Through a study by CNW Marketing called “Dust to Dust,” the total combined energy is taken from all the electrical, fuel, transportation, materials (metal, plastic, etc) and hundreds of other factors over the expected lifetime of a vehicle. The Prius costs an average of $3.25 per mile driven over a lifetime of 100,000 miles - the expected lifespan of the Hybrid.
So that is $325,000 for its lifetime. If gas is at $3/gallon for 40 mile/gal, that's $7,500 of gas in a lifetime leaving $317,500 in non-gasoline costs. If the car is made from "pure energy", i.e. the entire cost of the car is directly attributed to energy cost and nothing else, the energy cost would be about $25,000. That leaves $292,500 in other energy costs for the car's lifetime. What are those costs? Repair parts might be some. Maybe a little hot water to wash your Prius.
When this story originally came out ( Have You Hugged a Hummer Today? (Piercing the Hybrid Hype) ) I looked at it and just about the entire amount of the Prius's energy cost was for disposal. Do you know of any junkyard which asks you for a quarter million dollars to take your junker off your hands?
Ever try to dispose of Ni-Cad batteries properly? That is where the primary costs come in. Batteries die. When they do, they will have to be replaced. The replacement batteries are approx $25k if I remember correctly. And good luck disposing of the old battery without having to sell your home.
Original cost= over $30,000 plus sales taxes.
Registration costs vary by state.
Insurance costs. Made mostly of plastic= expensive to repair.
Replacement of batteries, which I am pretty sure don't last 5 years or 100,000.
normal other costs- tires, tolls, car washes, annual detailing, tuneups, gas, etc.