Being forced to heavily reevaluate their business models is something that UK and American companies are accustomed to, after the price of petrol shot up last year. Transport-based companies were hit hardest for obvious reasons and lots had no choice but to cut pay and cut vehicle numbers.

Fleets may need to be reduced even further now and companies pushed even closer towards breaking point as the government announces predicted further cost increases in the coming months. The worst part of it, according to many transport companies is that they are increasingly unable to formulate accurate profit projections. “We get a set of forcasts drawn up and then they mean nothing when petrol goes up so much” argues Jerry Henley, Managing Director of JHG Foods. Around 25% of all companies in the US that were heavily reliant on transport, went into administration last year, which is a figure many predict will be replicated this year as well.

For companies that rely so heavy on petrol prices to turn over a profit, the news of another rise has not been well received. “We cannot survive much longer” claims Judith Grey, MD of UK-based company Grey Kitchens. Our customers expect their furniture to be delivered to them, which is something that is becoming financially unviable for us now. Some companies such as the one mentioned above have taken up van leasing in an attempt to cut their costs. This is because van leasing enables businesses to not buy their vans outright and so this is a useful option if cash-flow is poor. An interesting point to note is that Citroen van leasing has been the most popular choice as on average these vans offer the best MPG. LDV van leasing has also been a strong choice as their reliability is thought to save companies large amounts of money in reduced maintenance costs.

Some people using the term of “hybrid SUVs” take it for other car models. How come? SUVs are luxury vehicles and whoever buys one probably has enough money for maintenance and gasoline.Yet, with the oil prices hitting the roof, more economic vehicles are necessary, and hybrid SUVs happen to match the requirements. Besides, there is this custom and policy all over the world to make people aware of the importance of our energetic resources which we are constantly wasted. People’s concern should thus go in the direction of finding more efficient hybrid vehicles rather than be interested in speed and horsepower.

So with these in mind, people started making some adjusting to powerful vehicles and turn them into hybrid SUVs. When you decide to buy hybrid SUV, you should know that not all of them are cost–efficient in the long run. That means you have to do some research before choosing among the various hybrid SUVs. To be of help in this matter, analysts at automotive-cost tracking Web site IntelliChoice.com performed a study for CNNMoney.com, in which they investigated and compared projected 5-year ownership costs for specific vehicles that were similar in price and maintenance costs to SUVs. The elements followed in this study were fuel, maintenance, finance costs and depreciation. Analysts wanted to learn whether specific costs measured up to their expectations. There was also a comparison between regular and hybrid SUVS. According to their findings, hybrid SUVs beat the broad expectations by about $4,000.

Among the hybrid SUVs available on the market at present, there are a number of vehicles like Acura RD-X, BMW X5 Hybrid, Chevrolet Tahoe/GMC Yukon, Chevrolet Equinox, Dodge Durango, Ford Escape, Lexus RZ 400h, Saturn VUE, to mention just a few of them. So, as you can see almost all the big automobile companies have become interested in doing something about the environment and finance and have already come up with a number of hybrid SUVs on the market. 

How much can hybrid SUVs save in terms of fuel? All the data available are statistical as the calculations are approximated and influenced not only by the initial price but also by the driving specificity of every owner. In a nutshell hybrid SUVs, and hybrid vehicles in general, though bulkier, seem to bear their bigger weight better than conventional vehicles, and this is apparent if we look at the issue of fuel efficiency and costs. In conclusion, if you are interested in hybrid SUVs do not hesitate, but go for them. Hybrid SUVs are definitely worth paying for.