Sure, the sample is limited – not man more than 200 Swapalease nationwide members participated – but to not have any answer to “What’s Your Dream [hybrid] Car?” is kind of astonishing. Not even the hybrid flagship, the Toyota Prius, has seen any additional interest on the site, despite rising gas prices. Average daily searches for the Prius on Swapalease.com have fallen 16 percent since the beginning of July.
Participant in the Swapalease program tend to leave their leases early, so they’re already unusual car shoppers. Leasing makes up a smaller proportion of U.S. new car sales than loans, but Swapalease users are constantly checking out their new car options. Hybrids haven’t won them over, just as they haven’t done with most than two-to-three percent of the overall car buyer population in any given year.
“It’s not terribly surprising that hybrids haven’t topped the list of people’s dream cars. So far, hybrids have tended to be utilitarian-looking vehicles, not sleek and fast-looking, and their relatively new, unfamiliar technology has only resulted in sales to about three percent of U.S. car shoppers in the decade-plus that they have been available,” Edmunds.com Features Editor Carroll Lachnit said in the Swapalease press release (available below).
Hybrids scored lowest among possible dream cars, even when price is not an issue. Many respondents wrote in saying they feel diesel is the preferred source of fuel efficiency for the future. “People might be dreaming of fuel independence and better gas mileage, but they aren’t dreaming about hybrids,” said Scot Hall, executive vice president of Swapalease.com said in a statement. “Our dream car survey illustrates that people want more ‘fast and furious’ in their vehicle of choice, not ‘lean and green.'”
Literally, When People Dream About Their Ultimate Car, Forget Hybrids
CINCINNATI, Aug. 21, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — America may be a nation of ‘going green,’ but a recent Swapalease.com survey revealed hybrids score lowest among possible dream cars, even when price is not an issue. In fact, many respondents wrote in saying they feel diesel is the preferred source of fuel efficiency for the future.
More than 200 Swapalease.com nationwide members participated in its “What’s Your Dream Car?” survey, which ran from July 15 through August 15. When given a choice in the survey of their favorite hybrid, the majority of respondents declined to choose. Even rising gas prices haven’t spurred additional interest in the Toyota Prius, as average daily searches for the hybrid on Swapalease.com have fallen -16 percent since the beginning of July.
“People might be dreaming of fuel independence and better gas mileage, but they aren’t dreaming about hybrids,” said Scot Hall, Executive Vice President of Swapalease.com. “Our dream car survey illustrates that people want more ‘fast and furious’ in their vehicle of choice, not ‘lean and green.'”
“It’s not terribly surprising that hybrids haven’t topped the list of people’s dream cars. So far, hybrids have tended to be utilitarian-looking vehicles, not sleek and fast-looking, and their relatively new, unfamiliar technology has only resulted in sales to about three percent of U.S. car shoppers in the decade-plus that they have been available,” stated Edmunds.com Features Editor Carroll Lachnit. “Diesel popularity is understandable, as diesel cars get phenomenal mileage and don’t require drivers to get used to anything new, other than pulling up to a different pump at the gas station.”
Overall, the BMW and Mercedes brands held the greatest sway with respondents, with those brands capturing a large overall percentage of their applicable categories. Among luxury SUVs, the Land Rover Range Rover held 29 percent of the vote, with 26 percent of voters writing in options like the Porsche Cayenne and the Hummer 2. Write-ins account for 24 percent of the response for the convertible category, with the Audi R8 Spyder and the Porsche 911 Turbo Cabriolet accounting for another 40 percent between them.
The ever-popular Ford F Series was the hands-down winner for pickup trucks; the Maserati Quattroporte just edged out the Mercedes S550 4Matic and the BMW 750i xDrive in the luxury sedan category. The Ferrari 559 GTO won sports car honors, and the write-ins for this category included a “67 boss Mustang fastback” and a “2012 Chevrolet Camaro in yellow and black with 0 miles on it,” showing that sports cars in particular hold a very specific spot in car enthusiasts’ hearts.
