HYBRIDS are likely to be a passing phase in car technology that will be surpassed by electric vehicles (EV) in a matter of a few years, to the extent that\u00a0Glass\u2019s predicts an early end for hybrids.<\/p>\n
The vehicle data provider says that EV technology is advancing so quickly that a new hybrid vehicle being bought today could be effectively obsolete by the time it reaches the end of its normal life.<\/p>\n
Rupert Pontin, director of valuations, said: \u201cHybrids are designed to solve two of the problems that EVs have faced in recent years \u2013 high cost and low range.<\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, there are very clear signs that these issues are being resolved very quickly. For example, the revised Renault Zoe announced at Paris Motor Show has a 250-mile range and costs \u00a317,000.<\/p>\n
\u201cSimilarly, the new battery in the BMW i3 lasts around 190 miles [range] and Volkswagen is claiming that its ID, which will come to market in 2020, will go up to 373 miles between charges and be priced competitively.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fact is that vehicles such as this effectively remove the rationale for hybrids. Within a few years, hybrids could be seen as little more than a curiosity and this will undoubtedly affect their values.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThese vehicles make a lot of sense in the fleet sector but not so much on the used market, where buyers tend to view them as more complicated than a diesel but with few compensating advantages.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs viable EVs start to become available in larger numbers, this will only become more acute and it is difficult to foresee a situation in which demand is likely to increase.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur view is that, unless manufacturers find it difficult to bring the price of EVs down to somewhere near family cars, then hybrids will simply be seen as a passing phase in the history of the car.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"