Is maintenance more expensive with a hybrid?
Maintaining a hybrid doesn’t cost any more than a conventional car, and may even cost less due to decreased wear and tear on the engine and braking system. You’ll probably want to take your hybrid to a dealer, especially considering that Toyota offers a 100,000 mile warranty on emission components and battery pack, and that Honda offers an 80,000 mile warranty on the same—on top of the traditional 3-year/36,000 mile warranty on the conventional systems. Dealer service centers do usually charge a little more, but classes are popping up all over the country to teach independent car mechanics about hybrids. After all, there are more than one million of these cars on the road, and mechanics have to meet this demand. This timing works out well for new hybrid buyers. By the time your warranty is finished, there will be many more qualified hybrid mechanics available to you.
