Petrol car? No thanks, a hybrid is the way to go

READER REPORT: We had a 1997 Toyota RAV (two litre) which sadly drowned in the July 2021 Westport flood. It was replaced with a 2005 RAV with a 2.3 litre engine.

Petrol consumption was much the same for the two vehicles, but we were forced to run to the house from our lodgings while the repairs were carried out. It was only a short distance, and we really noticed just how much petrol we were using… nine litres per 100km.

Our daughter had a petrol Toyota Fielder (1.5 litre) and had got excellent economy from it. As a change was due, it was changed to a Toyota Fielder hybrid, resulting in a drastic drop in her petrol consumption.

This caused me to look into and understand what hybrids, EVs and plug-ins were all about.

Living on the West Coast, the distance that the vehicle could travel between fill-ups was hugely important. Clearly, the hybrid held all the advantages. In use, the petrol engine along with regenerative braking keeps the battery at peak level and use.The vehicle computer keeps a tally on distance left to run, combining the amount of petrol/battery left, and the average use of power to date, which is very handy.

We revisited the Toyota dealer and asked about getting our own Toyota Fielder hybrid, a 2017 model. Three months later a lookalike to our daughters Fielder hybrid arrived, and correspondingly, our petrol consumption dropped drastically compared against the RAV.

So what have we sacrificed? 

We decided no more towing trailers, so declined a tow ball. The Fielder is a wagon. Our original RAV was a four-wheel drive, which was rarely used in four-wheel drive mode in any case. And there it ends. The Fielder hybrid has the better volume and drives just like an ordinary car. 

The comparatively small engine is very much quieter, with only the rev counter letting you know if the engine is running. There is silence and no revs when the electric motor is the motive power. The power climbing hills is very good, as the electric motor combines seamlessly with the petrol engine producing extra torque. 

Driving around town, it’s fun trying to avoid the petrol engine cutting in, which requires less aggressive pedal use and more advanced road attention. It’s all very seamless – hop in, switch on, and drive. The car will decide on motive power. There are one or two clicks or murmurs in the background when you switch off, which is normal to a hybrid.

The only challenges would be the battery questions – how long will it last, and how much to replace? According to the Toyota dealer, they are only just replacing the ones in some of the earlier Toyotas.

Our Fielders are second-hand Toyota imports, which are put through the Thames factory on arrival in New Zealand, and we were given warranties on the batteries. That said, the hybrid battery is much smaller than an EV, and therefore, a lot cheaper to replace. The fuel cost saved in a year should cover a new battery if that ever comes up.

The varying media reports and statistics on battery fires gives a flicker of worry until you consider the chances against a traffic accident, which is a much greater and considerable risk.

The real plus is the lack of need to visit the petrol station. When we do, it’s generally for half a tank to fill her up when there is 12 cents a litre off. On a full tank of petrol we can easily do a return trip to Blenheim from Westport, and still have about 12 litres of that 36 litre tank left.

After our first year, as far as we are concerned, the hybrid is definitely the way to go.