wow, this thread lasted longer than I expected. You all make very good points. I would love to get a hybrid car, but they are still too expensive. The universal conversion kit offered on that website in my first post costs only $4,390. I am by no meas rich, but that isnt that much compared to $20,000 for a brand new hybrid.

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It would be if it didn't take a masive amount of electricity to split the water molecule. And where does all of this electric come from? A dirty power plant

One big problem is that most people (at least in the US) don't want electric cars even though the cost of gas is so high.  One of the biggest (in fact, I believe the biggest) car manufacture in the world, General Motors, just recently cancelled their EV1 car.  The EV1 was their first in a line of electric production cars that they were going to sell.  It was cancelled before even one year of production due to a lack of demand.  Despite the cost of fuel, many still don't want to switch.

Plus, a lot of people have figured out that driving their old "gas guzzler" is cheaper than buy a new car.  I know someone who doesn't have all that much money and he calculated it all out and found that he pays $200 per month for gas to drive his car, which he has had for a long time and dispite its age has kept it reliable.  According to him, it would be much more expensive to buy a new car and have a car payment than to just buy the gas his current vehicle requires.

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There aren't that many nuclear power plants in the world, and many people don't want them due to the risks.  I feel that they are a great souce of power, much better than daming rivers and burning coal, but there have been a couple accidents in the past that make them undesirable. 

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Well, that certainly isnt me. To tell you the truth, I hate gas engines. There loud, smelly, and too damn complicated. I would rather buy a new car, than pour my money into my gas tank. It may cost more, but at least it isnt a gas engine, and eventually it will be payed off. Unfortunately, I cant afford it. Maybe if I didnt have to buy gas, I could save up... Im stuck...

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i agree, loud=better

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I suppose it depends what kind of loud.  Some of those cars you see on the street are just annoying loud.  I'm talking about those little 4-cylinder cars with that stupid "fart pipe" at the end of their exhause that causes the car to make a loud ringing sound-I hate that.  That is the most annoying sound I have ever heard.  But, there is nothing that sounds better than an American V8 with dual exhaust.  They are a loud motor that has a really awesome sound.

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Thats true too.  The only thing I really hate is that ringing that those "fart pipes" (I don't know their real names) make.  You know, those things that people put on the tail pipe of a 4-cylinder Civic and they think it sounds good.

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Well in my case, I have a car that is pretty loud but its not my daily driver.  I only drive it on nice days when I want to, so I don't have to deal with a loud motor all that often.  Plus, its not annoyingly loud it just as a good rumble to it.  I wouldn't want a car that was loud to be daily driver.  For a daily driver, I want the motor to have a good sound but I would want it pretty quiet.