Gryphen want one! Gryphen want one!

The Japanese automaker also said it would begin making its Prius gas-electric hybrids in a new plant in Mississippi by late 2010 to meet demand for more fuel-efficient vehicles.

I just checked online to see how many more payments I have before my vehicle is paid off and it looks like I will own my SUV free and clear by February of 2009.

So after that I will be the proud owner of a 2001 Dodge Durango. A vehicle which only gets about 13 miles to the gallon in while driving in the city and now takes almost $82.00 to fill up. (It only took about $37.00 the first year I owned it.)

In my defense this is my first all wheel drive vehicle in a city with an enormous amount of snowfall (last year set a record) and streets that can become treacherously icy throughout the winter. I cannot tell you how happy I was to finally have a vehicle that made me feel confident to navigate the icy conditions knowing that it could handle almost anything I encountered.

But now I am completely guilt ridden to be driving around in my gas hog and want to get a vehicle that is much more earth friendly, gets better gas mileage, but can still handle our challenging winters.

So I will keep my eye on the new hybrids and hopefully get one as soon as they are made widely available. (By the way if Toyota could develop more vehicles with a more powerful engine and all wheel drive I know they would sell like hotcakes up here in the frozen north. Currently there is at least a three month waiting list for hybrids.)