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We look into whether Toyota hybrid owners have ultimately benefited after 10 years+ of ownership.
With the government essentially confirming the end of blanket fuel subsidies, many car buyers are starting to open their minds to electrification. The thing is that pure battery electric vehicles are still not a solid option for most Malaysians. Many don’t have the option for home charging.
Many can see that depreciation over just 1-2 years can be terrible on pure EVs. Others still just don’t like the idea of spending hours of their lives at public charging stations and all the inconvenience that entails. That is why the mainstream conversation around car buying is now around hybrid technology, and this is without a doubt Toyota’s realm of expertise.
Toyota Hybrid Advantage
Toyota has been officially selling hybrid vehicles in Malaysia for more than a decade, starting with the Prius, then the Prius C and even a Camry Hybrid at one point. They also have the Corolla Cross Hybrid, which has proven to be favourite even amongst the most conservative customers.
These vehicles have proven to be reliable and dependable over YEARS of use on Malaysian roads. What’s more, they’re no different to operate than petrol powered cars. There’s no charging required. All you do is fill it up with petrol and service it on time like any other internal combustion engine (ICE) equipped vehicle. Toyota’s hybrids are also laser-focused on fuel consumption, so the savings for high mileage buyers is real.
However, it’s always depreciation that seems to be a topic of concern, so we did a bit of research to get a pretty close to objective answer for you.
Comparative Depreciation
A quick search on classifieds shows some of the oldest Toyota hybrid vehicles that were officially sold here dating back to 2011. 10 to 15 years is about as long as most Malaysian households would want to keep a daily driver around, regardless of how durable and reliable they are. Here’s the data we gathered in table form.
The trend seems to be that the hybrid equivalent should depreciate about 10% more than its petrol equivalent over the course of 10 years.
I’m sure it doesn’t exactly work out to 1% more depreciation per year, but over the course of ten years, the difference in depreciation is about that much.
Real Cost Benefit
That 10% loss in real terms works out to RM4,000 to RM8,000 over ten years. Based on our calculations, you would have broken even on a hybrid by about 50,000km of driving. RM8,000 worth of petrol is just under 4000L. A Corolla Altis has an average fuel efficiency of 8L per 100km. With 4000L of petrol, you would have driven the Corolla Altis 50,000km. Now, in ten years, most cars would have driven closer to 150,000km to 200,000km, so the 10% depreciation loss, in our minds, is fully paid for in fuel savings.
So, should you think about a hybrid for your next Toyota? We think the numbers make sense and will only make MORE sense as fuel prices rise. Let us know what you think.