Show, which opens to the public on Nov. 16 and runs until Nov. 25.

The Chrysler Group introduced two new mega-hybrids, the Chrysler Aspen and Dodge Durango, both odd combinations that merge gas-electric power with impressive capabilities like an optional 385 horsepower engine and a 6,000 pound towing capacity. General Motors (GM) unveiled a surprise full-sized hybrid pickup truck, the 2009 Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid. It's also touting its hybrid version of the glitzy Cadillac Escalade, which it unveiled at the South Florida Auto Show earlier this month. And, Porsche made a light-bathed spectacle of its hybrid Cayenne SUV's North American debut.

But even in the heart of the country's largest market for hybrid cars, there's little evidence that consumers will take to the hulking vehicles the way they have to Toyota's flagship gas-electric. Sales of that Lilliputian model are up a whopping 41% for the first 10 months of the year, to 137,114 units, compared with the same period in 2006.

Small Market for Hybrids

But hybrids still make up a slim share of the entire new-vehicle market in the U.S. About 300,000, or 2%, of the 16 million cars that will be sold in 2007 will be gas-electrics, according to Erich Merkle, vice-president of forecasting at the Grand Rapids, Mich.-based automotive forecasting firm IRN.

"Even if most hybrid buyers are motivated by eco-consciousness how many Durango or Escalade buyers are really going to be motivated to do their part for the environment?" asks Merkle. He expects General Motors to sell about 30,000 of its new vehicles and Chrysler to sell just 3,000 to 4,000 hybrid SUVs next year, a drop in the bucket compared to the companies' non-hybrid SUV sales.

And yet, this new generation of American-developed hybrids, though large, features an advanced so-called "two-mode" system that enables the vehicles to travel using only electric power at low speeds, improving fuel economy in city driving. Still, a hybrid Escalade, for example, is expected to earn just 18 miles per gallon combined, up from 16.5 for the conventional model. The system was developed as a joint venture between the two companies as well as BMW (BMWG). (To read more about GM's hybrid technology breakthroughs, click here).

Silverado Surprises

Perhaps the most surprising announcement was GM's hybrid pickup truck. The introduction could be a measure of the influence of Toyota's surging success in the U.S. The Japanese auto manufacturer famously never lets a flop in the market stop it from trying again, improving along the way. Now, after a mild-hybrid version of the 2005 Silverado sold dismally, GM appears to be trying again.

This time, however, the Silverado features a full hybrid system that should improve fuel consumption by about 25% overall. When it goes on sale in late 2008, the Silverado will be the only hybrid full-size pickup truck on the market. "Of all the hybrid announcements, the pickup is the one with the most potential as a game changer," says Ray Wert, a blogger with the popular auto site Jalopnik.com, and a frequent critic of GM's mild hybrid efforts. Wert thinks small-business owners may be swayed by the utility and economy of a hybrid with the towing capacity of a pickup, folding the extra costs into a business lease.