Green Fail: Only 35 percent of hybrid car owners bought another one last year

Surprisingly, the price of gas does no affect hybrid car loyalty. Only 35 percent of hybrid car owners bought another one last year.

How much do hybrid drivers really, truly like their cars? According to R.L. Polk, not all that much – at least not in 2011.

Polk has released a new hybrid loyalty analysis that concludes that only 35 percent of people who bought a hybrid bought another one last year. The data comes from car purchases made in 2011, and Polk found that Toyota Prius drivers are the most loyal, both to the gas-electric technology and to Toyota itself. Sixty percent of Toyota hybrid owners bought another vehicle from the automaker, even if it wasn't a hybrid. A recent J.D. Power Customer Retention Study found that the average brand loyalty was 49 percent, but that doesn't take powertrains into account.