Over at WIRED Blogs, I saw a post today about the Nissan Altima Hybrid and how much of a better deal it is over the 2.5S model and the Toyota Camry Hybrid. At a retail price of $24,400, it is not a cheap car to drive off the lot, but it pays for itself in savings in no more than four years.
That is with a worst-case scenario that gas maintains the national average of $2.16 per gallon (not likely), you drive it 12,000 miles a year and get a combined fuel economy of 39 mpg. Did I mention that the hybrid has a net 198 hp, versus the 175 hp of the base Altima? To put that in perspective, my current car is a 192 hp model, and it is probably heavier than the Altima Hybrid. I am guessing this puppy can run.
Unfortunately, it looks like I will have to wait to do a test drive. According to Car & Driver, “The hybrid, powered by a 2.5-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine as well as an electric motor, initially will be sold in California, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Pennsylvania starting in January.” Neither Illinois nor its border states are on this initial list. After seeing a few of the 2007 Altimas on the road, I like the new design, especially the headlamps and taillights. Of course, that feeling will only last about eight months, just in time for me to see the 2008 models. The 2008 Altima Coupe, with G35 design cues, can be seen on the Nissan website.
You’re killin’ me…that last little sentence got my attention. And btw, it ticks me off that Illinois is consistently ignored in these types of promotional or initial sales for things like this, limited movie releases, etc. The state is fifth in overall population with the third largest metro area in the country…should engender more respect, or at least a little Altima test-drive lovin’! Road trip?
Would it be economical-ish to go to one of those states and buy the car there..? And what state was it that was being discussed wrt renting a house this summer, on a possibly somewhat related note..?
We were discussing Tennessee, which is still quite a distance from either coast