An Hybrid Tahoe Owner's Comment - OK, mine

Last year I was concerned how many foreign hybrids I have seen on the road. The Midwest had quite a few with New England kind of being stuck on foreign hybrids.

Well, it finally happened. I usually take I294 when I go to Michigan and I keep a count of how many hybrids and types I see at 6am. This last time I only saw three foreign and six GM hybrids! Yep, several Tahoes and four Escalades! That didn't count the one hybrid Vue and one hybrid Malibu.

I think people are paying attention.

Another thing - I am an enthusiatic Tahoe owner. I do support all North American manufactured hybrids, electric and alternative fuel vehicles, however. So, in starting AllAmericanHybrid.com, as part of our advertising, I put logos on my hybrids rear windows. Yep, it has made a difference, plus people come up to me and talk about their hybrids ALL THE TIME! Once in a while at one of those RARE stops at a gas station.

While I keep reading and hearing complaints from foreign hybrid owners that their vehicle is too small and 'girly,' to a surprising number of reliability complaints (listen closely, there are a LOT of them), all I hear from North American manufactured hybrid owners is ENTHUSIASM! People are excited and want to let others know how excited they are! (if you are a hybrid owner, let us know!)

The only time I have heard anything negative, I look into things. For instance, I have found several sites where this person or that claims to have bad experiences and many problems. When I have dug into them, I find out that the websites and claims are false. Hmmm.... wonder which types of dealerships would start such fake websites.

So, if you own a Prius and you read the claim that you have 135 hp, you find that it is actually the combined tiny motor and tiny engine. However, for whatever reason, the North American manufacturers are WAY too modest. The engine in my Tahoe is rated 361 horsepower. The two electric motors total an additional 180 hp for a total of 541 hp!

Let's see... yep, more. While I was at the Detroit Auto show, Toyota was touting its new plug-in Prius. Yep, the idea was to take care of the USA tax dollar incentives for plug in vehicles. When I asked one of the people on site, and this is even in their press release, all they did was add a plug and converter to their Prius. It does nothing, with a range of virtually nothing.

In the meantime, GM, Chrysler, and Ford are releasing extended range plug ins that are unique in their own right, and the North American manufacturers Tesla, Fisker and Myers Motors are producing real fully electric vehicles. Yet, our own government, in particular from those states that have invested $100's of Millions into directly funding transplant foreign manufacturers who shut down USA facilities at the drop of a hat (ie: after investing $295 Million into the only planned Prius plant, Mississippi was left holding the bag when Toyota pulled construction plans indefinitely.... and the total of nearly a half $Billion that Mississippi was planning to put into Toyota had a 20 year payback, if everything went perfectly.), keep giving our North American companies a hard time, making it more difficult for us to compete against the transplants.

Gee, wouldn't it be great if our own elected officials would stop supporting our global competitors and punishing North American ingenuity?