[FrayAdjacent911]

Coldstart got it right... one must compare the total cost of the hybrid version of a vehicle to other vehicles of the same price, not the non-hybrid versions of them. It's about how that amount of money could be spent otherwise.

And it is a bit of a personal statement, too. I'd get a hybrid not only for it's lower fuel consumption, but for the statement of saying I like technology. I'm not a tree-hugger, but I dig getting more out of a gallon of gas.