Nothing goes on a page without a publisher behind it
Every cost, incentive and efficiency figure on What Is The Hybri traces back to a body that produced the number, not to a blog that repeated it. Each guide that makes those claims carries a visible source block at the bottom listing exactly which publishers it leans on and what it takes from each one. If a figure has no source we can point at, it does not go on the page.
The standing register is below. Individual pages cite the subset that applies to them.
| Source | What we take from it |
|---|---|
| Fuel Economy Guide and vehicle mpg database U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency | mpg, MPGe, electric range and annual fuel cost estimates by model year and trim |
| Green Vehicle Guide U.S. Environmental Protection Agency | emissions ratings and how the EPA test cycles that produce mpg numbers are run |
| Clean vehicle tax credits Internal Revenue Service | federal credit amounts, income caps, MSRP caps and the point-of-sale transfer rules |
| Laws and incentives database U.S. Department of Energy, Alternative Fuels Data Center | state rebates, HOV access, registration fees and which programs are still funded |
| Alternative fueling station locator U.S. Department of Energy, Alternative Fuels Data Center | public charger counts, connector types and network coverage by state |
| Gasoline and diesel fuel update U.S. Energy Information Administration | gasoline prices by region and week, which is why we quote ranges and not one price |
| Electricity data and average retail rates U.S. Energy Information Administration | residential electricity rates by state for charging cost math |
| Recalls, investigations and owner complaints National Highway Traffic Safety Administration | open recalls and defect investigations by model and VIN |
| Clean cars and zero-emission vehicle programs California Air Resources Board | CARB-state emissions warranty rules and clean air vehicle decal eligibility |
| Vehicle and battery technology research U.S. Department of Energy | battery durability, charging behavior and cold weather range research |
| Ground vehicle standards SAE International | charging connector and charge level definitions such as J1772 and CCS |
| National Electrical Code National Fire Protection Association | circuit sizing, breaker and permit requirements behind home charger install costs |
| Car reliability and owner satisfaction surveys Consumer Reports | owner-reported reliability and trouble spots by model and model year |
| Vehicle Dependability Study and Initial Quality Study J.D. Power | problems per 100 vehicles by brand, used for ranking direction rather than exact scores |
| Vehicle values and cost-to-own data Kelley Blue Book | resale and depreciation estimates used in the ownership cost tables |
| High occupancy vehicle facility guidance Federal Highway Administration | HOV lane rules and the federal framework states use for clean vehicle exemptions |
| Drive Clean Rebate New York State Energy Research and Development Authority | New York rebate amounts, eligible models and remaining program funding |
Incentive pages go stale faster than anything else
Clean vehicle credits and state rebates are the least stable numbers we publish. Eligibility lists shift as battery sourcing rules tighten, state programs run out of money mid-year, and legislatures cut or cap programs between sessions. A page that was correct in March can be wrong in June without a single word changing.
So the incentive pages are handled differently:
- Every incentive figure is written as a rule plus a gate, not as a promise. Up to $7,500 is the ceiling, not the expected outcome, and the page says which gates knock it down.
- Incentive and cost pages are rechecked against the source at least quarterly, and again whenever a rule change is announced. The date at the top of each page is the last date it was checked, not the date it was first written.
- Where a program is first-come or funding-limited, we say so and send you to the program operator to confirm it is still open. We are not a live incentive tracker and we do not pretend to be one.
- We never tell you a specific car qualifies. We tell you which list to check, because the trim, the battery configuration and the assembly plant all move the answer.
There is no single national fuel price, so we do not quote one
Gasoline prices vary by more than a dollar a gallon between states and swing week to week. Electricity rates vary just as widely by state and by time of day. Any payback calculation that hangs on one national average is a calculation about a place nobody lives.
Our cost pages are therefore built as templates. Where we show a worked example, it is labeled as illustrative and the inputs are visible: the fuel price used, the annual miles, the mpg figures, the years of ownership. Change the inputs and the answer changes, which is the point. Where a figure is genuinely uncertain, we give the range and name the source you should check for your own region rather than picking a midpoint and calling it fact.
The same rule governs install quotes, insurance surcharges and resale values. Those are quoted as bands with the drivers of the spread explained, because a single number would be a guess wearing a decimal point.
Efficiency figures are EPA figures, and we say what they miss
Every mpg, MPGe and electric range number on this site comes from the federal fuel economy program run by the Department of Energy and the EPA, because that is the only set of ratings produced on a standard test cycle across every model. Manufacturer marketing numbers do not go on our pages.
That standard cycle is also its weakness, and we flag it rather than hide it. Rated figures are measured in mild conditions on a set drive pattern. Cold weather, sustained highway speed, roof boxes, hills and a heavy right foot all pull real-world results below the sticker, particularly for plug-in hybrids where the electric range is the part that suffers first. When we say a number will be optimistic for you, that is an interpretation of the test method, and we mark it as such.
Who writes this, and who pays for it
Everything here is published under the byline Ellis Vantorre, which is a writing name rather than a claim about a credentialed expert. The byline page explains exactly what that means and what the role covers. We are not a dealer, a manufacturer, a certified mechanic, a tax advisor or a licensed electrician, and we say so on the pages where it matters.
On funding, plainly: at the time of writing this site carries no advertising, no affiliate links, no sponsored posts and no paid placements. Nobody pays to appear in a buying guide and nobody can pay to be removed from one. The domain and hosting are paid for by the site's owner. If that ever changes, and affiliate links or ads are the most likely change, it will be disclosed on this page and labeled on the pages that carry them before a single link goes live. We would rather lose the revenue than run it quietly.
Corrections
We will get things wrong. Rules change, sources update, and a figure typed at speed can land a digit out. The useful question is what happens next.
- Send corrections to [email protected]. Include the page URL and, if you have it, the source that contradicts us. That single link is worth more than a paragraph of explanation.
- Anything we can verify against a primary source is fixed or pulled. If a claim cannot be sourced, it comes off the page rather than getting softened into something vaguer.
- When a fix changes the substance of a page rather than fixing a typo, the last-updated date moves and the source block is updated to match.
- Corrections go to the front of the queue ahead of everything else in the inbox. We will not invent a turnaround window we would then miss, and on a site this size a general question can sit unanswered, but a claim we cannot stand up comes off the page whether or not we manage to write back.
What we cannot help with: personal purchase decisions on a specific VIN, mechanical diagnosis, or whether your particular tax situation clears an income cap. Those need someone looking at your paperwork, and that is not us.
Next reads on What Is The Hybri
This page describes how we work, not a legal guarantee. Confirm current rules on the source site before you spend money, and talk to a tax professional or a licensed electrician about anything that turns on your own paperwork or wiring.